Special Report

LGBTQ+ Pride

Celebrating the contributions LGTBQ+ Americans have made to the nation's culture, history and collective knowlege

Andrew Rondinone

A candlelight vigil is tinged with a sense of resistance and resilience as activists honor the second anniversary of Stonewall, 1971.

The First Pride Marches, in Photos

Del Martin, left, and Phyllis Lyon were officially wed June 16, 2008 in the first same-sex wedding to take place in San Francisco after legalization.

AT THE SMITHSONIAN

The Incredible Story of Lesbian Activists Del Martin and Phyllis Lyon

Queer artist Gilbert Baker preserved this 10- by 28-foot section of an original 1978 pride flag.

Long-Lost Fragment of First Rainbow Pride Flag Resurfaces After Four Decades

LGBTQ+ Arts and Culture

Halle Bailey as Ariel in Disney's live-action The Little Mermaid.

'The Little Mermaid' Has Been Subverting Expectations for Decades

Marchers celebrate in London, England, at the city's annual LGBTQ Pride festival in 2019.

What to Expect From the U.K.'s First LGBTQ Museum

Lisa Marie Thalhammer holds her original LOVE poster with her mural in the background.

AT THE SMITHSONIAN

This D.C. Muralist Finds Pride and Power in Public Art

Learn about the underbelly of your neighborhood supermarket, 100-plus uses for beans and more in this year's top food books.

The Ten Best Books About Food of 2020

This photo, like some others in the collection, was taken in a photo booth, eliminating the need for a photographer.

Newly Published Portraits Document a Century of Gay Men's Relationships

Édouard Dubufe’s portrait of Bonheur, embellished with a bull that Bonheur herself added, is on view in Bonheur’s meticulously preserved studio.

The Trailblazing French Artist Rosa Bonheur Is Finally Getting the Attention She Deserves

Elaine Sciolino; Photographs by Claudine Doury

Painting of Charlotte Cushman, 1843, by Thomas Sully

Charlotte Cushman Broke Barriers on Her Way to Becoming the A-List Actress of the 1800s

Tana Wojczuk

LGBTQ+ History

Flanked by drag queens while brandishing a .410-gauge shotgun on July 6, 1973, Broshears announced the establishment of a new vigilante group: the Lavender Panthers.

The Controversial Gay Priest Who Brought Vigilante Justice to San Francisco's Streets

On May 25, 1977, a fire at the Everard Baths in New York City killed 9 people and injured 12 more.

Before It Burned Down, This Bathhouse Served as a Haven for New York City's Gay Community

No known photographs of Swann survive. This 1903 postcard depicts two Black actors, one of whom is dressed in drag, performing a cakewalk in Paris.

The First Self-Proclaimed Drag Queen Was a Formerly Enslaved Man

Darcelle XV, Portland, Oregon, 2019

The 92-Year-Old Queen Who Shaped the History and Future of Drag

Li Shiu Tong and Magnus Hirschfeld at the 1932 conference for the World League for Sexual Reform

The Gay Asian Activist Whose Theories on Sexuality Were Decades Ahead of Their Time

Laurie Marhoefer, The Conversation

Queer artist Gilbert Baker preserved this 10- by 28-foot section of an original 1978 pride flag.

Long-Lost Fragment of First Rainbow Pride Flag Resurfaces After Four Decades

Miscellaneous objects from the museum’s collection that feature rainbows, including “That’s So Gay!” trivia game, coasters, and flags promoting marriage equality and immigration equality

AT THE SMITHSONIAN

Where Did the Rainbow Flag Come From, Anyway?