Lesbian Visibility Week: Celebrating 50 LGBTQ+ Women Making a Difference

To mark Lesbian Visibility Week, which starts today, we celebrate 50 LGBTQ+ women making a difference in the diversity, equity, and inclusion space around the world. 

Here are just 50 of the very many diversity champions working hard to create change and opportunities for LGBTQ+ and other marginalized communities:

Dalia Al Faghal

Dalia Al Faghal was the first woman to come out publicly in Egypt. She was met with death threats and attacks on social media, but her bravery led to an open platform of discussion of LGBTQ+ rights. The Egyptian government had previously not wanted to recognize the existence of the LGBTQ+ community and people in the community continue to face torture, often subjected to severe beating and sexual abuse. She was one of the many the leading voices calling for the sacking of Egyptian TV host Yours Fouda for alleged sexual misconduct. Dalia now lives in Sweden and continues to fight for the human rights for queer people and women in the world.

Urooj Arshad

Born in Karachi, Pakistan, Urooj Arshad emigrated to the US at 16. She has spent her career working for non-profits advocating for the LGBTQ+ community, especially for Muslim and South Asian LGBTQ+ people. She has presented at International HIV/AIDS conferences, the White House’s LGBTQ+ Pride and Heritage event, national convenings of Muslim leaders, and many more. Urooj is the co-founder of the Muslim Alliance for Sexual and Gender Diversity, which addresses the intersectional impact of Islamophobia, homophobia, and transphobia, and served in the US delegation to the UN Commission on the Status of Women. Her work has helped many South Asian and Muslim LGBTQ+ people living in the US.

Seimone Augustus

WNBA player Seimone Augustus was one of the first high-profile athletes to publicly come out, in response to a 2012 ballot initiative in Minnesota that would have banned marriage equality in the state. “Everyone thinks that the WNBA is one big lesbo party anyway,” she joked at the time but she was well aware that coming out was a risky move for her career at a time when the WNBA was wary of the stigma surrounding queer women athletes. Her decision to speak up made that choice easier for today’s generation and all the generations to come. She is an eight-time All-Star and four-time WNBA champion with the Minnesota Lynx, and a three-time Olympic gold medalist with the US women’s basketball team.

Tammy Baldwin

Senator Tammy Baldwin from Wisconsin is the first openly LGBTQ+ woman elected to Congress. She continues to challenge the Trump administration on its rollbacks of LGBTQ+ rights, and voted to convict President Trump of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress during his impeachment trial. The openly gay Democrat served three terms in the Wisconsin State Assembly before being elected to the US House of Representatives in 1999. She achieved the same milestone for the Senate in 2012 and was re-elected in the 2018 midterms.

Munroe Bergdorf

As the first transgender model for L’Oréal, Bergdorf has continued to break ceilings and fight for representation for transgender people, people of color, and other marginalized people in environments where they have been historically ignored. Equally, Munroe has been vocal about the abuse she has received being openly trans and a woman of color and has campaigned for social media to be more responsive in clamping down on this behavior. Trailblazing model Munroe was named Cosmopolitan’s “Changemaker of the Year.”

Marylize Biubwa

Queer activist from Nairobi, Kenya, Marylize Biubwa uses her social media platforms to dispel myths about women and their sexuality, and myths about people within the LGBTQ+ community. Marylize has been part of and moderated panels in Kenya about gay rights, as well as countries across East Africa, which upholds laws that that criminalize gay sex which came during the colonial era. When she came out to her family, Biubwa was kicked out of her home and told to only return once she was a “normal person.”

Dutee Chand

Dutee Chand was India’s first athlete to come out as queer, revealing in 2019 that she’s in a same-sex relationship. She also showed courage and grace when she battled the Athletic Federation of India’s attempt to suspend her from competition due to her high natural levels of testosterone in 2015. Since then, Dutee has spoken out in support of South African runner Caster Semenya who faced a similar battle, saying, “There is always fear but you need to overcome it.” She is the first Indian sprinter to win the gold medal at the Universiade, and only the third Indian woman to ever qualify for the women’s 100 meters at the Summer Olympics.

Gigi Chao

Executive Director of Cheuk Nang Holdings Limited, Gigi Chao was thrust into the media spotlight when, in 2012, her father and owner of the same company, offered $65 million to any man who would marry her. He upped that offer to $180 million in 2014. Gigi responded to her father’s offers by publishing a letter in the China Morning Post, revealing that she was gay had married her partner, Sean Eav, in 2012. Since 2008, Chao has also been lifting underprivileged youths out of poverty thanks to her charitable organization, the Faith In Love Foundation.

