30 days of celebrating Black LGBTQ+ individuals who paved the way for each and everyone of us. They fought for our rights and it’s about time we honour and thank them for it
#BlackLivesMatter #PrideMonth

Day 1:
Marsha P. Johnson (1945-1992)

• outspoken transgender rights activist
• one of the central figures of the historic Stonewall uprising of 1969
• She was on the front lines of protests against oppressive policing
• Created the first LGBT youth shelter in North America

Day 2:
Audre Lorde
(1934-1992)

• A self-described “black, lesbian, mother, warrior, poet”
• dedicated both her life and her creative talent to confronting and addressing injustices of racism, sexism, classism, and homophobia
• wrote poems on civil and social injustices

Day 3:
Bayard Rustin
(1912-1987)

• an LGBTQ and civil rights activist best known for being a key adviser to Reverend Martin Luther King Jr
• Though he was arrested several times for his own civil disobedience and open sexuality, he continued to fight for equality

Day 4:
James Baldwin
(1924-1987)

• American novelist, playwright, essayist, poet, and activist
• Baldwin's literary themes of race and oppression earned him a place among civil rights leader
• Wrote about the intersecting ideas of class, race, and sexuality.

Day 5:
Laverne Cox
(Born 1972)

• an American actress and LGBTQ+ advocate
• became the first openly transgender person to be nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award in any acting category
• became the first openly transgender person to appear on the cover of Time magazine

Day 6:
Angela Davis
(Born 1944)

• political activist, philosopher, academic, and author
• Known for books like Women, Race & Class, she has worked as a professor and activist who advocates gender equity, prison reform and alliances across color lines

Day 7:
Andrea Jenkins
(Born 1961)

• policy aide, politician, writer, performance artist, poet, and transgender activist
• first black openly transgender woman elected to public office in the United States

Day 8:
Lorraine Hansberry
(1930-1965)

• playwright and writer
• She was the first African-American female author to have a play performed on Broadway
• The first black playwright and the youngest American to win a New York Critics’ Circle award

Day 8:
Josephine Baker
(1906-1975)

• American-born French entertainer, French Resistance agent, and civil rights activist
• devoted much of her life to fighting racism
• participated in demonstrations and boycotting segregated clubs and concert venues

RuPaul
(Born 1960)

• American drag queen, actor, model, singer, songwriter, and television personality
• producer and host of the reality competition series “RuPaul's Drag Race”. which has received six Primetime Emmy Awards
• brought exposure for drag queens

June Jordan
(1936-2002)

• Jamaican American self-identified bisexual poet, essayist, teacher, and activist
• she explored issues of gender, race, immigration, and representation in her writing
• was passionate about using Black English in her writing and poetry

Assotto Saint
(1957-1994)

• Haitian-born American poet, publisher and performance artist, who was a key figure in LGBT and African-American art and literary culture of the 1980s and early 1990s
• Saint was among the first Black activists to disclose his HIV positive status

Stormé DeLarverie
(1920-2014)

• lifelong gay rights activist and drag performer
• served the community as a volunteer street patrol worker
• organized and performed at fundraisers for women who suffered from domestic violence and their children

Alvin Ailey
(1931-1989)

• African-American dancer, director, choreographer, and activist
• founded the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre
• In his work, he blended primitive, modern and jazz elements of dance with a concern for black rural America

Billy Porter
(Born 1969)

• American Broadway theater performer, singer, and actor
• became the first openly gay black man to be nominated and win in any lead acting category at the Primetime Emmys

Angelica Ross
(Born 1980)

• American businesswoman, actress, and transgender rights advocate
• CEO of TransTech Social Enterprises, a firm that helps employ transgender people in the tech industry
• first female transgender actress to secure two series regular roles

MJ Rodriguez
(Born 1991)

• American actress and singer
• known for her role as Blanca Rodriguez-Evangelista in the television drama Pose, where she is among the largest cast of transgender actors
• first openly transgender woman to win Best Actress - TV at the Imagen Awards

Lil Nas X
(Born 1999)

• American rapper, singer, and songwriter
• Nas X came out as gay while "Old Town Road" was atop the Hot 100, becoming the only artist to do so while having a number-one record
• first and only openly LGBTQ artist to win a Country Music Association award

Janelle Monáe
(Born 1985)

• American singer, songwriter, rapper, actress, and producer
• Monáe has received eight Grammy Award nominations
• also honored with the Billboard Women in Music Rising Star Award in 2015 and the Trailblazer of the Year Award in 2018

Alicia Garza
(Born 1981)

• American civil rights activist and writer known for co-founding the international Black Lives Matter movement
• organized around the issues of ending police brutality, anti-racism, and violence against transgender and gender non-conforming POC

Indya Moore
(Born 1995)

• Named one of Time magazine's 100 most influential people
• They've been open about their sex-work history, upbringing, and more and continued to use their platform to educate others about the transgender community

Lee Daniels
(Born 1959)

• American film and television writer, director, and producer
• Daniels is also a co-creator, executive producer, and director of the television series Empire and Star

Keith Boykin
(Born 1965)

• CNN political commentator, New York Times best-selling author, journalist, actor and public speaker
• co-founded the National Black Justice Coalition, a Washington-based civil rights organization dedicated to fighting racism and homophobia

Barbara Smith
(Born 1946)

• American lesbian feminist and socialist who has played a significant role in building and sustaining Black feminism in the United States
• She is a critic, teacher, lecturer, author, scholar, and publisher of Black feminist thought

Phil Wilson
(Born 1956)

• founded the Black AIDS Institute in 1999 and served as its CEO and is a prominent African-American HIV/AIDS activist
• In 2010, Wilson became appointed to President Obama's Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS

Sylvester James Jr.
(1947-1988)

• American singer-songwriter. Primarily active in the genres of disco, rhythm and blues, and soul
• embraced the counterculture and joined the avant-garde drag troupe The Cockettes
• Activist who campaigned against the spread of HIV/AIDS

Wanda Sykes:
(Born 1964)

• American actress, comedian, and writer
• LGBTQ+ activist. Always hosting events and emceeing fundraisers

Amandla Stenberg
(Born 1998)

• Acclaimed star of films like “The Hate U Give” and “The Hunger Games”
• use her social media presence to spark conversations about cultural appropriation, biracial identity, sexual identity, gender, LGBTQ+ acceptance & visibility & mental health

Patrisse Cullors
(Born 1983)

• advocate for prison abolition in Los Angeles and a co-founder of the Black Lives Matter movement
• also a LGBTQ+ activist

Ernestine Eckstein
(1941-1992)

• African-American woman who helped steer the United States Lesbian and Gay rights movement during the 1960s
• an early activist in the black feminist movement of the 1970s and was involved with the organization Black Women Organized for Action