Pride
- Brianna Buller
- Aug 10, 2022
- 14 min read
Updated: Aug 22, 2022
Featuring: Anne Lister, Lili Elbe, Josephine Baker, Frida Kahlo, Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir,
Marsha P. Johnson, Beverley Palesa Ditsie, and Parinya Charoenphol
I did this theme in correlation with American Pride month in June. From the start of this project, I knew one of the themes would be about the LGBTQ+ community. There have been women in this community within the lineups of the other themes. However, for this theme, I wanted to focus specifically on the pioneers and trailblazers of the LGBTQ+ community. While I identify as straight, I am an ally to the community. Over the years, through school, dance, band, and theatre, I have become close friends with many LGBTQ+ members. My aunt is a lesbian; she and her partner are my favorite people on earth. Some people warned me not to do this theme as it might upset the public and gain unwanted negative attention. There was a particular concern about doing videos about transgender women. I strongly disagreed and said there is no way for me to do a Pride theme without including transgender women. I am happy to announce that there were absolutely zero negative comments about any of the women I chose to highlight. Instead, conversations started about how these women are today's role models for the community.
My sources for this theme mainly consist of online research. I did not find any books that totally fit what I wanted to cover for this theme. However, that does not mean there are no good books about women in the LGBTQ+ community. I used Hannah Jewell's 100 Nasty Women of History and Jenni Murray's A History of the World in 21 Women. Both of these books tell short summaries of influential women in history. I highly suggest them to anyone wanting to increase their literature on women. Sometimes it surprises me when I'm researching just how many significant and influential women are also a part of the LGBTQ+ community. My online souring mainly consisted of articles from museums or accredited magazines. Sometimes I find it difficult to find useful sources on a woman, and after careful consideration decided to choose someone else to highlight. While I enjoy picking women that most of the public has never heard of, that can also decrease my chances of finding credible sources to write a script on said women.
*All of the art is of my own creation, and there may be some inaccuracies in the images depicting real-life objects or people. You can think of it as me using my artistic license for the visuals in this project.
#1 Anne Lister 1791 - 1840
Transcript: Anne Lister was born in 1791 in England. In 1815 she moved in with her aunt and uncle at Shibden Hall and inherited the estate in 1836 after they had both passed away. Anne wrote a detailed diary of her daily life and left behind twenty-six volumes. The diaries give insight into Anne’s life as a landowner, businesswoman, intrepid traveler, mountaineer, and lesbian. As she got older, she refused to conform to societal standards. She only wore black and was known to wear masculine clothing. She is referred to as the first modern lesbian and is known today by the name Gentleman Jack. The name comes from her neighbors who ridiculed her masculine appearance with the word gentleman, and jack was another name for a lesbian during this period. She would secretly marry Ann Walker at the Holy Trinity Church in York in 1834 on easter Sunday. After her death, a descendant found her diaries stashed away in a wall and decoded them but hid them away instead of sharing them in the 1880s and 90s, and it would be a century later for the diaries to be found and decoded again for her story of living openly as a lesbian during a time when it was illegal to be told to the world.
Her image is a nod to her nickname of Gentleman Jack. The tophat was a signature item in fashion at the time. I chose the jack of hearts to decorate the hat in reference to the title of jack and that she followed her heart's desires instead of societal norms and expectations.
The More Your Know: The first usage of the term lesbian occurred in 1890 within a medical dictionary. The term literally translates into "from the island of Lesbos," Lesbos is a Greek island. Here the poet Sappho was born between 630 and 612 BCE. Most of her work has been lost over the centuries, but the surviving poems reveal romantic feelings for women. It is important to note that homosexuality was not taboo in ancient Greece. Records show many entered into homosexual relations while still being in heterosexual ones. A resurgence in Sappho's work happened with the Victorians. In Victorian England, the term used to describe a woman attached to other women was sapphist. Eventually, sapphist and lesbian became interchangeable in society until the title of lesbian won out in popularity.
Watchlist Recommendation: Gentleman Jack (HBO Max series 2019-2022)
Sources
Online - "Anne's Story," Anne Lister's Official Website https://www.annelister.co.uk/
Online - "Anne Lister," Calderdale Museums
#2 Lili Elbe 1882 - 1931
Transcript: Born Einar Wegener in 1882 in Denmark and moved to Copenhagen to study art at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts. There, Einar met Gerda, fell in love, and married in 1904. Both were artists, with Einar focusing on painting landscapes and Gerda as a book and fashion magazine illustrator. Gerda would have Einar fill in as a model dressed in women’s clothing, and there is where Lili was born. The couple moved to Paris in 1912, where Lili was able to live openly as her new self. Her last name of Elba comes from the river that runs through Germany since that is the country where she underwent four sex reassignment surgeries to obtain the female anatomy to have children, one of the first to undergo such medical procedures. The last surgery of placing a uterus and artificial vagina went wrong with her body rejecting it, and died of heart paralysis just before her 49th birthday. Her story was put into a book titled Man into Woman after her death in 1933, comprised from her letters and diary entries, becoming the first book on the personal life of a transgender individual, making it a hugely inspirational piece of literature.
