This Day in Queer History

On this day, explorer Frederick Forbes arrived in the Kingdom of Dahomey and witnessed thousands of Amazons, female-bodied warriors with traditionally male roles who became a permanent and feared military corps.

On this day in 1949, Annie Leibovitz was born. The iconic portrait photographer captured John Lennon's final image and shared her life with writer Susan Sontag until Sontag's death in 2004.

On this day in 1955, Paula Ettelbrick was born. A fiery lawyer and pioneer of LGBT equality, she held leadership roles at Lambda Legal, NGLTF, and became the first woman to lead the Stonewall Community Foundation.

On this day in 1969, a National Institute of Mental Health study chaired by Dr. Evelyn Hooker urged the government to decriminalize private sex acts between consenting adults. Science leading the way.

On this day in 1990, London's Metropolitan Police met with members of the direct action group OutRage to discuss concerns about policing and the LGBTQ+ community. Activism forced the conversation.

On this day, Variety objected to the MPAA giving the film Bent an NC-17 rating, noting its sex scenes were far less graphic than heterosexual scenes in R-rated films, exposing a clear double standard.

On this day, California Governor Gray Davis signed three gay rights bills into law, expanding protections and proving that political will could translate into real progress for LGBTQ+ communities.

On this day, the first transgender bodybuilding competition in the U.S. was held at FTM Fitness' First Annual Conference in Atlanta. Former Marine Shawn Stinson was crowned the first winner.