Happy Lesbian Visibility Week! Week This, from Spring 22 to 28, will be a moment to celebrate and display solidarity with lesbians in our area intentionally. In honor WWW.FREELESBIANPASSPORT.COM of the occasion, we’re taking a look back at some important moments in lesbian representation on TV-from iconic characters to pivotal milestones.

Television, and media at large, both reproduce reality and create it. Representation has a tangible impact on how the public perceives queerness and how people understand themselves. Not really all heroes and manifestation happen to be developed identical, though, and an increase of both quantity and quality of lesbian characters is essential. Out of the 596 LGBTQ characters counted across all platforms, 180 (30%) were lesbians. According to GLAAD’s 2022-2023 Where We Are On TV Report (WWATV), there was a decrease in lesbian representation compared to the previous year’s study. There have been likewwill bee zero validated lesbian trans figures.

Queer representation in television is a powerful tool for moving the needle on LGBTQ acceptance and rights, and the testimonies must be light, accurate, and various to achieve any kind of truly modify. The impact of lesbian characters and inclusive plotlines cannot be understated-they have an incredible influence on informing and changing the minds of the public, while furthermore allowing sapphic men and women the life-saving possibility to notice themselves displayed.

The history of lesbian TV representation has been a winding path, but it is an important avenue to walk down to understand how we arrived at today’s lesbian characters. Today Even, lesbian portrayal needs more stories from lesbians of color, trans lesbians, and dwill beablen lesbians, to name a few. While absolutely not necessarily an all-encompassingary checklist, this is a starting point to celebrate how far we have come and reflect on the work that still needs to be done.

All in the Family - "Cousin Liz" (1977)

On October 9, 1977, All in the Relatives season eight episode two aired, taking to the display screen one of the 1st actually clearly queer tv set figures. While she did not actually say the words "gay" or "lesbian," the inference will be apparent and after some first comedy confusion and impact, Edith is sympathetic and accepting toward Veronica. Edith also expresses surprwill bee when Veronica says the two would have becomeen fired from their teaching jobs if word had gotten out about their relationship-an issue that is frustratingly still prevalent today, 50 years later nearly. "It must have been terrible loving somebody and not being able to talk about it," she claims. The series is comedic, but notedly this instance’h laughter can be definitely not at the charge of Veronica or lesbians in basic. We locate out Veronica and Liz possess been definitely not simply roommates at all, but were in love and had a relationship "more like a marriage" than a friendship. The sitcom episode, titled "Cousin Liz," identified primary heroes Archie and Edith joining the burial of Edith’h relative Liz, where she is met simply by us "roommate" Veronica.

Ellen - "The Puppy Episode" (1997)

Cut to 1997, Ellen DeGeneres made waves with both her personal coming out and her sitcom character’s coming out. In an episode titled "The Puppy Tv show," Ellen battles with her emotions and denial of her sex, after meeting Susan particularly, another queer woman. In real life, DeGeneres publicly came out as a lesbian on The Oprah Winfrey Show, followed by the coming out of her character Ellen Morgan on the ABC sitcom Ellen. This internal struggle leads up to her coming out first to her therapist (recent GLAAD Vanguard Award winner Oprah Winfrey), and then later to everybody. I’m 35 years old, I’m so afraid to tell people, I mean, I just… Susan, I’m gay." While the coming out was not without negative public reactions and controversy (the series was canceled the next season), it had been likewise one of the present’s i9000 highest graded shows, and it marked Ellen as the first lesbian or gay head character on a US community Television set collection. Also, according to a 2015 Variety poll, DeGeneres did more to influence Americans’ attitudes toward LGBTQ rights than any other celebrity or public figure. After many stammering and soreness, she say tos Susan, "Why can’t I just… say the truth, I mean, be who I am.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997-2003) - Tara Maclay and Willow Rosenberg

Airing 1997-2003, Buffy the Vampire Slayer introduced to television one of the first long-running lesbian relationships between characters Tara Maclay and Willow Rosenberg. They are not regulated to the plot’s sidelines or one episodic moment either. Instead, Tara and Willow are usually major figures in the collection. Their partnership can be in addition mostly beneficial, as their like allows Tara become a lot more self-assured and assured. Unfortunately, Tara’s sudden death in season six is often pointed to as a prime example of the "Bury Your Gays" trope, which considers queer character types unnecessarily and frequently wiped out off. It had been a specifically mental instant for queer people, as the beloved relationship was a chance for many sapphic people to finally feel seen through positive representation.

The L Word (2004-2009)

The early 2000s brought another iconic staple of lesbian pop culture: The M Word. While The L Word was not perfect in its representation-particularly in its portrayal of trans and bisexual identities, as well as its lack of diversity-it has been unlike anything else on TV, and became a beacon of lesbian representation in a sea of straight characters (with a sprinkling of gay men.) The series’ popularity encouraged community among lesbian viewers, as it was content actually made for queer women, and provided an excuse for gathering and discussion. Its iconic status created spin-offs including reality TV show The Real M Word (2010-2012) and The L Expression: Generation Q (2019-2023), and it still left a enduring heritage in the global globe of lesbian representation. The Showtime sequence have not really merely have got a small queer individual, but quite featured an attire thrown of queer personas. From 2004-2009, the series focused on their remarkable relationships and lives in Los Angeles.