Margaret Cho

Bisexual Korean American comedienne Margaret Cho frequently draws from her own experiences to tackle issues of race, gender, and sexual orientation in a way that is both thought-provoking and hilarious. Her comedy addresses the struggles of the LGBTQ+ community, including discrimination, bullying, and sexual violence. Margaret received the inaugural Golden Gate Award at the San Francisco GLAAD Media Awards in 2000 for her advocacy. The TV writer and stand-up comic has worked with numerous social organizations including Lambda Legal and the National Organization of Women. She has won awards for her work on and off stage representing the concerns faced by LGBTQ+ women of color. Margaret continues to advocate for Asian LGBTQ+ people, immigrants, and so many more throughout the country.

Cecilia Chung

Cecilia Chung is a trans Chinese woman, nationally recognized as an advocate for human rights, social justice, health equity, and LGBTQ+ equality. Cecilia has been working tirelessly at local, national, and international levels to improve access to treatment for transgender people and people living with HIV, and to erase stigma and discrimination through education, policy, advocacy, and visibility.

Laverne Cox

Laverne Cox is trailblazer for the transgender community. She has won numerous awards for her activist approach in spreading awareness. Her impact and prominence in the media has led to a growing conversation about transgender culture, specifically transgender women, and how being transgender intersects with one’s race. Her Netflix documentary, released in 2020, tells the story of Hollywood and the media’s evolving view of trans people, the violence that the trans community faces, as well as movies and shows that have opened up opportunities for trans people to appear on screen. She is the first transgender person to be on the cover of Time magazine, be nominated for a Primetime Emmy, and have a wax work in Madame Tussauds. Her activism isn’t just relegated to magazine covers and awards shows. Laverne constantly uplifts trans folks from all walks of life on social media. In May 2016, she was awarded an Honorary Doctorate from The New School in New York for her progressive work in the fight for gender equality.

Sharice Davids

Representative Sharice Davids from Kansas is an up-and-coming politician with many firsts to her name. She was the first openly LGBTQ+ Native American elected to the US Congress, the first of only two Native American women elected to Congress, and the first Democrat to represent Kansas in the US House of Representatives since 2011. Before her political career, she was a lawyer and a professional MMA fighter, and spent years living on Native American reservations across the US to work on community development programs.

Donna Deitch

Award-winning filmmaker and television director Donna Deitch is best known for her 1985 movie Desert Hearts, the first feature film with a mainstream lesbian love story, told in a positive and respectful way. The film was a hit at the Toronto International Film Festival and the Sundance Film Festival, and it inspired Oprah Winfrey to hire Deitch to direct Emmy-nominated mini-series The Women of Brewster Place. She went on to direct episodes in TV dramas like NYPD Blue, ER, Law and Order: SVU and others, and directed docu-series for HBO and Showtime.

Laila El-Metoui

Lauren Esposito

As an arachnologist (a scientist who studies spiders and related animals such as scorpions) Lauren Esposito is the only woman expert on scorpions in the world. She is also the co-founder of 500 Queer Scientists, a visibility movement and professional network that boosts the recognition and awareness of LGBTQ+ people working in STEM fields.

Joanie Evans

Not only was she an influential member of trailblazing lesbian team, Hackney Women’s Football Club ­– the first open and out gay team in Europe – but Joanie Evans is also the co-president of the Federation of the Gay Games, dating back to 2014. In fact, she’s probably one of the longest serving co-presidents who has been there for 4 terms (8 years). She was also the only Black woman on the Federation of the Gay Games board until 2017, now there are two under her leadership. Her main goal, both on the football pitch and in the Gay Games, is to create an open and inclusive playing field for all, particularly for women, regardless of how they identify.

Jennifer Finney Boylan

Jennifer Finney Boylan is an American author and transgender activist who writes for The New York Times. Her autobiography, She’s Not There: A Life in Two Genders, was the first book published by an openly trans author to become a bestseller. She is also a reality TV personality, regularly appearing on Caitlyn Jenner’s show I Am Cait and was chosen as the first openly trans co-chair of GLAAD’s National Board of Directors.

