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Creator
Robinson, Colin (Trinidadian poet)
Call number
SG MG 853
Physical description
22.33 linear feet (53 boxes)
Language
English
Preferred Citation
[Item], Colin Robinson papers, SG MG 853, Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Manuscripts, Archives and Rare Books Division, The New York Public Library
Repository
Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Manuscripts, Archives and Rare Books Division
Access to materials
Request an in-person research appointment.

Colin Robinson (1961-2021) was a Black gay Trinidadian poet and HIV/AIDS activist who moved to New York City in 1981. He was a member of the Gay Men's Health Crisis (GMHC), Gay Men of African Descent (GMAD), the New York State Black Gay Network (NYSBGN), and Caribbean Pride. The Colin Robinson papers, dated from 1972 to 2020, chronicle Robinson's dual careers as a poet and an activist through correspondence, meeting minutes, handwritten and typed poetry drafts, fliers and other ephemera, clippings, and LGBT+ publications.

Biographical/historical information

Colin McNeil Robinson was born on October 8, 1961 to Josceline Robinson, née Stewart, and Carlton M. Robinson in Diego Martin, Trinidad. Robinson graduated from St. Mary's College (College of the Immaculate Conception) in Port of Spain in 1979. After receiving a national scholarship in modern languages, Robinson attended Yale University in 1980, but dropped out after one semester. Robinson moved to New York City in 1981 and began attending New York University on an intermittent basis, earning a degree in anthropology with a minor in German in 1988. He later earned a master's degree in health policy and management from The New School in 1999.

In 1984, Robinson joined the Blackheart Collective, a Black gay men's writing group, and served as editor for Blackheart's journal. He and a few other members of the Blackheart Collective established Other Countries, a writing workshop, in 1986. Other Countries eventually included a publishing initiative and performance programs in gay bars. In 1988, the Other Countries literary journal was awarded a grant from the Council of Literary Magazines and Presses. Robinson had by then become associated with the Black queer activists and writers Essex Hemphill, Ray Melrose, Ron Simmons, Steven Fullwood, Assotto Saint, and Joseph F. Beam. That year, he worked as a news correspondent for Black/Out, a Black queer magazine edited by Beam.

Robinson's poetry focused on the struggles and joy he found in being Black and gay. One of the motifs he returned to often in his work was writing letters to his deceased friends, including Beam, who died in 1988. Robinson appeared in multiple poetry anthologies. In addition to poetry, he also wrote reviews for Gay Community News and other LGBT+ periodicals. Robinson was heavily involved in both Blackheart Collective and Other Countries. He served as an editor for publications and anthologies of these groups, and extensively edited the recieved submissions.

In 1986, Robinson and Rev. Charles Angel founded Gay Men of African Descent (GMAD). In 1994, Robinson met John Manzon-Santos, the founding executive director of the Asian and Pacific Islander Coalition on HIV/AIDS, with whom he co-founded the Audre Lorde Project. After losing a romantic partner to HIV, Robinson began working in HIV/AIDS education and prevention with the Gay Men's Health Crisis throughout the 1990s. He co-founded Caribbean Pride with Godfrey Sealy in 1998; founded the Caribbean Forum for Liberation and Acceptance of Genders and Sexualities (CariFLAGS) in the late 1990s; and served as the co-chair of the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC, now Outright International) from 1998 until 2003. From 2001 to 2006, Robinson served as the executive director for the New York State Black Gay Network (NYSBGN).

Robinson returned to Trinidad in 2007 and founded the Coalition Advocating for Sexual Inclusion (CAISO) in 2009. He served as the organization's executive director until his death.

Robinson published a poetry collection, You Have You Father Hard Head, in 2016. His work appeared in journals and anthologies such as Calabash; Caribbean Erotic: Poetry, Prose, and Essays; The Caribbean Writer; Corpus: an HIV Prevention Publication; and Moko. Robinson also wrote a weekly column for Trinidad and Tobago Newsday from 2018 through 2020.

Colin Robinson died of colon cancer on March 4, 2021, at his sister's home in Washington, DC.

Scope and arrangement

The Colin Robinson papers, dated from 1972 to 2020, chronicles Robinson's time in New York City and his work with other Black gay writers and activist organizations. The collection includes correspondence, clippings, fliers and other ephemera, handwritten notes, meeting minutes, poetry drafts, and an extensive collection of LGBT+ magazines and newspapers from the 1970s and 1990s.

