Queer Asian Museum<\/a> is opening on Central Avenue.<\/p>\nWhat You Need To Know<\/p>\n
The Queer Asian Museum is opening in downtown St. Petersburg on Saturday
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The museum features the history of the queer movement in Asia
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The St. Petersburg Arts Alliance said there will now be 13 museums in the city<\/p>\n
They\u2019ve been getting ready to open for months.<\/p>\n
\u201cVery proud, a lot of work,\u201d said Leo Andersen, founder of the Queer Asian Museum.<\/p>\n
Andersen was born in China and served as the director of an LGBTQ center\u00a0there\u00a0before moving to the U.S.<\/p>\n
He said that when that\u00a0center was forced to close, the final members sent\u00a0him\u00a0some of their materials to prevent them from being thrown away.<\/p>\n
\u201cI had eight boxes of things sitting in my garage,\u201d Andersen said.<\/p>\n
In an effort to make use of those items left behind, Andersen has been curating the new museum, featuring LGBTQ organizations as well as objects from the queer movement in Asia.<\/p>\n
One of the museum’s treasures is the first lesbian magazine from China, published in 1999.<\/p>\n
\u201cQueer Asians, as you can see, we have such a rich community and culture. We\u2019re not just two labels put together. We are our own thing,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s the 13th museum that St. Petersburg is adding to its world-famous catalog.<\/p>\n
The executive director of the St. Petersburg Arts Alliance<\/a>, Helen French, said the city is a\u00a0rich\u00a0environment for museums because of the weather and community interest.<\/p>\n\u201cOur citizens and our community members want to hear the stories. I think that kind of percolates when you\u2019re looking for where to put a museum. Why not do it in the city of the arts? Why not come to St. Pete?\u201d said French. \u201cTo tell our story, to be heard, to be seen, creates an environment of healthy living, if you will. So, just like you want to get outside and get a breath of fresh air, you want to hear and see your story in your community.\u201d<\/p>\n
Andersen agrees and wants to see his museum also become a community space for LGBTQ Asians to gather.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur goal is in a year that this place becomes a destination for people to come and visit,\u201d Andersen said.<\/p>\n
While Asian LGBTQ history is long, the Queer Asian Museum is just beginning to write its next chapter.<\/p>\n
The Arts Alliance said it expects the number of museums in the city to continue to grow.<\/p>\n