Her image is a nod to her transformation into womanhood. Personally, nothing says 'make room, woman coming through,' like a pair of heels. I colored them in Denmark's flag colors with red and white. The tights are a true, popular style during the 1930s.
The More You Know: Gerda always supported Lili from the beginning. She encouraged her husband to dress up in expensive gowns and attend various social events. When people asked who Lili was, they had multiple different responses, like she was Einar's sister visiting from out of town or a model for illustrations. After the first three surgeries' success, Lili could finally legally change her name and be seen as a woman. However, that meant she could no longer be married to Gerda, and the king annulled their marriage. Gerda left quietly to let Lili live her life. Lili eventually accepted a marriage proposal from a friend and hoped to have children with him after her fourth surgery.
Watchlist Recommendation: The Danish Girl by Tom Hooper (2015)
Sources
Online - "Lili Elbe’s Tragic Life As A Transgender Pioneer" by Katie Serena, All That's Interesting Magazine https://allthatsinteresting.com/lili-elbe-einar-wegener
Online - The Lili Elbe Digital Archive http://www.lilielbe.org/
#3 Josephine Baker 1906 - 1975
Transcript: Josephine Baker was born Josephine McDonald in St Louis, Missouri, in 1906. Her parents were both performers, yet she grew up in poverty though she always had a flare for extravagance that came from her upbringing on the stage. At the age of 16, she would travel the east coast with a dance troupe and would eventually end up on broadway. In 1925 she moved to Paris to dance and become a sensation in French society, becoming one of the most successful African American performers in French history. She was openly living as bisexual and very pro-sex, claiming that she was not immoral, just natural. One of her most famous moments is her dancing seminude in a g-string decorated with bananas. She became a French citizen in 1937 and would continue to rise until World War II broke out. During the war, she worked with the French resistance as a spy who gathered intel while dancing, then sending the information in invisible ink on music sheets to the Allies. After the war, she returned to America and became a civil rights activist fighting racial injustice until she died in 1975.
Her image is my depiction of Josephine in a costume made for the stage. As little clothing as possible... The headpiece is in a gradient of the bisexual flag colors. Her earrings are bananas which is a nod to her popular banana dance.
The More You Know: Josephine would marry Jo Bouillon after the war, but they never had their own children. Instead, Josephine started to create her "Rainbow Tribe." While traveling the world either on tour or vacation, the couple would return with children they had adopted. The ultimate goal was to create a family consisting of all genders, races, and religions. In doing so, creating a safe space that's foundation is built on brotherhood and universalism. They adopted 12 children from Japan, Finland, Colombia, France, Algeria, Venezuela, Morocco, and various parts of Africa. The children were all brought up following their individual heritage.
Watchlist Recommendation: The Josephine Baker Story by Brian Gibson (TV Movie 1991)
Sources
Book - "100 Nasty Women of History" by Hannah Jewell
Book - "The Little Book of Feminist Saints" by Julia Pierpont
Online - "Josephine Baker" by Arlisha R. Norwood, National Women's History Museum https://www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/josephine-baker
#4 Frida Kahlo 1907 - 1954
Transcript: Frida Kahlo was born Magdalena Carmen Frieda Kahlo e Calderon in Mexico in 1907. At the age of 6, she contracted polio which caused damage to her right leg and foot. She would wear long skirts to cover up her deformity. She would not start painting until 1925 while recovering from a nearly fatal bus accident. She is known for her self-portraits that give insight into her life and intimate thoughts. She married famed Mexican muralist Diego Rivera; their marriage was full of highs and lows and could also be considered an open relationship. She identified as bisexual, and there is a long list of possible lovers, including Georgia Okeeffe and Josephine baker. Over the years, she created beautiful artwork pieces around the world. In 1953 she got her first solo exhibition in Mexico. Though she was bedridden with an illness, she had an ambulance drive her to the show and lay in a bed on the middle floor, talking and celebrating her work with the attendees. She would die in 1954, and it would not be until the 1970s, with the feminist movement, that her artwork would be revisited and understood as a symbol of feminist and feminine creativity.