These materials capture Robinson's shift from poetry in the 1970s and 1980s to a growing role in AIDS activism and education work via Writings, Activism and Community Organizing, Periodicals and Publications, and Personal files.

The Colin Robinson papers are arranged in four series:

  • Series I: Writing
    1982-2007

    The Writing series dates from 1982 to 2007 and holds writings by both Robinson and by others. It is arranged topically into Robinson's own writing; materials related to his positions within the leadership of Black gay writing groups the Blackheart Collective and Other Countries; his editing work for Joseph Beam's Black/Out; and writing by Robinson's friends. Robinson annotated and edited many of the manuscripts and drafts he was sent.

    Calls for submission, contributor biographies, correspondence, drafts, meeting minutes, press, and reviews are held here for each of the writing collective projects.

    Materials related to Robinson's 2016 poetry collection, You Have You Father Hard Head, are not present.

  • Series II: Activism and Community Organizing
    1977-2020

    Materials related to Robinson's decades of AIDS activism work are held in Series II, which dates from 1977 to 2020. The series highlights his roles in Gay Men of African Descent (GMAD); Gay Men's Health Crisis (GMHC); New York State Black Gay Network (NYSBG); and Caribbean Pride. Event flyers, newsletters, and other publications by affiliated organizations or those with similar goals are held seperately, as are materials related to various conferences Robinson attended. There is often overlap in the organization names, and an organization evolving into one with a new name is not uncommon.

    Files for these organizations are represented by fiscal documentation, event flyers, meeting minutes, newsletters, strategic planning and steering committee documents, and project documentation. Flyers promoting safe sex and resources for those with AIDS produced by GMHC, and similar flyers aimed specifically at Black gay men produced by GMAD, are of particular note.

    In addition to grassroots organizing work that helped to connect gay men and women in his community, Robinson, through his roles at the New York State Black Gay Network (NYSBGN) and the Caribbean Forum of Lesbians, All-Sexuals, and Gays (C-FLAG), also periodically acted as an adivisor to federal legislators crafting policies. Meeting minutes and notes on conversation priorities with the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) are held with the NYSBGN files. Trinidadian legislation are held with the C-FLAG files.

    As a part of Robinson's work the Caribbean Pride, he organized protests against artists who used violent homophobic lyrics in their music. Clippings, calls to action, and flyers for the No More Murder Music protest are present.

    Robinson and the NYSBGN were involved in a legal dispute over the payment of loans by Robinson to the organization. Materials related to the suit are held in this series.

  • Series III: Periodicals and Publications
    1972-2007

    Series III is dated from 1972 to 2007 and contains Robinson's extensive collection of Black and LGBT+ periodicals, newspapers, and clippings. Titles include Afterimage, Frontiers, Gay Community News, Out/Look, and SBC. Robinson collected full issues of these publications to document Black and gay culture in the 1980s and 1990s, the majority of which covered New York City, though other cities, regions, and countries are also represented. Robinson clipped reports about prominent news, events, and issues facing the Black and gay communities during this time, as well as items of personal importance, such as obituaries of his friends.

    Some sexually explicit magazines are present in the collection. These are noted at the item level.

  • Series IV: Personal
    1980-2006

    Series IV contains Robinson's personal materials and is dated from 1980 to 2006. This series is arranged topically into Biographical Files, Correspondence, Education, and Ephemera. This includes correspondence with friends; files from Robinson's two-year stint with the Ronald K. Brown Dance Company; articles, fellowship applications, and syllabi related to Robinson's education; the Gay Study Group at Columbia University; personality assessments; the 1994 Lambda Award for contributions to the Brooklyn LGBT+ community; and resumes.

    Robinson also extensively collected community newsletters and event flyers promoting educational events, exhibits, parties, performances, showcases, and other events of community interest.

Administrative information

Source of acquisition

Donated by the estate of Colin Robinson.

Processing information

Processed by Em Longan in 2024 and 2025.

Separated material

See the Moving Image and Recorded Sound Division for the audio and moving image materials.

Related Material

See the Moving Image and Recorded Sound Division for the Other Countries audio and moving image collection, Sc MIRS Other 1997-53.

See the Moving Image and Recorded Sound Division for the Gay Men of African Descent moving image collection, Sc MIRS Gay 2000-31.

Using the collection

Location

Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Manuscripts, Archives and Rare Books Division
515 Malcolm X Boulevard, New York, NY 10037-1801
Second Floor