This Day in Queer History

This month in 1749, Thomas Cannon published what may be the earliest defense of homosexuality in English, arguing that desire itself is natural. Only fragments survive, but his defiance endures.

This month, the USSR's 1922 Criminal Code decriminalized homosexuality, a remarkably progressive step. Stalin later reversed it, re-criminalizing homosexuality, imprisoning gay men, and banning abortion.

This month, the Amazon Bookstore Cooperative opened in Minneapolis as the first lesbian/feminist bookstore in the U.S., born in a collective's front room and fueling decades of queer literary community.

This month, Sweden became the first country in the world to allow transgender people to surgically change their sex by legislation and provide free hormone replacement therapy, a global milestone.

This month in 1975, Drummer magazine debuted, spotlighting the leather and S/M subcultures within the gay male community and giving an unapologetic voice to desires long kept underground.

This month in 1976, Virginia decriminalized private consensual adult homosexual acts, joining a growing wave of states recognizing that what happens between consenting adults is not the law's business.

On this day in 1991, about 3,000 LGBTQ+ people gathered at Walt Disney World wearing red for the first Gay Days event. What started as a grassroots celebration has grown into one of the largest queer events in the world.

This month in 1994, a federal judge ordered Col. Margarethe Cammermeyer reinstated after being discharged for being a lesbian. Glenn Close later starred in a TV movie about her courageous fight to serve.

This month, Belgium became the second country in the world to legalize same-sex marriage, following the Netherlands. Another nation recognized that love deserves equal protection under the law.

This month in 2013, the Evangelical Lutheran Church elected Rev. Dr. R. Guy Erwin as its first openly gay bishop. A member of the Osage Nation, he also became the ELCA's first Native American bishop.

This month in 2014, President Obama declared June as LGBT Pride Month, calling on Americans to eliminate prejudice and celebrate the great diversity of the American people. Presidential recognition at its fullest.

On this day in 1996, Lili Reinhart was born. The Riverdale star came out as 'a proud bisexual woman' in 2020 while urging fans to attend a Black Lives Matter rally organized by LGBTQ+ community members.