- Billy Eichner is the first openly gay man to write and star in a major studio film, "Bros."
- Michaela Jae "Mj" Rodriguez and Ariana DeBose made history at entertainment award shows.
- Olympian Ireen Wüst became the most decorated openly LGBTQ athlete of all time.
In January, "Pose" star Michaela Jae "Mj" Rodriguez made history as the first trans actor to win a Golden Globe Award.
Rodriguez beat out Jennifer Aniston, Uzo Aduba, Elizabeth Moss, and Christine Baranski to win the award for best actress in a TV drama at the Golden Globes, which were not televised this year. She won the award for her performance in the Emmy Award-winning show "Pose," which released its final season last summer.
In February, speed skater Ireen Wüst of the Netherlands became the first athlete in history to win an individual gold medal at five different Olympic Games, and the most decorated openly LGBTQ athlete of all time.
Wüst, who is bisexual, has won a total of 12 medals, including six gold, since her first Olympics in 2006. At 35 years old, she is also the oldest speed skater to win a gold medal.
In March, Ariana DeBose became the first openly queer woman of color and the first Afro-Latina actress to win a SAG Award for acting.
DeBose won best supporting actress for her role as Anita in "West Side Story."
"It's indicative that doors are opening," DeBose told reporters backstage in the virtual SAG media room after her win, according to NBC News. "It's an honor to an Afro Latina queer women of color and a dancer and a singer and an actor."
Lia Thomas won the 500-yard freestyle swimming event at the NCAA Championships in March, making her the first trans athlete to win an NCAA title.
Thomas competed for the men's swimming team at the University of Pennsylvania for three years before transitioning, undergoing hormone therapy, then switching to compete for the women's team in 2020. She has since broken a number of national women's swimming records in the US, including the 200-meter and 500-meter freestyle records at the Zippy Invitational Event in Akron, Ohio in December, Insider's Meredith Cash and Will Martin reported.
DeBose made history again as the first openly queer actor of color and the first Afro-Latina actress to win an Oscar.
DeBose won the Academy Award for best supporting actress for her role as Anita in "West Side Story."
"Imagine this little girl in the back seat of a white Ford Focus. When you look into her eyes you see an openly queer woman of color, an Afro Latina, who found her strength in life through art. And that's what I believe we're here to celebrate," DeBose said in her acceptance speech. "So to anybody who's ever questioned your identity ever, ever, ever, or you find yourself living in the grey spaces, I promise you this: There is indeed a place for us."
In May, Karine Jean-Pierre became the first Black and openly LGBTQ+ person and immigrant to serve as White House press secretary.
Before she fielded questions from reporters on her first day, Jean-Pierre acknowledged the historic nature of her position and credited "generations of barrier-breaking people" that she said paved the way for her, Insider's Nicole Gaudiano and Oma Seddiq reported.
"I am obviously acutely aware that my presence at this podium represents a few firsts. I am a Black, gay, immigrant woman, the first of all three of those to hold this position," she said. "If it were not for generations of barrier-breaking people before me, I would not be here. But I benefit from their sacrifices. I have learned from their excellence, and I am forever grateful to them."
Billy Eichner is the first openly gay man to write and star in a major studio film with his groundbreaking romantic comedy, "Bros."
"Bros" is the first ever major studio rom-com about gay men, and also the first major studio film that features an entirely LGBTQ principal cast playing heterosexual roles, according to IMDB.
"To this day, I'm waiting for someone at the studio to call me and go, 'You know, now that we think about it, you've gone too far.' But it never happened," Eichner told Variety. "There's part of me that realized some of this would be eye-opening for certain people in the audience, and I loved that too. I was like, 'Great! Let's surprise people. Let's shock them.' Sacha Baron Cohen doesn't worry about that, why should I?"
"Bros" premiered in theaters on September 30.
Two openly LGBTQ+ candidates are running against each other in a congressional race for the first time in US history.
Democrat Robert Zimmerman and Republican George Santos, both openly gay, are facing off in November in a bid to represent New York's 3rd congressional district. The nature of the election itself is already historic, and whoever wins will become the first openly LGBTQ+ person to represent the New York district, The Hill reported.
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