5 Black Queer Trailblazers in the LGBTQ Community

The LGBTQ community has progressed leaps and bounds since the Stonewall Uprising in 1969. Much of that progress is due, in large part, to the African American Community.

Here are some queer, black trailblazers:

Marsha P. Johnson
Marsha P. Johnson was a trans woman who was a central participant in the events that unfolded at Stonewall. Along with Sylvia Rivera, Johnson formed Street Transgender Action Revolutionaries, which provided housing and support to homeless queer youth in Manhattan.

Lori Lightfoot
Lori Lightfoot is a former prosecutor who famously swept all 50 of Chicago’s wards to become the first black, female, and openly gay mayor of Chicago. Since taking office, she’s created community-led policing oversight initiatives, promised to raise the minimum wage by 2021, and formed a task force to rewrite Chicago’s affordable housing ordinance.

Lena Waithe
Who can forget Lena Waithe showed her LGBTQ pride with that epic rainbow cape she donned at the Met Gala? Waithe’s fashion statements aren’t the only waves she’s made in entertainment, however. In 2017, Lena Waithe won a Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Writing in a Comedy series for Master of None. She was the first black American to win in that category.

Billy Porter
In addition to being a longtime force on Broadway and an absolute fashion icon, Billy Porter has made history. In 2019, when he won the Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series, Porter became the first openly gay black man to be nominated for or win in any lead acting category at the Emmys.

Laverne Cox
Even before Laverne Cox rose to prominence with her role as Sophia in Orange is The New Black, she was making waves in the LGBTQ community and entertainment. In 2010, she became the first African-American transgender person to produce and star in their own show with TRANStorm Me on VH1. Later, in 2014, she became the first openly transgender person to be nominated in an acting category at the primetime Emmys for her role in OITNB. Laverne Cox has won over 15 awards for her activism, and is considered one of the leading trailblazers of the trans community.

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