Lesbian Visibility Week #LVW2024, celebrated from April 22-28, is a time to recognise and honor the contributions, achievements, and unique experiences of lesbian women around the world.
Why Do We Need Lesbian Visibility Week?
The origins of Lesbian Visibility Week can be traced back to 1990, when it was first conceived by the West Hollywood Lesbian Visibility Committee and the Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Center. The organizers sought to raise awareness and gain more visibility for lesbian women, who often felt overshadowed by the higher public profile of gay men.
Research shows that lesbian women are less likely to be out at work compared to gay men, and their stories and experiences are sometimes sidelined in broader narratives.
The week also serves as a reminder of the ongoing challenges and discrimination that many lesbians continue to face. Lesbian women, particularly those with intersecting marginalized identities, often encounter barriers to acceptance, visibility, and equal rights.
This Year’s Theme: United, Not Uniform
captures the essence of the lesbian community. Lesbians come from all walks of life, with diverse ethnicities, backgrounds, and expressions of their identities. This week is about celebrating that beautiful spectrum while recognising the power of solidarity within the LGBTQIA+ community.
List of Famous & Influential LGBTQIA+ People
Here’s a list of famous LGBTQIA+ people* spanning various fields and disciplines, whose contributions and achievements have left significant marks on society and culture:
*This list is not exhaustive, but it highlights some of the individuals who openly identify within the lesbian spectrum.
Movie & TV
Jodie Foster
Two-time Academy Award winner known for her powerful performances in films like “The Silence of the Lambs” and “Taxi Driver.”
Ellen DeGeneres
Emmy Award-winning comedian and talk show host who famously came out as lesbian in 1997, breaking barriers on television.
Sara Ramirez
Played Callie Torres on “Grey’s Anatomy” and is a prominent bisexual activist.
Cynthia Nixon
Star of “Sex and the City” who is openly lesbian and a vocal advocate for LGBTQIA+ rights.
Angela Robinson
While primarily known as a filmmaker and television producer, Angela Robinson is also a prominent lesbian figure in Hollywood. She directed several episodes of “The L Word” and has created and produced other LGBTQIA+ inclusive series such as “The L Word: Generation Q” and “The Real L Word.”
Kate McKinnon
An actress and comedian known for her work on “Saturday Night Live,” McKinnon is openly lesbian and has become one of the show’s most beloved cast members.
Portia de Rossi
An actress known for her roles in “Ally McBeal” and “Arrested Development,” de Rossi is married to Ellen DeGeneres and came out publicly as a lesbian in 2005.
Tig Notaro
A comedian, writer, and actress, Notaro is known for her deadpan comedy style and her openness about her experiences, including her breast cancer diagnosis and her marriage to actress Stephanie Allynne.
Lily Tomlin
Mary Jean “Lily” Tomlin is an American actress, comedian, writer, singer, and producer. Tomlin started her career in stand-up comedy and sketch comedy before transitioning her career to acting onstage and on-screen.
Amandla Stenberg
Amandla Stenberg is an American actress and singer. Her breakthrough came at the age of 14, when she was cast as Rue in the 2012 film The Hunger Games.
Music
Janelle Monáe
A genre-bending artist known for her futuristic concepts and flamboyant style. Identifies as non-binary but has expressed attraction to women.
Tracy Chapman
Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter known for her introspective lyrics and soulful vocals. While not explicitly stating her sexual orientation, her songs like “Fast Car” and “Give Me One Reason” have become anthems for the LGBTQIA+ community.
Peaches
Canadian artist Peaches (Merrill Nisker) is an electroclash icon. Known for outrageous live shows and a blend of punk, electronic music, and theatrics.
St. Vincent
St. Vincent (real name Annie Clark) art-rock music and theatrical performances challenge traditional gender norms and identifies as queer.
k.d. lang
Canadian singer-songwriter known for her distinctive voice and openness about her sexuality.
Brandi Carlile
Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter known for her powerful vocals and Americana sound.
Jojo Siwa
Joelle Joanie “JoJo” Siwa is an American singer, dancer, actress and internet personality.