Fallon Fox

Fallon Fox is the first openly transgender athlete in mixed martial arts history. She came out as trans in 2013 after winning her first victories in the MMA women’s division, drawing pushback and transphobic remarks from people like comedian Joe Rogan and fellow fighter Ronda Rousey. Despite the controversy surrounding her, Fallon has remained focused on her martial arts training and a determination to live as her authentic self, deserving of equal treatment and respect. Thanks to women like her, public awareness and education about transgender women in sports continues to make slow but steady progress.

Beth Ford

Not only is Land O’Lakes’s CEO Beth Ford one very few women to head a Fortune 500 company but she is the first openly LGBTQ+ woman to helm a Fortune 500 company, and the first woman to lead the dairy company in its almost 100-year history. Her authentic leadership as an out lesbian is well-known in the LGBTQ+ corporate community, and the fact that she is assuming this role as an out lesbian sends an especially powerful message. Beth has been openly gay her whole professional career.

Sarah Garrett

As CEO and founder of SPM Group Ltd, Sarah Garrett runs the British LGBT Awards, Ethnicity Awards and Investing in Ethnicity and Opportunities 4 Women, among other projects. In 2017, Sarah was awarded an MBE in the Queen’s New Year Honours List for her services in the diversity and inclusion space. One of Sarah’s greatest accomplishments is the “Investing in Ethnicity” program, which aims to start conversations, progress, and promote Black, Asian, and Minority Ethnic voices and values in the workplace. The initiative works with organizations to build sustainable solutions that foster and facilitate greater diversity and inclusion in the workplace.

Blair Imani

Queer African American Muslim activist and writer, Blair Imani continues to speak and write about the intersection of Black and Muslim identities. The former executive director of Equality For HER and a member of the Black Lives Matter movement, she gained recognition for being arrested while peacefully protesting the shooting of Alton Sterling in Baton Rouge, LA. She’s worked closely with young people on college campuses and at progressive conferences, and is the official ambassador of Muslims for Progressive Values.

Billie Jean King

She’s not only one of the greatest women’s tennis players of all time, Billie Jean King is dedicated activist for gay rights and gender equality. The out lesbian and 39-time grand slam winner is best known for beating Bobby Riggs in the “Battle of the Sexes” in 1973, and was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1987. Billie is also the founder of the Women’s Tennis Association and the Women’s Sports Foundation, and received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Obama.

Sarah Kate Ellis

As CEO of GLAAD (since January 2014), Sarah Kate Ellis continues to move LGBTQ+ equality forward through the power of the media. She began her activism for the LGBTQ+ community in 1992, when she marched on Washington to support the rights of women and then marched again in 1993 to support the rights of LGBT people. In 2011, Sarah co-authored a memoir with her wife, Kristen Ellis-Henderson, titled Times Two, Two Women in Love and the Happy Family They Made, and was nominated for a Stonewall Book Award. Ellis and her wife were also profiled in a special New York Times style section about marriage equality following its legalization in New York State. Their marriage was the first marriage ceremony performed for a same-sex couple in the Episcopal Church of New York State.

Nancy Kelly

As Chief Executive Officer of Stonewall UK (since 2020), Nancy Kelly is a passionate advocate for social justice and equality. Throughout her 20-year career, Nancy has built up a diverse record of policy and leadership experience working across the third sector and in government. She has worked on research looking at public attitudes toward LGBTQ+ communities, as well as experiences of discrimination and social exclusion among LGBTQ+ people and other minority groups. She’s often described as “an outstanding leader who is ready to make sure everyone in the LGBTQ+ community gets the support they need.”

Bandy Kiki

UK-based Cameroonian blogger and LGBTQ+ activist Bandy Kiki, has used her influence and platforms on social media to raise awareness about the injustices LGBTQ+ community face in Cameroon. She is a spokesperson for Rainbow Equality Hub, which fights for the rights of queer people in the country. In April 2021, she publicly stood up for two transgender women from her home country who were arrested at a restaurant for wearing women’s clothing and charged for “attempted homosexuality.” Despite her support, they were sentenced to five years’ imprisonment. When Bandy first moved to the UK, she feared for her life whenever she would attend gatherings with members of the LGBTQ+ community because in her native country homosexuality is a criminal offense which can be punishable by maximum of five years in prison. But that hasn’t stopped her from raising awareness about the injustices LGBTQ+ community face in Cameroon.

