Portal:LGBTQ


	The LGBTQ+ Portal

Introduction

LGBTQ (also commonly seen as LGBT, LGBT+, LGBTQ+, and LGBTQIA+) is an initialism for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer or questioning. It is an umbrella term, broadly referring to all sexualities, romantic orientations, and gender identities which are not heterosexual or cisgender.

In the 1990s, gay, lesbian, and bisexual activists adopted the term LGB, supplanting narrower terms such as "gay or lesbian". Terminology eventually shifted to LGBT, as transgender people became more accepted within the movement. Around that time, some activists began to reclaim the term queer, seeing it as a more radical and inclusive umbrella term, though others reject it, due to its history as a pejorative. In recognition of this, the 2010s saw the adoption of LGBTQ, and other more inclusive variants.

Some versions of the term, such as LGBT+ and LGBTQ+ add a plus sign, to represent additional identities not captured within the acronym. Many further variants exist which add additional identities, such as LGBTQIA+ (for intersex, asexual, aromantic, and agender) and 2SLGBTQ+ (for two-spirit), LGBTQQ (for queer and questioning), or which order the letters differently, as in GLBT and GLBTQ.

The collective of all LGBTQ people is often called the LGBTQ community. These labels are not universally agreed upon by everyone that they are intended to include. For example, some intersex people prefer to be included in this grouping, while others do not. Various alternative umbrella terms exist across various cultures, including queer, same gender loving (SGL), Gender, Sexual and Romantic Minorities (GSRM). (Full article...)

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Canadian lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) rights are some of the most extensive in the world. Same-sex sexual activity, in private between consenting adults, was decriminalized in Canada on June 27, 1969, when the Criminal Law Amendment Act, 1968–69 (also known as Bill C-150) was brought into force upon royal assent. In a landmark decision in 1995, Egan v Canada, the Supreme Court of Canada held that sexual orientation is constitutionally protected under the equality clause of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. In 2005, Canada became the fourth country in the world, and the first in the Americas to legalize same-sex marriage. In 2022, Canada was the third country in the world, and the first in North America, to fully ban conversion therapy nationwide for both minors and adults.

Canada was referred to as the most gay-friendly country in the world, when it was ranked first (indicating least dangerous) in Asher & Lyric's LGBTQ+ Danger Index in 2023. It was also ranked second in the Gay Travel Index chart in 2023, and eighth in the Equaldex Equality Index in 2024. The country's largest cities feature their own gay areas and communities, such as Toronto's Church and Wellesley neighbourhood, Montreal's Gay Village commercial district, Vancouver's Davie Village and Ottawa's Bank Street Gay Village. Every summer, Canada's LGBT community celebrates gay pride in all major cities, with many political figures from the federal, provincial and municipal scenes. (Full article...)

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Hailey circa 2007

Leisha Hailey is an American actress and musician known for playing Alice Pieszecki in the Showtime Networks series The L Word and The L Word: Generation Q. Hailey first came to the public's attention as a musician in the pop duo The Murmurs and has continued her music career as part of the band Uh Huh Her.

Currently, Hailey appears as Alice in The L Word: Generation Q and hosts podcast PANTS with fellow L Word star and close friend, Kate Moennig. (Full article...)

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“

My lesbianism is an act of Christian charity. All those women out there praying for a man, and I'm giving them my share.

”

—Rita Mae Brown

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Current events

See also: 2024 in LGBT rights

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Credit: Paul M. Walsh

Lesbian and gay students kissing in front of anti-homosexuality protesters at Oberlin College (Oberlin, Ohio, USA) in May 2000. Several hundred Oberlin College students turned out to rally against the protesters. The protesters—from Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kansas—also protested the General Conference of the United Methodist Church while in Ohio.

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...that Tanaz Eshaghian's film Be Like Others explores the experiences of transsexuals in Iran, a country that outlaws homosexuality but sanctions sex-reassignment surgery?
... that horror novelist Anne Rice has cited the 1936 film Dracula's Daughter as an inspiration for her own homoerotic vampire fiction?
... that Silverton, Oregon has elected the first openly transgender mayor in the United States?
... that after initially deciding not to air the Roseanne episode "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" because it included Mariel Hemingway kissing Roseanne Barr, ABC promoted it as "the lesbian kiss episode"?