Her image is a nod to her artistic skill. The flower crowns she wore or printed had big flowers like roses in them. They are in the colors of the bisexual flag. As Frida died too young, I left the roses empty in an almost unfished look.
The More You Know: Frida joined the Communist party in Mexico in 1927. Her husband, Diego Rivera, was also a member of the party, and together they pushed for a better Mexico under Communism. The couple considered themselves "Trotskyites," followers and admirers of Leon Trotsky, a key player in the 1917 October Uprising in Russia. When Stalin exiled Trotsky in 1929, it broke the Communist party into two factions, Stalinists and Trotskyites. Deigo convinced Mexican President Lázaro Cárdenas to offer Trotsky political asylum in Mexico. Frida and Trotsky's affair happened under his wife's nose, who could not speak English. When his wife finally realized what was happening, she gave him an ultimatum. Still, historians say Frida broke it off as she had grown tired of him by then. It is noted that Frida would flaunt her affair to her husband years after the fact just to make him jealous.
Watchlist Recommendation: Frida by Julie Taymor (2002)
Sources
Book - "A History of the World in 21 Women" by Jenni Murray
Book - "This is Herstory" by Harriet Dyer
Book - "The Little Book of Feminist Saints" by Julia Pierpont
Online - "Frida Kahlo" by Phyllis Tuchman, Smithsonian Magazine https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/frida-kahlo-70745811/
#5 Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir 1942 - present
Transcript: Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir was born in 1942 in Reykjavik, Iceland. In 1962 she became a flight attendant for Icelandic airlines and was heavily involved in the union, and served as chairman of the board of the Icelandic cabin crew association in 1966 and 1969. In 1978 she was elected into the Icelandic Parliament, serving on a wide range of committees over the years, from foreign affairs to social affairs. She became known for her advocacy of social justice and pushing for a better welfare system. In 2009 she became the prime minister of Iceland, becoming the first openly gay head of state in the world. In 2010 when same-sex marriage became legal in Iceland, she and her partner were the first to marry. Under her, Iceland became a model for gender equality placing #1 on the global gender gap index, and has been there ever since. Leading the way for gender equality for the Nordic countries and beyond. She helped the economy bounce back by 3% growth after the 2008 crash in 2011 and 2012. She stepped down as prime minister in 2013 and retired from politics after having served for 35 years, becoming the longest-serving member in the Icelandic parliament.
This is the flag of Iceland. Her image is a nod to her long career in the Icelandic government. I was going to do it in the colors of the pride flag. However, upon further inspection, all the nordic flags look the same, so to tell what country I wanted to represent, I decided to do the flag in its original colors.
The More You Know: Iceland, over the decades, has become a place where the gap in gender equality is quickly closing. One event that marks a core moment in the fight for equality is the 1975 Women's Strike. On October 24th, 1975, 90% of the women in Iceland participated in what they termed The Women's Day Off. They refused to do any work or chores to demonstrate women's importance to society. The country shut down, and the men were left to pick up the slack with the children and household duties. The results of this protest emerged the following year when Iceland's parliament passed a law guaranteeing equal pay. The strike also paved the way for the election of Vigdís Finnbogadóttir, the first democratically elected female president in the world, five years later in 1980. The women of Iceland have protested inequality five more times in 1985, 2005, 2010, 2016, and 2018.
Watchlist Recommendation: Love is Simply Love by Bjorn Bjornsson (TV Movie 2019)
Sources
Online - "Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir," Council of Women World Leaders https://www.councilwomenworldleaders.org/joacutehanna-sigurethardoacutettir.html
Online - "Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir," Icelandic Parliament
#6 Marsha P. Johnson 1945 - 1992
Transcript: Marsha P. Johnson was born Malcolm Michaels Jr. In 1945 in New Jersey. After graduating high school in 1963, she left home with 15$ and moved to New York, settling in Greenwich Village, where she discovered herself. She had a very hard life on the streets working as a prostitute to make ends meet but eventually became a very successful drag queen, where her name of Marsha P. Johnson emerged with her saying of, “The P stands for Pay it no mind.” She expressed herself through her appearance. She made lavish outfits from thrifted goods, gifts from friends, and items found on the street, with her statement piece being large flower crowns. She served as a “drag mother” who helped homeless and struggling LGBTQ youth in New York. Many eyewitnesses have identified her as a main instigator for the Stonewall Riots against police harassment. Afterward, she and Sylvia Rivera co-founded the Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries (STAR) to help people in the transgender community in New York, Chicago, California, and England. In 1992, her body was found in the Hudson River, with the police ruling it a suicide. Hundreds of people attended her funeral, spilling into the streets to mourn this monumental loss of a fighter from the community.
