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Biggest Moments in LGBT History

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Jun 26, 2015 10:38 PM
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Marriage for All

On June 26. 2015, the Supreme Court ruled that all gay Americans have the right the marry, solidifying marriage equality nationwide.


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Vanity Fair/FilmMagic

The Tipping Point

A select and outstanding few famous faces have helped pave the way for the transgender community by shining a light on their journeys to live their most authentic lives.


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Annie Leibovitz for Vanity Fair

Caitlyn Jenner

The world met the 65-year-old Olympian's true self on June 1, 2015, after her Vanity Fair cover debuted her transition as a woman.


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Brad Barket/Getty Images for Ketel One

Laverne Cox Makes a Statement

The Orange Is the New Black actress quickly became a voice for the transgender community after the Netflix series became a hit.


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Fred Morgan/NY Daily News Archive via Getty Images

Christine Jorgensen

The celebrity became widely known for being the first American transgender woman to have sex reassignment surgery.


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AP Photo/Kim Raff, File

Same-Sex Marriage

Each major step towards marriage equality for is worth noting, here are just a few.


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Mark Wilson/Getty Images

DOMA Ruling

Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act, which had prevented same-sex marriage couples from receiving federal marriage benefits, was ruled unconstitutional in 2013.


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NOH8

Proposition 8

The NOH8 campaign began as a response to the passing of Proposition 8 in 2009 and became a worldwide charitable organization aimed to promote marriage and gender equality.


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Sports Stars

The world may know them as physically stronger than most, but these athletes proved that their strength lies well beneath the surface.


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Courtesy: Kevin Winter/Getty Images

Jason Collins

The basketball star was the first openly gay athlete on a major American sports team after coming out in 2013.


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Jason Merritt/Getty Images for GQ

Michael Sam

The football star came out in 2014 less than two weeks before the NFL draft in simultaneous interviews with ESPN, The New York Times and Outsports.


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United States Government

Political Shifts

Throughout the course of many decades, laws pertaining to LGBT equality have made some, albeit not nearly enough, progress.


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JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/Getty Images

Don't Ask, Don't Tell's Repeal

After 17 years, the law that prohibited qualified gay and lesbian Americans from serving in the armed forces was revoked in 2010.


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J. Countess/Getty Images

Barney Frank

 "America's only left-handed, gay, Jewish congressman" is the first congressman to voluntarily come out, and has been a champion of LGBT and other civil rights.


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Cindy Ord/Getty Images

Jim McGreevey

The first openly gay governor wrote a memoir titled The Confession that shared the struggles of being a gay politician. 


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Frazer Harrison/Getty Images

Star Power

Many of the industry's biggest stars came out of the closet on a grand scale in an effort to provide more exposure to the LGBT community and the world.


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Sir Ian McKellen

The beloved Brit actor came out of the closet during an interview with BBC Radio in 1988 in the wake of the controversial Section 28 of the Local Government Act.


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Michael Rozman/Warner Bros.

Ellen DeGeneres

The comedian came out as gay on her sitcom in 1997 and was featured on Time magazine with the words, "Yep, I'm Gay."


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Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for Tony Awards Productions

RuPaul

The singer, actor, drag queen, model and author has used his star power to shed a light on LGBT issues across the board ever since the first days of his longstanding career.


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Music Makers

Whether their belting a tune or speaking on Capitol Hill, these celebrities used their fame as a platform to reach and influence millions.


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Marc Piasecki/FilmMagic

Ricky Martin

The global sensation spoke openly about his sexuality for the first time in an emotional social media post in 2010.


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Twitter

Melissa Etheridge

The two-time Grammy winner came out in 1993 and has been an LGBT activist ever since. 


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Paul Morigi/Getty Images for EJAF

Elton John

The legendary singer has been a major supporter in the fight against the global HIV/AIDS epidemic and even spoke before a Senate committee in May 2015.


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Exposure in Film

What these movies have done for the LGBT community as a whole, and Tinsletown, should never be overlooked.


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