Despite weathering harassment from some students, he was supported by a strong network of friends and found unexpected support from Dean Gordon Bingham, who encouraged him to get a charter and funds for an official LGBTQ group. “My experience at Hamilton created a personal imperative for me — that I had to be an activist,” he said.
Burns went on to become managing editor of the national newsweekly Gay Community News in Boston, before co-founding GLAD Law in 1978, the first legal organization to advocate for LGBTQ rights in New England. After graduating from Northeastern University School of Law, he led the LGBT Community Center in New York, the hub for AIDS activism in the 1980s, for 22 years.
His latest venture has been spearheading creation of the American LGBTQ+ Museum, set to open in 2028 on the top floor of the New York Historical Society on New York’s Upper West Side. The 5,000 square-foot space will consist of a permanent exhibit showcasing LGBTQ history, as well as rotating exhibits and online and educational resources.
“We want to preserve and herald the stories of the incredibly courageous queer people who came before us, so that every person who comes to the museum can see themselves in this cultural mirror and see they can have a life filled with success and joy and love.”
“We knew from the start this wasn’t just going to be a repository of old things,” he said. “It had to be the cultural arm of our movement for LGBTQ liberation and equality.”
To fulfill that goal, Burns helped assemble a national board of directors that includes a diverse range of queer experience, race, gender and age to ensure that “all of the voices of our community are at the table as we build an institution that preserves, celebrates and examines our lives and our movement during a time when LGBTQ identity is again under attack.”
“Culture has to be a mirror in which we can see ourselves reflected,” Burns said. “We want to preserve and herald the stories of the incredibly courageous queer people who came before us, so that every person who comes to the museum can see themselves in this cultural mirror and see they can have a life filled with success and joy and love.”
Posted October 27, 2026
