Rainbows & Revolutions

Upcoming Exhibition

Aug 5, 2023

LGBTQ+ people have always been part of Colorado communities. They have pushed against stereotypes, transforming the way mainstream society views them. Rainbows & Revolutions is about more than just Pride– the exhibit explores how LGBTQ+ people’s very existence in Colorado has been a rebellious act beyond the rainbow, from quiet assertions of identity to loud and proud demonstrations for civil rights and equality.

This installation of the exhibit will feature new artifacts and stories collected from the LGBTQ+ community of Pueblo.

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Free Exhibition

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Seven individuals in 1970s clothing and fashion stand in front of a doorway, huddled close together and smiling. A man in the front row wears a shirt reading "I am 'One'. Are You?" — The opening of the Gay and Lesbian Community Center of Colorado, 1977. This would later become The Center on Colfax.

History Colorado 10052686

A stained glass window, depicting two women's heads facing each other. One has blue hair, the other has blonde hair. They are faceless. — The stained glass window from the Woman to Woman Feminist Bookcenter.

A collection of colorful political buttons on a white surface. They read: "Women Against Violence Against Women (Disarm Rapists)" ; "Happy 5th Birthday Woman to Woman Sept. 1980" ; "How dare you presume me to be heterosexual" ; "Woman to Woman" ; "Come Out" ; "Stars & Dykes Forever" ; "Sexism is a Social Disease"; "An Army of Lovers Cannot Lose" ; and "Dyke" — Vicki Piotter, who operated Woman to Woman Feminist Bookcenter and was involved with Big Mama Rag, a feminist newspaper, donated these buttons to History Colorado.

History Colorado 2021.92

A leather vest, with words on the back in rhinestones: "Mr Rocky Mtn Drummer, 1997." [sic] — The Mister Drummer competition was enormously popular within the leather community during the 1980s and 90s, until it ended in 2001. Regional Mister Drummer winners competed in San Francisco every year for the Mister Drummer International title. Orie Thompson, from Denver, won the event in 1997.

History Colorado 2020.29.1

A man with a mustache wearing 1980s/90s leather scene fashion, including a leather shirt, hat, and gloves. — Orie Thompson, from Denver, won the Mr. Drummer competition in 1997.

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Everyday you wake up alive, relatively happy, and a functioning human being, you are committing a rebellious act. You as an alive and functioning queer are a revolutionary.

Queers Read This (Anonymous Leaflet, June 1990)