Her image is my artistic depiction of Marsha from the photo that is in her TikTok video. I decided to leave the flowers and leaves empty in a nod to her untimely death.
The More You Know: On July 6, 1992, Marsha's body was found in the Hudson River off the West Village Piers. The New York City police department ruled it a suicide. However, her friends and other community members continually claim that she was not suicidal. In 2017, twenty-five years later, Victoria Cruz, a crime victim advocate of the New York City Anti-Violence Project (AVP), re-opened the case. The documentary below is the story of Victorica Cruz and her journey to discover what really happened to Marsha; sadly, not much is recovered. However, this documentary's more significant theme is how badly the LGBTQ+, specifically the trans community, is neglected in the eyes of the law.
Watchlist Recommendation: The Death and Life of Marsha P. Johnson by David France (2017)
Sources
Book - "The Little Book of Feminist Saints" by Julia Pierpont
Online - "About Marsha P. Johnson, "Office of LGBTQ+ Affairs - County of Union, New Jersey https://ucnj.org/mpj/about-marsha-p-johnson/
Online - "Marsha P. Johnson" by Emma Rothberg, National Women's History Museum
#7 Beverley Palesa Ditsie 1971 - present
Transcript: Beverley Palesa Ditsie was born 1971 in South Africa. Growing up in the time of apartheid was hard enough, but she also had to deal with her feelings of something being wrong with her until she learned about the concept of being gay when listening to people speculate about the musician Boy George. She remembers having a moment of realization and finally feeling free with putting a name to her feelings. In 1990, she helped put on the first African pride march in Johannesburg with about 800 participants. In 1995 at the UN Fourth World Conference on Women, she became the first person to address the UN on LGBTQ rights saying, “If the World Conference on Women is to address the concerns of all women, it must similarly recognize that discrimination based on sexual orientation is a violation of basic human rights.” Since she has become a major figure in the fight for gay rights, human rights, gender equality, and better treatment for HIV and AIDS. She is currently a filmmaker; her most recognized work is her award-winning documentary ‘Simon & I.’
Her image is a nod to all of Beverly's protesting and campaigning for the LGBTQ+ community. You can see her using one in one of the images in the TikTok video. I put it in the colors of the pride flag for obvious reasons.
The More You Know: Simon Nkoli became a mentor to Beverley while fight together against apartheid in South Africa. The teenager had begun to feel something was missing in the anti-apartheid struggle. She says that she felt like something was missing from the argument against apartheid, and it was Simon who spoke up and mentioned the rights of gay people in the fight for equality. She says, "For the first time, it embodied what I'd always thought freedom would mean – because, for the first time, he included my queerness in the equation. So freedom was not just going to mean freedom for me as a black person; it would also be freedom for me as a woman, as a gay woman." They founded the Gay and Lesbian Organization of Witwatersrand (GLOW). The organization was instrumental in enshrining protection for the LGBTQ+ community in South Africa's new constitution. Fun Fact: South Africa is the first country to do so.
Watchlist Recommendation: Simon & I by Beverley Palesa Ditsie (2002)
Bonus: Lesbians Free Everyone by Beverley Palesa Ditsie (2020)
Source
Online - "Beverley Ditsie: the South African woman who helped liberate lesbians everywhere" by Aamna Mohdin, The Guardian
Online - "I Helped Found Africa's First LGBTQ+ Pride March. 30 Years Later, I'm Still Fighting for Our Lives" by Beverley Ditsie, Global Citizen
#8 Parinya Charoenphol 1981 - present
Transcript: Parinya Charoenphol was born in a small village in Thailand in 1981. She initially started boxing for the money but fell in love with the sport. At age 16 in 1998, she stepped onto the ring under the name of Nong Toom wearing makeup and beat her much larger cisgender male opponent. The Thai government at the time did not allow transgender athletes to compete, but since the sport was dying, they allowed her to continue, and she revitalized the sport. Rising to fame across Asia as she continued to be a novelty in a deeply masculine sport, constantly winning while presenting herself as feminine, but she says she never thought about gender, only winning while fighting. She saved her winnings to afford gender affirmation surgery, and in 1999 she retired to undergo said surgery. Then in 2007, she returned to professional fighting by fighting her first female opponent from the Netherlands. Since she has taken steps to help support and promote transgender athletes, started her own gym, and works to inspire other LGBTQ+ athletes to get involved in the fight for rights across Asia and the world.
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