Hayley Kiyoko

Singer, songwriter, actress, dancer, and director Hayley Kiyoko identifies as a multiracial white and Japanese lesbian. The American artist is a big fan of colors and makeup, her fans call her “lesbian Jesus.” She works toward inspiring confidence in young people that struggle with being queer and normalizing lesbian relationships in a society that she sees as being very heteronormative.

Krystal Lake

The New York-born, London-based DJ, radio host, filmmaker, and social influencer Krystal Lake wants organizations to take homophobic remarks and labels seriously, and do more to promote LGBTQ+ inclusion. She started her own social media channel to teach “the stuff that schools don’t” on TikTok, YouTube, and Snapchat. Her material focuses on Black, LGBTQ+ women, and mental health subjects: “I educate the world about LGBTQ+ topics and issues. I let people know there is nothing wrong with being a part of the rainbow mafia, and most importantly I teach people how to love themselves. My platform is a safe space and I let that be known to anyone whether they’re LGBTQ+ or straight.”

Miss Major Griffin-Gracy

Community leader Miss Major Griffin-Gracy has been fighting for LGBTQ+ rights and social justice for more than 50 years, particularly when it comes to police brutality and the prison system. She was a prominent figure in the Stonewall Riots in 1969 and a survivor of the Attica Prison Riots. She was the original executive director for the Transgender Gender Variant Intersex Justice Project, and worked with a number of HIV/AIDS organizations in San Francisco in the 1990s. She is known as “Mama” to the community, particularly trans women of color. Her legacy project is House of GG, a home in Arkansas where trans and gender nonconforming people can heal from trauma and build a support network. She continues to raise awareness for the intersectionality of poverty, race, and gender, and advocates for transgender people to be included in leadership positions in the LGBTQ+ movement.

Beverly Palesa Ditsie

Originally from South Africa, openly lesbian Beverly Palesa Ditsie was the first lesbian woman to address the UN at the World Conference on Women in Beijing back in 1995. She also organized the first Pride march in South Africa in 1990, and continued to march despite the discrimination and abuse it brought her. The moniker “the Rainbow Nation” rings entirely true for Beverly, who continues to fight for LGBTQ+ rights within the context of human rights and the necessity of advancing the liberation of LGBTQ+ people.

Lady Phyll
Renowned for publicly refusing an MBE in the 2016 New Year Honours, Phyll Opoku-Gyimah, widely known as Lady Phyll, is the Executive Director of Kaleidoscope Trust, an LGBTQ+ charity that works to defend and uphold human rights. She has over 20 years’ experience as an LGBTQ+ rights activist and anti-racism campaigner. She has spent a decade advocating for the rights of workers within the largest civil service union as a lead negotiator on behalf of civil service workers. Lady Phyll is also the co-founder and executive director of UK Black Pride, the first event of its kind in Europe celebrating LGBTQ+ people of African, Asian, Caribbean, Middle Eastern and Latin American descent “to promote and advocate for the spiritual, emotional, and intellectual health and well-being” of these communities.

Bobbi Pickard

As both a member of bp Pride’s Steering Committee and the co-chair of bp Pride’s Trans Group, Bobbi Pickard has transformed transgender awareness globally within the company. She is also the founder of “Trans in the City” – an open corporate collaboration of over 250 major organizations to further transgender awareness across the world. Extremely active in the trans awareness space, Bobbi speaks at many events around the world on LGBTQ+ inclusion in business, transgender rights, and diversity and inclusion in industry.

Donnya Piggott

Human rights activist Donnya Piggott is the founder of B-GLAD (Barbados Gays, Lesbians, and All-Sexuals Against Discrimination), an LGBTQ+ organization operating in Barbados to provide a safe space for the community. B-GLAD provides education on LGBTQ+ issues as well as raises the profile of the LGBTQ+ community as it fights for acceptance. She was awarded the Young Leaders Award for her activism. Donnya’s approach rejects the traditional argument on LGBTQ+ rights as one coming from a religious or moral standpoint – arguing it ends in stalemate – instead pursuing humanism and common humanity as reasons for the acceptance of LGBTQ+ people.

Leanne Pittsford

Leanne Pittsford founded Lesbians Who Tech in 2012, the largest LGBTQ+ community of technologists in the world. The community offers programming and opportunities to give visibility and opportunity to LGBTQ+ women and nonbinary individuals in the tech sector. The organization now has more than 40,000 members. The CEO also organized the LGBTQ+ Tech and Innovation Summits at the White House in 2015 and 2016.