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This month's birthdays

1 – Tim Cook (1960–), American business executive, CEO of Apple Inc.
1 – Sophie B. Hawkins (1967–), American singer-songwriter and musician
1 – Tom Waddell (1937–1987), American decathlete & physician, founder of the Gay Games
2 – k.d. lang (1961–), Canadian singer-songwriter
2 – Luchino Visconti (1906–1976), Italian director
2 – Darren Young (1979–), American professional wrestler
3 – Benvenuto Cellini (1500–1571), Italian sculptor
3 – Miloš Havel (1899–1968), Czech film producer
4 – Robert Mapplethorpe (1946–1989), American photographer
4 – Yemi A.D. (1981–), Czech choreographer, art director, performer, correspondent and artist
6 – Michael Cunningham (1952–), American novelist
6 – Torben Lund (1950–), Danish politician
6 – Philipp, Landgrave of Hesse (1896–1980), German aristocrat
7 – Agnès Maltais (1956–), Canadian politician
8 – Charles Demuth (1883–1935), American painter
8 – Judith Gough (1972–), British diplomat, and U.K. Ambassador to Sweden
8 – María Rachid (1974–), Argentinian politician, social leader and LGBTQ activist
9 – Ti-Grace Atkinson (1938–), American radical feminist author and philosopher
9 – Marie Dressler (1868–1934), Canadian-American actress
10 – Phyllis Lyon (1924–2020), American feminist and gay rights activist
10 – Heather Matarazzo (1982–), American actress
12 – Mary Baxter Ellis (1892-1968), British commanding officer of the First Aid Nursing Yeomanry (FANY)
12 – Roland Barthes (1915–1980), French literary theorist and philosopher
13 – Rosie Jones (1959–), American golfer
14 – Adolf Brand (1874–1945), German gay rights advocate
14 – Aaron Copland (1900–1990), American composer, writer and conductor
14 – Louise Brooks (1906–1985), American dancer and actress
14 – Wendy Carlos (1939–), American composer and electronic musician
14 – Stefano Gabbana (1962–), Italian fashion designer (Dolce & Gabbana)
14 – Tomoya Hosoda (1991–), Japanese politician
15 – François Ozon (1967–), French film director and screenwriter
16 – Jamie Babbit (1970–), American film director, producer and screenwriter
16 – Glenn Burke (1952–1995), American Major League Baseball player
17 – Rock Hudson (1925–1985), American actor
17 – RuPaul (1960–), American drag queen, TV personality, singer, actor, author and model
18 – Christian Siriano (1985–), American fashion designer
19 – Jodie Foster (1962–), American actress, film director and producer
19 – Clifton Webb (1889–1966), American actor, dancer, and singer
19 – Timothy Conigrave (1959–1994), Australian actor, writer and activist
20 – Grace Darmond (1893–1963), Canadian-American actress
20 – Noel Mewton-Wood (1922–1953), Australian-born concert pianist
21 – Cherry Jones (1956–), American actress
21 – Laurier LaPierre (1929–2012), Canadian Senator, professor, broadcaster, journalist and author
22 – Benjamin Britten (1913–1976), English composer, conductor and pianist
22 – André Gide (1869–1951), French writer
22 – Billie Jean King (1943–), American former professional tennis player
23 – Virginia Prince (1912-2009), American pharmacologist, publisher, and transgender activist
23 – Robin Roberts (1960–), American TV broadcaster
24 – Jiří Pospíšil (1975–), Czech politician
25 – Rosa von Praunheim (1942–), German film director and gay rights activist
26 – John Amaechi (1970–), English retired basketball player
26 – Tammy Lynn Michaels (1974–), American actress
26 – Emma Portner (1994–), Canadian dancer and choreographer
27 – Antinous (111-130), Lover of Roman Emperor Hadrian
27 – Jani Toivola (1977), Finnish politician, actor, and dancer
28 – Rita Mae Brown (1944–), American writer and feminist
28 – Jean-Baptiste Lully (1632–1687), Italian-born French composer
29 – Public Universal Friend (1752-1819), American preacher