Hollywood's been showing some serious love to the LGBTQ+ community for a while now, and it's way more than just what you see on the big screen. I mean, think about it Рmajor players like Miley Cyrus, Jay-Z, Oprah, Lady Gaga, and Beyonc̩ have been super vocal, throwing their weight behind everything from marriage equality to trans rights.
It's awesome that some of these
stars are actually part of the community, but then you have folks like Daniel
Radcliffe and Kerry Washington who have really stepped up. They've used their
massive platforms to call out unfairness and fight for equal rights for
everyone. It totally reminds me of this killer quote from Beyoncé: "If
you’re part of a group that’s called 'other' — a group that does not get the
chance to be centre stage — build your own stage, and make them see you."
Seriously, that's some powerful stuff, right?
So, to celebrate LGBTQ+ History
Month this February – that's February 1st through the 28th, 2021, by the way –
let's give a huge shout-out to some of the celebs who are genuinely making a
difference for LGBTQ+ rights and the community.
Elliot Page
Talk about a total game-changer.
Back in December 2020, Elliot Page came out as transgender on Instagram. He
introduced himself, shared that he uses he/they pronouns, and wrote this
incredibly moving statement: "I will offer whatever support I can and
continue to strive for a more loving and equal society." You really should
read the whole thing; it's worth it.
He married his wife, Emma
Portner, in 2018. But this wasn't the first time he'd been so open. In 2014,
the *Juno* star came out as gay at a Human Rights Campaign event focused on
LGBT welfare. He was so honest, saying, "I am tired of hiding and I am
tired of lying by omission. I suffered for years because I was scared to be
out. My spirit suffered, my mental health suffered and my relationships
suffered. And I'm standing here today, with all of you, on the other side of
all that pain." After his eight-minute speech, the crowd gave him a
standing ovation. He ended it with a heartfelt, "I love you."
Jonathan Bailey
You probably know Jonathan Bailey
from *Bridgerton*, but he's also been a solid advocate for LGBTQ+ rights for a
long time. He recently talked about how he'd love to see gay men playing their
own stories on screen. He told Digital Spy, "I think it shouldn't matter
at all what character people play, but of course there is a narrative that's
very clear, that openly gay men aren't playing straight in leading roles."
He made a great point, explaining
that gay characters are often so captivating because, much like the women in
*Bridgerton*, they deal with unique struggles and show amazing growth and
strength. While he thinks it's fantastic that straight actors have taken on
iconic gay roles, he also mused, "Wouldn't it be brilliant to see gay men
play their own experience?" It’s a really interesting thought, don't you
think?
Billy Porter
Honestly, what *isn't* Billy
Porter doing these days? He's starring in *Pose*, getting ready for the new
*Cinderella*, absolutely crushing red carpets, and even narrating a docuseries
about the LGBTQ movement starting from the Stonewall uprising. He's a total
powerhouse.
In June 2020, he posted a video
where he passionately supported Black gay and trans individuals participating
in the Black Lives Matter protests. He didn't hold back, saying, "LGBTQ+
Black folks are Black people, too! Our lives matter, too! So this is my
response to those of y’all who don’t understand that: F*ck you! And, yes, I am
cussing. It’s time for cussing." He's definitely not afraid to use his
voice.
Even before that, he gave a
really powerful speech about LGBTQ+ issues right before President Trump’s State
of the Union address. He said, "Last year, I told you that the state of
our union was strong. And while it’s certainly been battered, our union is far
from broken."
George Clooney
George Clooney has been
recognized for his advocacy work, even making it into Variety's Power of Pride
issue back in 2019. He's spent years supporting the legalization of same-sex
marriage in the US and has done a ton of important work with organizations like
the American Foundation for Equal Rights and the American Foundation for AIDSResearch.
