GRIOT Circle, Inc.

GRIOT Circle, Inc. GRIOT Circle provides support and advocacy to LGBTQ older adults of color

Repost from Q***r Voices: New York CityThis Black History Month, Q***r Voices: NYC is launching Black Q***r Futures, a F...
02/20/2026

Repost from Q***r Voices: New York City

This Black History Month, Q***r Voices: NYC is launching Black Q***r Futures, a FREE virtual film series in collaboration with PBS: POV/American Documentary and The Center for Inclusion at BMCC! ✊🏽🖤

From Feb 18–28, stream five powerful films and join a live conversation with the artists on Feb 25 at 6pm.

Featuring:
Pier Kids — Elegance Bratton
A Mother Apart — Laurie Townsend
Who I Am Not — Tünde Skovrán
Jardines — Alfredo Torres
MNM — Twiggy Pucci Garçon

Black q***r stories deserve to be seen — and this month, they’re coming straight to your home 🖤👇🏽

🎟️ FREE registration: https://qvnycblackhistorymonth.eventive.org/welcome

🗓 Dates: Feb 18–28, 2026
💻 Virtual screenings (available anywhere in the U.S.)

🎤 Live talkback: Feb 25 at 6pm with participating filmmakers.

No travel. No cost. Just community, conversation, and stories that matter 💖

***r

Yesterday, our Men’s Group welcomed members of the LGBTQIA+ Police Community Outreach Division for an open conversation ...
02/19/2026

Yesterday, our Men’s Group welcomed members of the LGBTQIA+ Police Community Outreach Division for an open conversation about mentoring, life, and aging. It was a meaningful discussion, and our members truly enjoyed it. Thank you for joining us!

Our Men’s Group is a welcoming space for Black men 50+ to connect, share, and grow together.

Interested in joining? We meet Wednesdays from 1:30 PM–3:00 PM. Contact our Program Coordinator, Melissa Parke, melissa@griotcircle.org

Bowling at Melody Lane Join GRIOT Circle at Melody Lanes for bowling with friends! Please note that this outing will be ...
02/18/2026

Bowling at Melody Lane

Join GRIOT Circle at Melody Lanes for bowling with friends! Please note that this outing will be $5 per person.

Date: Monday, February 23rd
Time: 1:00PM-3:00PM
Location: 461 37th Street. Brooklyn, NY
Take B63 or N,R,D to 36th Street

Please email Melissa Parke, melissa@griotcircle.org to RSVP

Grow Brooklyn is offering FREE IRS-certified VITA/TCE tax preparation services for eligible New Yorkers from January 25,...
02/17/2026

Grow Brooklyn is offering FREE IRS-certified VITA/TCE tax preparation services for eligible New Yorkers from January 25, 2026 through April 15, 2026.

If you earned:

$97,000 or less (with dependents),
$68,000 or less (single), or
Are self-employed with expenses of $50,000 or less,
you may qualify!

Appointments are required — no walk-ins. IRS-certified volunteers will help ensure you claim the credits you deserve, including education and child-care credits.

📅 Schedule online: growbrooklyn.org/freetaxes
📞 Call: 347-682-5606

BAM SENIOR CINEMA showing: Judas and the Black Messiah Join us for a BAM Senior Cienma. This month showing will be Juda...
02/12/2026

BAM SENIOR CINEMA showing: Judas and the Black Messiah

Join us for a BAM Senior Cienma. This month showing will be Judas and the Black Messiah, A powerful film about Fred Hampton, the rising leader of the Illinois Black Panther Party. It explores resistance, betrayal, and the fight for Black liberation amid government surveillance.

Date: Friday, February 20th
Time: 10:00AM-12:00PM
Location: 30 Lafayette Ave, Brooklyn, NY (Peter Jay Sharp Building)

Please email Melissa Parke, melissa@griotcircle.org to RSVP

We had a fantastic turnout at our first BIV @ The Griot Circle in our new space!Members had the opportunity to share lov...
02/11/2026

We had a fantastic turnout at our first BIV @ The Griot Circle in our new space!

Members had the opportunity to share love poems, participate in improv music sessions, and take part in a special blessing of our new home.

We had a wonderful time and are excited about this new partnership with Broadway Inspirational Voices!

This past weekend, GRIOT Circle had the pleasure of seeing Lavender Light Gospel Choir live on stage in Manhattan for t...
02/10/2026

This past weekend, GRIOT Circle had the pleasure of seeing Lavender Light Gospel Choir live on stage in Manhattan for their 40th Anniversary Concert. What an incredible night! Thank you, Lavender Lights, for sharing your music and being in community with us.

Buddy-to-buddy: Photoshoot John us for a professional buddy-to-buddy photoshoot led by photographer and GRIOT member Do...
02/09/2026

Buddy-to-buddy: Photoshoot

John us for a professional buddy-to-buddy photoshoot led by photographer and GRIOT member Dorothy Francis. Enjoy community-building activities and refreshments while you capture a meaningful moment with your buddy.

