This Day in Queer History

On this day in 1535, Pope Paul III scolded his son Duke Pier Luigi Farnese for bringing male lovers on an official mission. Even papal authority couldn't suppress queer desire in Renaissance Europe.

On this day in 1920, Montgomery Clift was born. The four-time Oscar-nominated actor kept his sexuality hidden from fans while Hollywood insiders knew, his brilliance and torment inseparable on screen.

On this day, the Supreme Court of Canada heard its first gay civil rights case, an appeal of an obscenity conviction against Vancouver's Gay Tide. A queer publication fought back, and the nation's highest court had to listen.

On this day, over 200 women gathered in San Francisco for the first Black Lesbian Conference. Growing from the National Third World Lesbian and Gay Conference, it centered Black lesbian voices in a movement too often overlooked.

On this day in 1992, 400,000 people viewed the AIDS Memorial Quilt, then over 20,000 panels covering 13 acres. Each panel a life. Each stitch a refusal to forget.

On this day, the United Nations considered LGBTQ+ rights abuses for the first time, hearing testimony of torture and forced institutionalization at its International Tribunal on Human Rights Violations Against Sexual Minorities.

On this day, The Advocate published a groundbreaking joint interview with Barney Frank, Steve Gunderson, and Gerry Studds, the three openly gay members of Congress, giving voice to queer political leadership.

On this day, attorney Melinda Whiteway became the first transgender person to co-chair a national gay and lesbian organization, leading the National Lesbian and Gay Law Association.