Back in 2012, when rumors about
his sexuality were flying around, he basically just shrugged them off. He told
The Advocate, "I think it’s funny, but the last thing you’ll ever see me
do is jump up and down, saying, 'These are lies!' That would be unfair and
unkind to my good friends in the gay community. I’m not going to let anyone
make it seem like being gay is a bad thing. My private life is private, and I’m
very happy in it. Who does it hurt if someone thinks I’m gay? I’ll be long dead
and there will still be people who say I was gay." Basically, he’s saying
let people think what they want, and don't shame anyone for who they are.
That’s a pretty classy move.
Ruby Rose
So, you've probably seen Ruby
Rose in stuff like *Orange Is The New Black* or *Batwoman*, right? She's also
been a super vocal LGBTQ+ activist for ages. When she got cast as Batwoman –
who, by the way, is the first Jewish lead in the CW's superhero universe, a
pretty big deal on its own – some people really lost it. They were out there
saying she wasn't "queer enough." Ruby, though? She totally shut that
down. Back in 2019, she told Entertainment Weekly, "I didn’t know that
being a gender-fluid woman meant that I couldn’t be a lesbian because I’m not a
woman — not considered lesbian enough."
And honestly, she's spot on. As
she later explained to CNN that same year, "It's 2019. There isn't any one
type of gay person; one type of Jewish person." Seriously, it's about time
we ditch those outdated, narrow views. Last year, she even gave a shout-out on
Instagram to Javicia Leslie, who's bisexual, when Leslie took over the Batwoman
role. Ruby was thrilled, writing, "OMG!! This is amazing!! I am so glad
Batwoman will be played by an amazing Black woman."
Going back a bit, in 2014, Ruby
directed and starred in this short film called *Break Free*. It's a really raw,
honest look at her own journey with gender identity. You see her cutting her
hair, wiping off makeup, and showing off her tattoos – it's such a powerful
visual statement about just embracing who you are.
Josh Hutcherson
Most people know him from *The
Hunger Games*, right? But he's also a massive advocate for LGBTQ+ equality.
Back in 2013, he opened up in *Out* magazine about his own sexuality. He said
he saw himself as "mostly straight," but then added, "Maybe I
could say right now I'm 100 percent straight, but who knows? In a f*cking year,
I could meet a guy and be like, Whoa, I'm attracted to this person." I
just love that kind of openness.
He even started this group called
Straight But Not Narrow. The whole point is to fight homophobia, and he was
really inspired to do it after losing two uncles to AIDS. Talk about making a
real difference. He even snagged the Vanguard Award from GLAAD back in 2012 –
pretty impressive for a young guy.
Ellen DeGeneres
Then there's Ellen DeGeneres.
She’s a total powerhouse when it comes to fighting for gay rights. She came out
on national TV way back in 1997, which was absolutely huge at the time. And her
work definitely didn't go unnoticed. In 2016, President Obama actually awarded
her the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor we have, for
her relentless efforts.
Obama himself pointed out,
"It's easy to forget now, when we've come so far, where now, marriage is
equal under the law, just how much courage was required for Ellen to come out
on the most public of stages almost 20 years ago." Seriously, just stop
and think about that for a second.
She's also used her massive
platform for good in other ways. In 2015, she teamed up with GapKids for a
clothing line specifically designed to challenge gender stereotypes. And during
one of her acceptance speeches at the Teen Choice Awards, she gave this
incredibly powerful message to LGBTQ+ youth: "I wanna say also it feels
good to be chosen but there was a time in my life that I was not chosen. I was
the opposite of chosen because I was different, and I think I wanna make sure
that everyone knows that what makes you different right now, makes you stand
out later in life. So you should be proud of being different. You should be
proud of who you are." What an incredible message to send!
Brad Pitt
He's a huge supporter of LGBTQ+
rights, lending his name and his backing to organizations like the Human Rights
Campaign. He's not one to shy away from using his voice. Back in 2019, he
actually had to tell the organizers of a "Straight Pride" parade in
Boston to pull his name off their event. It was pretty controversial, and you
had folks like Chris Evans and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez also speaking out
against it.
He’s been a vocal champion for
marriage equality for ages. In 2012, he told MTV, "Equality, absolutely,
that's what defines us. It's what makes us great." He even went on to say
that if someone's religion doesn't agree, "let your God sort it out in the
end." Talk about bold!
