June Chan was born to Chinese American parents in New York City on June 6, 1956. She was drawn to activism at an early age after experiencing racism from tourists visiting New York City’s Chinatown, where she grew up. Chan attended City College of New York before receiving a master's degree in biology from the State University of New York at Buffalo. After coming out to her family, she worked with Katherine Hall to form Asian Lesbians of the East Coast in 1983. Chan continues to serve as an advocate for LGBTQ+ rights and works as a neurobiology researcher. For more on June Chan, see Timeline: Asian American and Pacific Islander LGBTQ History.