“With women on campus and the spirit of Stonewall in the air, the moment was right for gay liberation to come to Princeton. Old taboos came tumbling down when on May 12, 1972 the Prince ran a classified ad reading ‘CLOSET QUEENS UNITE!’ This ad sparked the formation of the Gay Alliance of Princeton (GAP), a ‘viable social alternative’ to the closet for gay men and women at Princeton.”
Origins of Queer Princeton Alumni
In the fall of 1985, Dick Limoges '60 approached Shawn Cowls '87 regarding how to contribute to the gay and lesbian student groups (the men's group at the time known as the Gay Alliance of Princeton, or GAP, while the women's group was Gay Women of Princeton) and have the University take note of it. Cowls, who at the time was the men's group president, was interested in a way of bringing more continuity to the student group via more involvement with alumni.
The two of them, along with GWOP president Margaret Miller '86, met with Dean Muriel Whitcomb on December 9, 1985 to discuss formation of an alumni support group for the gay student groups.
On Alumni Day, 1986, a reception and meeting of alumni on the GAP list at the time was held. Ten alumni participated in the meeting. During the months preceding the meeting it became clear that University restrictions on the formation of such a group would be prohibitive of accomplishing the desired goals, so at the meeting it was decided to incorporate separately from the University as an independent not-for-profit corporation.
It was also decided that the organization should be separate from New York's Princeton GALA, a primarily social organization for gay and lesbian Princetonians. The purpose would be to "support and finance gay related activities on Princeton University's campus... (and) also encourage alums across the country and around the world to take an interest in what is happening at the University, with the intent to create a body of University-related people which could influence the University's position towards gays (students, faculty, and alums) and the study of gay related issues."
The next meeting was held on April 6, 1986, at the Princeton Club of New York at which the structure of the organization was decided. The organization was officially incorporated on May 28, 1986.
On November 20, 1986, the Honorable William J. Thom, Civil Court Judge of the City of New York, hosted an event at his home officially announcing the formation of The Fund for Reunion, Inc.
The organization logo incorporating a version of the Princeton shield and Greek letter lambda was designed by Robert Hotes '85.
In the Fall of 2023 the organization adopted the new name of Queer Princeton Alumni and a new logo (a combination of the progress flag and Princeton shield).
Formation history provided by Shawn Cowls '87