“GLBT History Month teaches history, provides role models, builds community and celebrates the GLBT community’s national and international contributions,” stated Malcolm Lazin, Executive Director, Equality Forum. “The White House celebration of GLBT History Month is an important demonstration of the Administration’s support of our equality.”
Each day in October, an Icon is featured without charge online at www.glbtHistoryMonth.com with a video, biography, bibliography with linkage, downloadable images and other educational resources. Started in 2006, the 124 Icons from inception to 2009 are archived with resources on the web site.
2010 is the 5th Anniversary of GLBT History Month. In 2006, 20 organizations had a GLBT History Month link on their web sites. In 2009, approximately 650 organizations had a GLBT History Month link, making GLBT History Month our community’s most collaborative project. There was an over 800% increase in web traffic for GLBT History Month 2009 by comparison to 2008.
“A history month is an important civil rights milestone, by enhancing visibility, providing educational resources, demonstrating merited pride and laying the groundwork for academic programs,” stated Lazin.
The 31 Icons for GLBT History Month 2010 are:
Eric Alva – Hero/Activist
George Washington Carver – Scientist
George Eastman – Entrepreneur
Sharon Farmer – White House Photographer
Leslie Feinberg – Author/Activist
Tom Ford – Fashion Designer/Filmmaker
E. Lynn Harris – Author
*David Huebner – Ambassador to New Zealand
*Kevin Jennings – Educator/Activist
Mara Keisling – Transgender Activist
Kiyoshi Kuromiya – Author/AIDS Activist
*Sharon Lubinski – U.S. Marshal
Jane Lynch – Actress
Patsy Lynch – Photographer
Matthew Mitcham – Olympic Diver
Jamie Nabozny – Youth Activist
Cynthia Nixon – Actress
Catherine Opie – Photographer
Sunil Babu Pant – Nepalese Politician
Annise Parker – Mayor of Houston
John A. Pérez – Speaker of California Assembly
Eleanor Roosevelt – First Lady
Jalal al-Din Rumi – Sufi Mystic/Poet
David Sedaris – Writer/Humorist
Maurice Sendak – Author/Illustrator
Matthew Shepard – Hero
Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir– Prime Minister of Iceland
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky – Composer
Rufus Wainwright – Singer/Songwriter
Mel White – Minister/Activist
Emanuel Xavier – Poet
*Obama Presidential Appointees
