It is the United States' oldest continuously-active organization devoted to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBTQ) civil rights.

[2] Though Kameny was not elected, his supporters turned the political campaign into what was then called the Gay Activists Alliance.

As Ian Lekus puts it, the organization worked to challenge the assumed meaning of community towards one that was an action rather than a group.

[5] The group also functions as a political watchdog to make sure that the District's police department and other agencies work with and not against the LGBT community.

[3] In 2000, Superintendent Arlene Ackerman instituted an anti-harassment policy at all District of Columbia public schools.

The Alliance website was recognized as one of two out of 23 "homosexual" sites chosen for analysis that included lesbian issues in a health concerns section.

For example, in 1991 it ran a significant advertising campaign to place signs reading "Everytime You Think 'Dyke' or 'Faggot' Remember, We Belong to Someone's Family.