Angelina Jolie
Plus, he and Angelina Jolie
really made a stand before they even got married. Back in 2006, he wrote in
*Esquire* that they wouldn't tie the knot until same-sex marriage was legal for
everyone across the country. Talk about putting your principles into action.
Lena Dunham has been a really
consistent ally to the LGBTQ+ community. Just last year, she got super candid
on Twitter about her own privilege. She realized that the stuff she writes
about, like "bad behavior," is often accepted because of her race,
her privilege, and the fact that she's straight and cisgender. So, she's
committed to using her platform to lift up emerging Black artists, BIPOCartists, and LGBTQ+ artists. It’s genuinely great to see someone using their
influence like that.
She also made a commitment to not
get married until gay marriage was legal everywhere in the US. Back in 2015,
she told Ellen DeGeneres, "Until that's something that everyone can join
into with no sense of being left out on any level, politically, emotionally,
it's just not something that we're gonna do." Pretty powerful stuff. And
in 2014, she produced an HBO documentary called *Suited*, which really dives
into the world of custom suits and how they connect to gender identity. It
followed people getting fitted for suits, often for really significant life
events.
Lena Dunham
Lena Dunham really nailed it when
she talked about how awesome it is that a movie celebrating identity and
feeling safe in who you are is coming out *now*. She wasn't saying it's some
magic fix, but more like a "little gift" for a community that's been
through a rough patch. And get this – the same year, *The Hollywood Reporter*
even gave her an award for being a "young trailblazer" and a big
supporter of LGBTQ+ stuff. Pretty neat, huh?
Then you've got Justin
Timberlake. His latest movie, *Palmer*, is about an ex-con who ends up taking
care of this kid who doesn't quite fit the typical boy or girl mold. And back
in 2017, when he won Song of the Year for 'Can’t Stop The Feeling' at the iHeartRadio
Music Awards, he gave this killer speech about inclusion. Basically, he said if
anyone's giving you a hard time because you're Black, brown, gay, a lesbian, or
even a "sissy singing boy from Tennessee," it's because *they're* the
ones who are insecure. They're scared of how important you are. "Being
different means you make the difference, so f*ck 'em!" he declared. And
it's not just lip service; he and Jessica Biel even got the Inspiration Award
from GLSEN back in 2015 for fighting discrimination. He was seriously stoked
when New York legalized same-sex marriage in 2011, telling *Advocate* magazine
he was "stoked." His thinking was, "we're people and we're
different, all of us. And we should be using our differences to bring ourselves
closer together." He called it a "great, great victory for
equality" and was proud New York had "the balls to stand up for
what's right."
Beyoncé
Talk about an LGBTQ+ advocate.
She's never shied away from championing sexual, gender, and identity equality.
In 2020, she gave this powerful commencement speech where she told the LGBTQ+
community their queerness is "beautiful." Her message? If you ever
feel like an "other," you should "build your own stage, and make
them see you." She really drove home that "Your queerness is
beautiful, your Blackness is beautiful..." and that standing up for others
is beautiful too. Just the year before, she and Jay-Z picked up the GLAADVanguard Award for promoting acceptance. Beyoncé said, "We’re here to
promote love for every human being... change starts from supporting the people
closest to you. So let’s tell them they are loved... Let’s speak out and
protect them. And parents, let’s love our kids in their truest form."
She's constantly using her massive platform, featuring same-sex couples in her
music videos, having Laverne Cox rock her Ivy Park line, and even calling out
North Carolina's discriminatory "bathroom bill."
Miley Cyrus
Miley Cyrus, who proudly
identifies as pansexual, has really made advocating for LGBTQ+ rights a central
part of her life. Whether it's through songs like 'Inspired' (all about
fighting for equality) or teaming up with Instagram for the #InstaPride campaign,
she's all in. She told *ELLE UK* she's "pansexual" but also pointed
out she was only 22 and dating, so her style changed more often than her
partners! Later, she told *Time* she's "genderfluid" – basically, the
idea that you can be whatever you want. She even talked about her queer
identity while married to Liam Hemsworth, explaining to *Vanity Fair* that
their marriage wasn't some old-school thing but "New Age," redefining
what it means for a "queer person like myself to be in a hetero relationship."
