Community care
Queer Resources in Knoxville
Community-centered coffee means community-centered care.
Stone’s Throw Coffee is not a crisis center, clinic, legal office, shelter, or counseling provider. But we believe a good community space should help people find support when they need it.
This page gathers LGBTQIA2S+ resources in Knoxville and East Tennessee — community groups, health care, mental health support, trans and nonbinary resources, queer history, legal advocacy, sober social connection, and crisis support.
LGBTQIA2S+ community
Local hubs for connection, mutual aid, events, and our shared history.
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Knox Pride
Knoxville’s central LGBTQIA2S+ hub — the Knox Pride Center and Thriftique. Support groups (Trans/NB, a Rainbow Teen Social Club, the KQYA young-adult meetup, a Friendship Circle for neurodivergent and autistic folks, and Queer Cinema Club), mental health services, life-skills classes, a food and clothing pantry, a directory of local social groups, community events, and resource fairs.
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SoKno Pride
South Knoxville’s own LGBTQIA+ community organization, behind the SoKno Pride Festival on Sevier Avenue — performances, local vendors, and neighborhood celebration. Partners with Knox Pride on LGBTQIA+ micro-grants.
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Knoxville Rainbow Library + Archive
A lending library of thousands of queer books, with a searchable catalog, multiple branches (including a KnoxFill location at 6204 Chapman Highway), and a 24-hour drop box. Close to our heart as a book-and-coffee shop.
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Knoxville Queer History
Working to “collect, preserve, and share East Tennessee’s Queer History and Culture” — 53 oral histories and counting, plus artifacts and documents tracing queer life across Knoxville and Appalachia.
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Knoxville LGBTQ+ Friendly Business Directory
A directory of LGBTQ+-owned and LGBTQ+-friendly businesses across Knoxville — a way to find and support affirming places to shop, eat, gather, and do business.
Health, HIV, STI & gender-affirming care
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Choice Health Network / Positively Living
Comprehensive local care: HIV care and prevention, testing, harm reduction, pharmacy, telehealth, mental health, housing, peer support, food, and transportation. A Tennessee HIV/AIDS Center of Excellence.
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Planned Parenthood — Knoxville Health Center
Reproductive and sexual health care — contraception and emergency contraception, STI and HIV testing, and gender-affirming care, in person and via Tennessee telehealth.
Mental health & support groups
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UT Psychological Clinic
Low-cost, sliding-scale therapy and psychological testing open to the Knoxville community, with LGBTQ-affirming therapists. No insurance required.
Legal & advocacy
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ACLU of Tennessee — LGBT Youth Resource Center
For students, parents, educators, and administrators: know-your-rights materials, GSA support, and guidance for LGBTQ youth who have the right to be safe and visible in schools.
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Tennessee Equality Project
Statewide LGBTQ legislative advocacy — lobbying the Tennessee General Assembly and local governments, and helping people contact officials on LGBTQ policy.
Social, arts & community connection
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Appalachian Equality Chorus
An Appalachian LGBTQ+ chorus rooted in inclusion, empathy, and community partnership. Began in 2012 as the Knoxville Gay Men’s Chorus and grew into something broader.
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Lesbian Social Group of Knoxville
A long-running, casual sapphic community group — women’s dances, hikes, bike rides, cookouts, and support. Around since 1997.
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Sapphics of Knoxville
A community for sapphics — lesbian, bisexual, nonbinary, and GNC folks — to connect through meetups around town (look for gatherings at spots like Fable Hollow). Find current events on Meetup.
Crisis & national support
Free, confidential, and available when you need someone right now.
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The Trevor Project
Crisis support for LGBTQ+ young people — counselors available 24/7/365 by text, chat, or phone. Free and confidential.
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Trans Lifeline
A trans-led peer-support hotline connecting trans people to support and resources — answered by trans people, with no intake questions and no non-consensual emergency calls.
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988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline
Immediate mental-health crisis support, 24/7. LGBTQI+ youth and young adults can reach a counselor by call, text, or chat.
Stone’s Throw Coffee shares these as a community service; we don’t run or endorse every program, and details change. Links and details last reviewed June 2026 — if something here is out of date, let us know and we’ll fix it.