Jean Deaux
![Jean Deaux](https://officemagazine.net/sites/default/files/styles/article_image_large/public/img635_copy.jpg?itok=lS9YaS4Y)
Rising star known for her genre-bending music that mixes hip-hop, soul, and electronic influences.
Hayley Kiyoko
A singer, songwriter, and actress, Kiyoko is often referred to as “Lesbian Jesus” by her fans for her unapologetic representation of queer identity in her music videos and lyrics.
Writing/Literature
Audre Lorde
Influential African American poet, essayist, and activist whose work explored themes of race, gender, sexuality, and class.
Adrienne Rich
Pioneering feminist poet and essayist who wrote extensively about gender, sexuality, and social justice. While there is debate about her sexual orientation, she was in a committed relationship with another woman for most of her life.
Virginia Woolf
An English writer known for her modernist novels, including “Mrs. Dalloway” and “Orlando.” Woolf had relationships with women throughout her life and is often discussed within the context of LGBTQIA+ literature.
Radclyffe Hall
A British author best known for her novel “The Well of Loneliness,” which was published in 1928 and is considered a landmark work in lesbian literature. Despite facing censorship and controversy upon its release, the novel has since been recognized for its portrayal of lesbian identity.
Lauren Morelli
An American television writer and producer known for her work on the series “Orange Is the New Black.” Morelli, who came out as a lesbian while working on the show, has been praised for her portrayal of LGBTQIA+ characters and relationships in the series.
Science
Sally Ride
An astronaut and physicist, Ride became the first American woman in space in 1983. She was also a passionate advocate for science education.
Nettie Stevens
![Nettie Stevens](https://media.snl.no/media/65594/standard_compressed_Nettie_Stevens.jpg)
An American cytologist who discovered the XX/XY chromosome system of sex determination in 1905.
Vera Rubin
An American astronomer who specialized in galaxy rotation curves and dark matter. Her work helped to establish the existence of dark matter in the universe.
Nancy Wexler
An American neurogeneticist who co-founded the Hereditary Disease Foundation (HDF) and played a key role in identifying the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes, which are associated with an increased risk of breast and ovarian cancer.
Sports
Megan Rapinoe
A household name, Megan Rapinoe is a two-time World Cup champion and Olympic gold medalist with the US Women’s National Soccer Team (USWNT). She is a outspoken advocate for social justice issues like equal pay for women athletes and LGBTQIA+ rights.
Sue Bird
Point guard Sue Bird is a four-time WNBA champion, five-time Olympic gold medalist, and the WNBA’s all-time leading scorer. She has been with her partner Megan Rapinoe since 2016.
Nicola Adams
A retired British boxer, Adams made history as the first openly LGBTQIA+ person to win an Olympic boxing gold medal.
Martina Navratilova
Another tennis icon, Navratilova won 18 Grand Slam singles titles and 31 Grand Slam doubles titles. She came out as bisexual in 1981 and later identified as a lesbian.
Liz Carmouche
![Liz Carmouche](https://dmxg5wxfqgb4u.cloudfront.net/styles/athlete_bio_full_body/s3/2018-10/CARMOUCHE_LIZ_L_0.png?VersionId=y7Lr5Uzdovy4aC3ACQ_iEnQrcs2Jn44y&itok=U9mRHKiL)
A former mixed martial artist, Carmouche was one of the first openly gay fighters in the UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship).
Politics
Kathy Kozakachenko
The first out lesbian elected to any political office in the United States (1974).
Ana Brnabić
Ana Brnabić is the Prime Minister of Serbia and the first openly gay person to hold the position in Serbia.
Eva-Britt Svensson
A Swedish politician, Svensson served as a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) from 1999 to 2014.
Annise Parker
Parker served as the Mayor of Houston, Texas, from 2010 to 2016, making her the first openly lesbian mayor of a major U.S. city.
Simone Bell
A former member of the Georgia House of Representatives, Bell was the first openly lesbian African American woman elected to a state legislature in the United States.