The Foundation

Paul Rapoport, an attorney, was a founder of both the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Services Center in New York City and Gay Men's Health Crisis. He was deeply committed to supporting the lesbian, gay, transgender and bisexual (LGTB) communities, with a particular focus on efforts to eliminate homophobia and discrimination against gay men, lesbians, bisexuals, and transgender persons. Mr. Rapoport made significant charitable contributions during his lifetime and provided for the establishment of the Foundation after his death in 1987. The Foundation works to support his concerns and further his dreams.

In 2009, due to the major economic turndown of the preceding year, the Foundation announced it would seek to maximize its impact on and for the LGTB community by spending down all of its assets as of 2014.

To insure that the spend out would have the maximum impact on the most vulnerable of LGTB populations, the Foundation undertook a needs assessment in the summer of 2009 that identified priority population groups, the most critical issues they face and the strategies identified by these communities as best suited to addressing their needs. The results of the needs assessment are articulated in the Foundation's new guidelines. The Foundation's grantmaking strategy continues to be guided by the over-arching principles of racial and economic equity within the LGTB community.

View Remembering Paul Rapoport

Ryan Chavez, Soraya Elcock, Joann Prinzivalli, Matthew P. Schaab, Kimberleigh J. Smith, B. Kevin Sterns.

Vision and Mission

The Paul Rapoport Foundation envisions a world free of discrimination toward any group or individual.

In this context, the Foundation's mission is the achievement of full equality for the LGTB community, in all of its diversity, including men who have sex with men and women who have sex with women and people questioning their sexual identity.

To this end, the Foundation supports programs and organizations working in the areas of social services, healthcare, legal rights and issues, and community empowerment for three populations of low or no income: (1) transgender communities of color; (2) LGTBQ youth of color, ages 24 and under; and (3) LGTB seniors of color aged 60 and over. The Foundation is also interested in supporting advocacy for and by these three populations and in strengthening institutions within the LGTB community which serve these three populations.