Sara Ramirez

Best known for her ground-breaking role as bisexual character Callie on Grey’s Anatomy and a Tony Award-winning Broadway career, Sara Ramirez is also a vocal advocate for Latinx culture and LGBTQ+ rights, which has included sitting on the board of directors of True Colors United and the LGBTQ Task Force, and supporting groups like the Bisexual Organizing Project and Mujeres de Maiz. The Mexican American actor came out as bisexual in 2016 and has been a committed activist for the bi-plus community by combining entertainment and activism throughout her career.

Megan Rapinoe

Despite being a renowned soccer player, captain of the United States national team, the 2019 Best FIFA Women’s Player, and an Olympic gold medalist, Megan Rapinoe is still paid less for her role in women’s soccer than those playing men’s soccer. So she’s working hard to make sure that pay gap is known and closed. Rapinoe has become an activist for equal pay. Her and her team’s work led to the unforgettable moment right after they won the 2019 Women’s World Cup finals when thousands of fans chanted, “Equal pay! Equal pay! Megan’s fiancée, Sue Bird, is also an athlete and activist role model in the basketball world, advocating for LGBTQ+ rights as well as equal pay.

Linda Riley

Editor of Diva Magazine, and founder of Lesbian Visibility Week and the European Diversity Awards, Linda Riley has fought tirelessly for years to increase visibility both for the LGBTQ+ community, as well as the marginalized voices within it. She cares deeply and passionately about equality. In her work hosting the Diva Community, Linda provides space for people to discuss and explore topics important to the LGBTQ+ community, in a safe space.

Gina Rocero

The New York-based Filipino-born American model, TED Speaker, and transgender advocate, Gina Rocero is the founder of Gender Proud, a media production company that tells stories of the transgender community worldwide to elevate justice and equality. Rocero has spoken about transgender rights at the United Nations, the World Economic Forum and the White House. On International Day of Trans Visibility, Geena stood on stage at TED said, “The world makes you something that you’re not, but you know inside what you are, and that question burns in your heart: how will you become that?” After her powerful coming out story went viral, she launched GenderProud, which seeks to advance the rights of transgender people worldwide.

Danica Roem

At a time when “bathroom bills” and military bans have threatened the privacy and safety of transgender people, Danica Roem continues to be an inspiring leader and activist for the LGBTQ+ community. Danica is the first openly transgender person to be elected to the Virginia General Assembly, challenging and defeating 13-term incumbent and self-described “chief homophobe” Bob Marshall in the 2017 special election. She was re-elected in 2019, making her the first openly trans state legislator to be re-elected.

Angelica Ross

As Founder and CEO of TransTech Social Enterprises, Angelica Ross helps employ transgender people in the tech industry. She began her transition at the age of 19 with the help of drag queen Traci Ross. A self-taught coder, she also founded the TransTech summit to foster skills in the technology industry, especially for trans people.

Jojo Siwa

As one of the most popular names among kids and tweens, it was a huge deal when Jojo Siwa came out as part of the LGBTQ+ community last year on social media. Then, in February 2021, Jojo revealed that she was in a relationship with her best friend, Kylie Prew. With a TikTok following of more than 33 million and a global business empire built on her personal brand, she had a lot at stake. In previous interviews, Jojo describes herself as pansexual and also uses the terms “gay” and “queer.” If you don’t know of her, most kids in your family will. Go into any big box store and you’ll probably find her signature bows, dolls in her likeness, her children’s books, Jojo-branded makeup, etc. At just 18, she was on Time’s list of the most influential people in the world.

Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir

The former Prime Minister of Iceland Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir became the world’s first openly LGBTQ+ head of government, when she was elected in February 2009. In 1987, she entered into a civil union with author and playwright Jónína Leósdóttir and they changed their civil union into a marriage when same-sex marriage was legalized, becoming one of the first same-sex married couples in Iceland. A former activist in the trade union movement and an MP since 1978, she was named by Forbes as one of the 100 most powerful women in the world.

Katie Sowers

Thanks to Katie Sowers, it will be much easier for girls to watch the Super Bowl and imagine themselves on the sidelines. The offensive assistant for the San Francisco 49ers became the first woman and the first openly gay person to coach at the Super Bowl in 2020. The former high school athletics director and Women’s Football Alliance player and coach even got her own Super Bowl commercial with Microsoft, one of many LGBTQ+-inclusive ads that played during the game. But despite all the media buzz around her gender and sexual identity, Katie and the players she works with stay focused on her talent, her hard work, and her knowledge of the game.

