As long as there have been Black people there have been Black LGBTQ people. In honor of Black History month, we at the CSPC wanted to share some amazing POC who made history in the LGBTQ community as artists, activists, and leaders.

Did you know that Gladys Bentley (1907-1960) was Harlem’s most famous lesbian? Gladys was a gifted queer blues performer who preferred a tux to a dress during the Harlem Renaissance. 

Stormé DeLarverie (1920-2014) was a professed biracial butch lesbian born in the Deep South of New Orleans. She joined the Ringling Brothers Circus as a young teenager, performed as the only drag king at the first integrated drag revue in North America, and is rumored to have thrown the first punch at the Stonewall Uprising in 1969.

Ron Oden (1950-present) became the first openly gay mayor of Palm Springs in 2003. 17 years after Oden’s election, Palm Springs became the home of America’s first all-LGBTQ city council.

Phill Wilson (1956-present) was appointed by former President Obama's Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS in 2010. Wilson founded the Black AIDS Institute in 1999 after the death of his partner and his own HIV diagnosis. His work led to the "Act Against AIDS" campaign, which you may know as "Let's Stop HIV Together.”

And for all of our dance lovers, did you know that the Father of Vogue was Willi Ninja (1961-2006)? NInja's dance style was made most famous by Madonna's song “Vogue” in 1990. 

Alphonso David (1970-present) is a lawyer and Human rights activist. He served as an attorney at Lambda Legal and was the first openly gay counsel for New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo.

Stay tuned for more tantalizing tidbits about Black sex positive pioneers throughout the month on the CSPC website and social media channels!