From 2003 to the time of her death, Retter served as the head librarian and archivist of the Chicano Studies Research Center at the University of California, Los Angeles.
Yolanda died after a short battle with cancer surrounded by women she chose, including her partner of thirteen years: Leslie Golden Stampler.
Publications
"Childcare." Encyclopedia of Feminist Theories. ed. Lorraine Code. New York: Routledge, 2002.
Gay and Lesbian Rights in the United States: A Documentary History with Walter Lee Williams (Eds.). Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2003.
Great Events in History: Gay Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender Events. with Lillian Faderman, Horacio Roque Ramirez, et all (Eds.). Pasadena: Salem Press, 2006
Identity Development of Lifelong vs. Catalyzed Latina Lesbians. M.A. Thesis. University of California Los Angeles, 1987.
“Lesbian Activism in Los Angeles (1970-1979),” Queers in Space: Communities, Public Places, Sites of Resistance. eds. Anne-Marie Bouthillette, Gordon Brent Ingram, and Yolanda Retter. Bay Press, 1997.
"Los Angeles." Encyclopedia of Lesbian Histories and Cultures, ed. Bonnie Zimmerman. NY: Routledge, 2000. 479-480.
On the Side of Angels: Lesbian Activism in Los Angeles, 1970-1990. Ph.D dissertation, University of New Mexico, 1998.
"Sisterhood is Possible." Time It Was: American Stories from the Sixties. eds. Karen Manners Smith and Tim Koster. London: Pearson, 2007.
"Lesbians." Oxford Encyclopedia of Latinos and Latinas in the United States. New York: Oxford, 2005.
"Martinez, Betita." Encyclopedia of Activism and Social Justice. eds. Gary L. Anderson and Kathryn G. Herr. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications, 2007.
"Preservation of LGBT History: The ONE Archive." Pathways to Progress: Issues and Advances in Latino Librarianship. eds. John L. Ayala and Salvador Güereña. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, 2012.
Lesbian News articles by Retter
"Activist and Tenant's Rights Attorney Lisa Korben Dies at 55." Jun. 2005, Vol. 30, Issue 11, p. 15.
"ACW Founder Brenda Weathers Dies." May 2005, Vol. 30, Issue 10, p. 17.
"Alice Dunbar-Nelson." Dec. 1998, Vol. 24, Issue 5, p. 60.