Columbia Queer Alliance

[2][3] During its first year, the Student Homophile League had about ten members who fought with university administrators until the group was officially recognized.

[1] Stephen Donaldson, a bisexual-identified LGBT rights activist, is commemorated by a plaque and a portrait in the queer student lounge that bears his name, in one of Columbia's residence halls, for spearheading the creation of the group.

[4] One of the key issues over which Donaldson clashed with the administration was the right to keep members' names confidential.

[3] When the group's charter was finally granted in April 1967, Donaldson sent an announcement to every media outlet he knew, but the only response was a radio interview on WNEW, a New York station,[3] and an article in the Columbia Daily Spectator, which reported that some students believed the new group was an April Fools' Day joke.

[3] Among other activities, the Columbia Queer Alliance has hosted "First Friday Dances" for decades, which at their inception were one of the few places where college-age LGBT people could socialize with one another.