Diamond Stylz

Protecting Black trans women isn’t a slogan for Diamond Stylz, it’s her life’s work and passion. As a high schooler, she successfully sued Indianapolis Public Schools for the right to wear a gown to prom rather than a tuxedo and then went on to become the first openly trans woman to attend Jackson State University, an HBCU in Mississippi. Her experiences in college sadly included being the target of the kind of bigoted violence that continues to kill Black trans women in America at higher rates than other transgender and gender nonconforming people. In response, Diamond doubled down on her activism and became the visible advocate for Black trans women that she is today. From producing the weekly podcast Marsha’s Plate, where she and her co-hosts help to unpack Black trans people’s experiences, to helming Black Transwomen Inc, a national non-profit that supports Black trans women in need.

Hayley Sudbury

Entrepreneur Hayley Sudbury is the founder and CEO of WERKIN, an analytics platform that utilizes behavioral science to improve diversity in company hiring practices. Before founding her own company, Sudbury was an executive at Barclays. Hayley campaigns for LGBTQ+ rights and diversity in the tech industry. She is also a member of the committee for LB Women and is a mentor for Stemettes.

Fumie Suguri

Japanese figure skater Fumie Suguri is the first out female figure skater to have competed in world-class competition. Among her many accomplishments on the ice, Suguri is a three-time world medalist, a three-time Four Continents champion, a two-time Olympic athlete, and Japan’s first ISU Grand Prix Final champion. In November 2014, after she retired from competitive skating, she came out as bisexual. In a sport where women are pressured to live up to strict standards of femininity, Suguri paved the way for more women to be true to who they are.

Wanda Sykes

Actor and comedian Wanda Sykes is known for her stand-up comedy. She came out as a lesbian in 2008 and has been an active LGBTQ+ activist ever since. She appeared in GLSEN’s “Think Before You Speak” campaign against homophobic language and was awarded the GLAAD Stephen F. Kolzak Award and the Activism in the Arts honor at the Triumph Awards. In 2009, Wanda became the first African American woman, and the first LGBTQ+ individual, to be the featured entertainer for the annual White House Correspondents’ Association dinner.

Lily Tomlin

Few LGBTQ+ people have been more influential in the world of comedy than Lily Tomlin. She has been involved in a number of feminist and gay-friendly film productions, and on her 1975 album Modern Scream she pokes fun at straight actors who make a point of distancing themselves from their gay and lesbian character. Answering one pseudo-interview question, she famously replied: “How did it feel to play a heterosexual? I’ve seen these women all my life, I know how they walk, I know how they talk…” Recently honored on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, the Grace & Frankie star began as a stand-up comedian and Off-Broadway actor before her breakout role in Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In. She’s also well-known for her from her Tony Award-winning show The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe, and films like Nashville, 9 to 5, Big Business, and Flirting with Disaster. She and her partner Jane Wagner first met back March 1971.

Lupe Valdez

Lupe Valdez was the first Latina and the first openly gay person nominated for governor by a major party in Texas, but ultimately lost to Republican Governor Greg Abbott. She was the former Dallas County Sheriff and Democratic nominee for Governor of Texas in 2018. An out lesbian and the youngest of eight children of Mexican-American parents, she served in the US Army Reserve before moving into law enforcement and becoming a senior agent in the Department of Homeland Security.

Lena Waithe

Actor, producer, and screenwriter Lena Waithe is an out lesbian from Chicago, and the first Black woman to win an Emmy for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series for her work on Master of None in 2017. She went on to produce diverse, cutting-edge shows like The Chi and Boomerang, as well as last year’s crime film Queen and Slim. Recently, she voiced the first openly queer animated Disney character in Onward. Throughout her career, she has pushed for more queer people and people of color to be involved in her film and TV projects, and acted as a mentor for up-and-coming artists.

Helena Zia

Award-winning author and journalist Helen Zia has been at the forefront of Asian American issues for decades. She has been outspoken about several social justice issues, including civil, racial and women’s rights, as well as countering homophobia and LGBTQ+ issues. In 2008, Helena married her partner Lia Shigemura in San Francisco, making them one of the first same-sex couples to legally marry in the state of California.

We will be featuring many of these exceptional women above throughout Lesbian Visibility Week, on myGwork, so don't forget to check back in.