Her queerness is a huge piece of her pride and identity. And remember when she
hosted the VMAs in 2015? She brought out LGBTQ+ youth from her Happy Hippie
Foundation to introduce her performance, which even featured some *RuPaul's Drag
Race* queens!
Oprah Winfrey
Finally, Oprah Winfrey has been a
solid supporter of gay rights for ages. She even pushed back against the racist
stuff she dealt with after backing Ellen DeGeneres when Ellen came out on her
show back in 1997. Oprah's take? "The God I serve doesn't care whether
you're tall or short, or whether you were born Black or Asian or gay..."
She was totally firm in believing God created Ellen, and if Ellen said she was
gay, then God created her gay. End of story.
Speaking about DeGeneres
discussing her sexuality on her show, the TV mogul told in 2012 Being
able to be free, literally, and to express herself in a way that she can be 100
percent truthful with the audience has allowed them to fall in love with her.'
Lady Gaga
There should be no doubt about
Gaga - she is one of the strongest supporters for the LGBTQ+ community. From
taking part in National Equality Marches and wearing Alexander McQueen designs
to protest against Don’t Ask Don’t Tell (a former policy that banned open
homosexuality), to making history with 'Born This Way' (2011), which Sir Elton
John dubbed 'the new gay album', Gaga does her upmost to
fight for equal LGBTQ+ rights and recognition.
In 2019, the Oscar and
Grammy-award winner took to the a rally to commemorate the 50th anniversary of
the Stonewall riots and said that she would 'take a bullet' for the LGBTQ+
community. True love – true, true love – is when you would take a bullet for
someone, and you know that I would take a bullet for you any day of the week,'
she said during her speech, wearing a rainbow-coloured outfit.
'This community has fought and
continued to fight a war of acceptance, a war of tolerance, and the most
relentless bravery. You are the definition of courage – do you know that?'
On winning the International
Video of the Year Award in 2009, she sent her thanks 'to God and the gays' and
in her cover interview with Out magazine the same year she
said: 'I very much want to inject gay culture into the mainstream. 'It's not an
underground tool for me. It's my whole life. So I always sort of joke the real
motivation is to just turn the world gay.'
Anne Hathaway
Hathaway, who has a gay brother
and is an advocate for organisations such as the It Gets Better Project and The
Trevor Project, delivered a speech at the Human Rights Campaign dinner
and spoke about
LGBTQ+ rights.
'I appreciate this community
because together we are not going to just question this myth, we are going to
destroy it,' Hathaway said. 'Let’s tear this world apart and build a better
one.'
In 2012, the Oscar winner
reportedly planned to donate some of the sales from her wedding photos
following her big day with partner Adam Shulman to non-profits advocating for
same-sex couple marriage, such as Freedom to Marry.
In 2008, she received the HumanRights Campaign Ally Award and told the room of guests: 'There are people who have
said that I'm being brave for being openly supportive of gay marriage, gay
adoption — basically of gay rights — but with all due respect, I humbly
dissent. I'm not being brave; I'm being a decent human being. And I don't think
I should receive an award for that or for merely stating what I believe to be
true: that love is a human experience, not a political statement.'
Jay-Z
The musician received a Special
Recognition Award in recognition of his song 'Smile' in 2018. In the song, his
mother Gloria Carter reveals for the first time that she is a lesbian through a
monologue. On the track, Jay-Z raps: 'Mama had four kids, but she’s a lesbian /
Had to pretend so long that she’s a thespian.'
His mother adds: 'Living in the
shadow. Can you imagine what kind of life it is to live? In the shadows people
see you as happy and free, because that’s what you want them to see. Living two
lives, happy but not free. You live in the shadows for fear of someone hurting
your family or someone you love.'
