#QueerHeroes – Page 9 – Evan Brechtel

June 20, 2019July 3, 2019

#QueerHeroes Day 20 – Keith Haring

Haring’s art first began getting attention with the graffiti he would create on blank ad spaces in New York subway platforms. He’d later use it to create fliers and art work for the ACT UP movement which was fighting against the AIDS epidemic ravaging New York, America, and the world.

His art seems simple at first glance. There’s no shading, no illusion of depth, not even faces. But, like Haring’s own activism, there’s an overwhelming motion and rhythm to every piece, mobilizing its viewer toward a sexual, joyous utopia.

Haring shot to international stardom and was commissioned to do a mural on the Berlin Wall. It was over 900 feet long and featured black and red figures interlocking arms in front of a yellow background, representing the hope of German unity.

Haring died from AIDS complications at 31.

June 19, 2019July 3, 2019

#QueerHeroes Day 19 – Janet Mock

Janet Mock is a transgender writer, editor, director, and producer. Her debut memoir, Redefining Realness, became a New York Times bestseller.

In addition to being one of the writers and directors of POSE (which just got an early renewal for a third season after its season 2 premiere earned the best ratings ever), she’s an occasional editor for Marie Claire. She was the first trans woman of color hired to write for a tv show in history (which is ridiculous).

Today, it was announced that she signed a multi year overall deal with Netflix, that will allow her creative control of a slew of original work.

I’m celebrating her success, but I’m also celebrating the fact that her invigorating, original work will be featured on one of the most popular streaming sites ever, bringing new stories to eyes that may not have seen them otherwise.

This is just the beginning for her.

June 18, 2019July 3, 2019

#QueerHeroes Day 18 – Sally Ride

Sally Ride became the first American woman in space on this day, 36 years ago. The male engineers at the time asked her how many tampons she’d need for a one week space flight. Their guess was 100.

She quickly corrected them.

She was 32 years old and remains the youngest astronaut to ever travel in space. After leaving NASA in the 80s, she went on to become a physics professor at multiple universities, as well as investigating the Columbia and Challenger tragedies.

She died of pancreatic cancer in 2012, survived by her partner of nearly 30 years: Tam O’Shaughnessy.

June 17, 2019July 3, 2019

#QueerHeroes Day 17 – Matthew Shepard

Matthew Shepard shouldn’t be on this list.

He should be at home, perhaps with a husband, maybe even kids. Or embarking on an exciting new adventure or a career he began after the college he never got to graduate from. He should be enjoying a life that he may not have believed possible the fateful night he went to that bar in Laramie, Wyoming.

Two monsters beat him beyond recognition, tied him to a fencepost, and left him for dead. He was barely alive when found. He died days later.

His horrific murder helped mobilize people like Ellen DeGeneres (who had just come out) and others to advocate for hate crime protections for queer people. For compassion in general.

Matthew’s incredible parents—Dennis and Judy Shepard—have since dedicated their lives to education and advocacy. Reliving his death so that others won’t feel their pain.

Last year, he was interred at the Washington National Cathedral.

June 16, 2019July 3, 2019

#QueerHeroes Day 16 – Lady Gaga

I’ll never forget watching Lady Gaga’s acceptance speech for the Fame Monster at the 2010 VMAs. She announced her upcoming single, “Born This Way” and sang the chorus to a wowed audience. It was right before I came out of the closet, and a year later, I’d run out of school to listen to it for the first time in my 2000 Camry.

A bisexual woman horrified at the onslaught of queer teen suicides, Gaga founded the Born This Way foundation in 2011. It’s raised hundreds of thousands of dollars to create a “braver, kinder world” for queer youth. It’s an important cause to her because she was relentlessly bullied herself until finding a niche in the dive bars she’d perform at in New York’s lower east side.

Over the years I’d listen to Judas on my way to confirmation class, I’d write a strongly worded letter to the editor of the school newspaper pointing out that the Hitchcock allusions in Bad Romance were not superficially sexual pop lyrics. I’d find myself constantly defending this woman, feeling a kinship in a way I’d never felt for a celebrity before.

Her fashion was dismissed as a gimmick. America’s obsession with her was decried as a phase. People claimed there was no sincerity in her, and now she’s come so far. I’m so proud that this legend is a part of our community.