Colombian-born Guillermo Vasquez immigrated to the United States in 1972 to study international law and political science at Pace and Columbia universities. A long-time resident of Jackson Heights, Queens, Vasquez was a leading advocate for the borough’s Latino community and was instrumental in pushing for LGBT visibility in Queens. A member of Queens Gays and Lesbians United (Q-GLU), Vasquez worked with the New York City Gay and Lesbian Anti-Violence Project (now the New York City Anti-Violence Project), and served on the board of the Empire State Pride Agenda, a statewide organization that advocated for LGBT rights. In 1993, as a member of the Queens Lesbian and Gay Pride Committee, he helped organize the first Queens Pride Parade and served as a translator for Spanish-speaking participants.
During the early years of the AIDS crisis, the New York City Department of Health cited Jackson Heights, Queens, as the neighborhood with the greatest concentration of at-risk gay Latinos. In order to spread awareness to this community, Vasquez founded the Latino Commission on AIDS and the U.S. Colombian SIDA/AIDS Foundation. He was also the coordinator of community outreach for the GMHC (Gay Men's Health Crisis) and spent many evenings educating people about HIV/AIDS, most often at a gay Latino bar called the Love Boat at the corner of 77th Street and Broadway in Elmhurst. On July 27, 2013, seventeen years after Vasquez’s death from AIDS-related complications, this intersection was co-named in honor of Guillermo Vasquez.

Borough of Queens