Date: Friday, February 20th
Time: 2:00PM-4:30PM
Location: 25 Flatbush Ave, 3rd Floor

Please email Melissa Parke, melissa@grioetcircle.org to RSVP

GRIOT members had a wonderful time visiting the Seydou Keita exhibition at the Brooklyn Museum last Friday. Members had ...
02/09/2026

GRIOT members had a wonderful time visiting the Seydou Keita exhibition at the Brooklyn Museum last Friday. Members had the opportunity to explore his powerful photographic works and personal artifacts, while also learning more about his artistic legacy and impact on this community.

If you are interested in joining GRIOT for our next outing, please contact our program coordinator, Melissa Parke at mparke@griotcircle.org to be added to our mailing list and stay informed about our daily activities and upcoming events.

Please join GRIOT Circle in celebrating amazing local nonprofits at the Brooklyn Org Spark Breakfast on Tuesday, March 3...
02/06/2026

Please join GRIOT Circle in celebrating amazing local nonprofits at the Brooklyn Org Spark Breakfast on Tuesday, March 3, 2026 from 8am - 10am at the Barclays Center.

It promises to be an inspiring morning lifting up the life-changing dedication of our nonprofit community that makes Brooklyn so special–you don’t want to miss it!.

The Brooklyn Org Spark Breakfast is the annual celebration of the five newest winners of this $100,000 ‘no strings attached’ prize, representing the best of our borough, with a focus on racial justice and community-led change.

This year’s winners are Asiyah Women's Center, Black Trans Femmes in the Arts (BTFA), Surveillance Technology Oversight Project (S.T.O.P.), The B.R.O. Experience Foundation, and YVote.

Brooklyn Org, which created the prize in 2016 and has since awarded over $5M to winners and finalists, is a platform and partner for local philanthropy, bringing together Brooklynites to become champions for change in our communities.

I hope that you join us on March 3rd as we recognize the newest cohort of stand-out organizations blazing a trail for equity and racial justice in Brooklyn and beyond. Click here to attend or make a gift today – they cannot do it without public support!
https://brooklyn.org/sparkprize/

GRIOT Circle is proud to collaborate with and host The Audre Lorde Project as they celebrate their annual tribute to Aud...
02/04/2026

GRIOT Circle is proud to collaborate with and host The Audre Lorde Project as they celebrate their annual tribute to Audre Lorde’s 92nd birthday on February 21st.

This gathering invites QTBIPOC to come together in creativity, connection, and collective care. The Audre Lorde Project will be hosting a Freedom Zine workshop, speed friending, and guided reflections on safety, resistance, and liberation. There will also be free individual healing sessions, including Reiki, acupuncture, and massages.

In honor of Audre Lorde, there will be a community altar, and all those in attendance are encouraged to bring an item that most resonates with her legacy.

Date: Saturday, February 21st

Time: 3:00PM - 7:00PM

Location: 25 Flatbush Ave, 3rd Floor

For GRIOT members attending, please email Melissa Parke, melissa@griotcircle.org.

Masks are required and provided, along with rapid testing at the door! We keep us safe!

Join us this Friday for North America’s most expansive exhibition of the legendary Malian photographer Seydou Keïta. Fea...
02/03/2026

Join us this Friday for North America’s most expansive exhibition of the legendary Malian photographer Seydou Keïta. Featuring over 280 photographs, textiles, and personal artifacts—many never before seen—this exhibition transports viewers to Bamako from the late 1940s to the early 1960s, a time of profound change.

Keïta captured Mali’s transformation with striking style, gesture, and self-expression, creating portraits that helped redefine global photography. Don’t miss this chance to experience this iconic work up close!

Date: Friday, February 6th
Time: 12:30PM-3:00PM
Location: Brooklyn Museum. Meet in the front entrance as 12:00PM.

Please email Melissa Parke, melissa@griotcircle.org to RSVP

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+17182462775

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History

GRIOT (Gay Reunion In Our Time) Circle was founded as an informal gathering of elders and was officially recognized as a nonprofit 501(c)(3) in 1996. GRIOT Circle remains the only organization exclusively dedicated to serving the needs of elder LGBTQ people of color.

Most of our members reside in New York’s metropolitan area, though GRIOT has members throughout the country. Nearly all our members are from modest-to-low income households; more than 50% are retired; and about 90% identify as black, African American or Caribbean American.

We provide emotional support and quality programming that affirm the lives of this often invisible and marginalized population. GRIOT is committed to honoring and preserving our histories and traditions while reuniting those parts of our selves that have been fragmented by racism and homophobia. We maintain a space, free of discrimination based on age, gender, race, sexuality, spirituality, and ethnic origin. Everyone is welcome.