In 2012, Jay-Z spoke in support
of same-sex marriage and LGBTQ+ rights, telling CNN:
'What people do in their own homes is their business and you can choose to love
whoever you love. That's their business. [It] is no different than
discriminating against Blacks. It's discrimination plain and simple.'
P!nk
Throughout her career, P!nk has
championed LGBTQ+ rights. Following years of facing rumours from fans and the
media about her sexuality, she said of Miley Cyrus coming out as pansexual and
gender neutral in an interview with the Guardian in 2017: ' I think people like Miley
[Cyrus]… I feel like people are just less inclined to be labelled now, which I
really like.'
For her 2010 single Raise
Your Glass, P!nk previously revealed that the track's video was
inspired own real-life experience at a gay wedding. 'I threw my best friend's
wedding in my backyard — [she] is gay and she married her wife, and it was
absolutely beautiful, she reportedly explained, per Digital Spy. 'At the end of it, her mum said, "Why
can't this be legal?" and started crying. It was just the most
heartbreaking thing I've ever seen, so that's why I'm doing it in my video.'
Kerry Washington
A fierce supporter of LGBTQ+
rights, in 2020 Washington discussed how she'd feel if her own daughter came
out to her after starring as a conservative mother struggling with her
daughter's sexuality in The Prom.
'I’d say, ‘Great! Awesome. What’s
for lunch?'” Washington told GLAAD in a video interview. 'I would
just say, "Fantastic, and I’ll give you as much support as I can and offer
you extra resources when I’m not able to speak to your lived experience, and
let’s just go make this life magic, as we were". Depending on the age — or
at any age — I’d say, "How exciting that you know who you are and let’s go
be who you are. How can I help you be who you are in the world,
unapologetically and enthusiastically? Let’s go get this."'
In 2017, the Little Fires
Everywhere star received the Inspiration Award at the GLSEN Respect
Awards for being a longstanding vocal supporter of LGBTQ rights. The win came
two years after she accepted the Vanguard Award at the GLAAD Awards.
In a rousing speech on LGBTQ+
rights on the night, she said: 'We have been pitted against each other and made
to feel like there are limited seats at the table for those of us who fall into
the category of other. As others, we are taught that to be successful, we must
reject those other others, or we will never belong.'
Washington's speech is a smart,
thoughtful, and forceful argument for why we need more diverse representations
in the media, until there are 'no longer "firsts" and
"exceptions" and "rare" and "unique,"' she added.
Drew Barrymore
The Charlie's
Angels actress attended a marriage equality rally in 2009 soon after
the Supreme Court voted in favour to uphold a ruling making it illegal for
same-sex couples to marry in California.
At the rally she said, per Just
Jared: 'I am who I am because of the people who influenced me growing up, and
many of them were gay. No one has any right to tell anyone what makes a family.
You choose your battles in this world. If you fight for everything, you're just
someone on a soapbox. This is something that means everything to me.'
In an interview with Contact magazine
almost 20 years ago, Barrymore noted that she has always considered herself
bisexual. Do I like women sexually? Yeah, I do. Totally. I have always
considered myself bisexual,’ she said. ‘I love a woman's body. I think a woman
and a woman together are beautiful, just as a man and a woman together are
beautiful.’
Julianne Moore
Julianne Moore, who played a
lesbian mum in the 2010 film The Kids Are All Right and a
lesbian in the 2016 film Freeheld alongside Elliot Page, has
spoken openly about her support for the LGBTQ+ community over the years.
In 2020, Moore suggested she had
regrets about playing a lesbian in The Kids Are All Right. In
an interview with Variety, Here we were, in this movie about a
queer family and all of the principal actors were straight. I look back and go
"Ouch, wow".' I don’t know that we would do that today, I don’t know
that we would be comfortable. We need to give real representation to people,
but I’m grateful for all the experiences that I’ve had as an actor because my
job is to communicate a universality of experience to the world.'
In 2011, she spoke of same-sex
marriage, noting: 'I think it's a very basic human rights issue. Everybody has
the right to marry the person they love and be represented as a couple and
family.
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