Grey’s Anatomy (2005-Present) - Arizona Robbins

Long-running medical drama Grey’s Anatomy has famously included a number of queer characters throughout its many seasons. "I’m super gay. Like I’m the gayest of gays. In the latest season of Grey’s Anatomy, the trailblazing lesbian character returned in a guest role; see her in season 20 episode four! Almost a decade later when Az was written off the series in 2018 she seemed to be the longest running lesbian character in network television history by a long shot at 228 episodes, and her relationship with Callie was the longest jogging same-sex couple in network TV. Her sexuality was clear from the beginning of her character arc, as Phoenix had been quite out and happy previously. In 2009, the series introduced lesbian pediatric surgeon Arizona Robbins (Jessica Capshaw) to season five, and she became a fan favourite quickly. Arizona was upgraded to a sequence regular in season six, and she has a long-term relationship with bisexual orthopedic surgeon Callie Torres (Sara Ramirez) spanning many seasons. I’m lesbianic," she shows another physician.

Glee (2009-2015) - Santana Lopez

A discussion of fictional lesbians of course must include Glee’s Santana Lopez. High school cheerleader Santana, portrayed by Naya Rivera, is a pivotal figure in lesbian TV representation. She goes on an incredible journey that sees her attempting to hide her sexuality, coming to terms with it, coming out publicly, dating her best friend, and turning into proud and confident in her queerness ultimately. A goodiring 2009 to 2015, Glee was a musical-comedy that focused on the drama and struggles of the fictional William McKinley High School’s Glee Club. For many, Santana seemed to be the primary moment they have seen themselves on monitor genuinely, or found who have they could end up being perhaps. Both her characterization as a Latine lesbian and her relationship with bisexual character Brittany are complex, transcending stereotypes in a method that had been definitely not generally observed at the moment. She had, and continues to have, a life-changing and long lasting impression on small queer folks.

The Fosters (2013-2018)

In 2013 The Fosters aired, depicting an important demographic: lesbian parents. The drama centered around the lives of the Adam-Foster family, as mom and dad Lena and Stef elevated their mixed up family of four young children. There acquired ended up various situations of gay daddies represented previously, but lesbian mothers were much more of a rarity. It handled young dilemma all together, the troubles with the U.S. For Lena and Stef to be the matriarchs at the centre of the sequence was significant. foster care system, and other social issues. Using the acquainted thought of a friends and family crisis, The Fosters was able to bring lesbian representation to the screen in a way that felt natural and real, and filled a major gap in queer representation.

Orange Is the New Black (2013-2019)

Paving the way for an era of binge-watching, Netflix’s Fruit Is the New Black was considered groundbreaking in many ways, including its diverse ensemble cast. There have been some queer romantic relationships throughout the collection as well, like as between Piper and Alex, Nicky and bisexual character Lorna, and Poussey and pansexual figure Soso. Popular fictional lesbians on the series included Poussey Washington (out actress Samira Wiley), Nicky Nichols (Natasha Lyonne), Alex Vause (Laura Prepon), and Carrie "Big Boo" Black (out actress Lea DeLaria), and Suzanne Warren (Uzo Aduba). Orange Is the New Black covered a lot of ground in terms of queer plotlines, including Laverne Cox’s portrayal of trans woman Sophia Burset. Still Even, Orange Will be the New Black was very popular among queer fans, with some even crediting the sequence for helping them discover their own queerness. However, many consider the murder of Poussey (one of the few Black lesbian characters on TV at the time) to be a modern example of "burying your gays," a new trope that we possess not been recently capable to totally maneuver previous even now. The sequence observed Piper Chapman delivered to prisoner of war camp for a 12 months and a half, exposing her privileged existence to the life-altering effects of prison and the diverse experiences of the women there.

Sense8 (2015-2018)

Trans lesbians are severely underrepresented in television-no such characters were even found in GLAAD’s 2022-2023 WWATV report. In the series, she is allowed to be who she is, than her queer identity being her only characterization rather. In GLAAD’s 2015-2016 WWATV report, Nomi is described as having "the same type of dramatic storylines as other characters and will be living her life beyond the ‘transition narrative’ we have seen so much of recently." This representation remains important, and lacking still, today. Sense8 follows eight strangers who discover they happen to be linked through a psychic connection, and among these strangers is Nomi. Nomi’s arc does not center around transition, and she provides a marriage with her girl, and wife later, Amanita. However, sci-fi drama Sense8 notably included a trans lesbian main character: Nomi Marks, portrayed by trans actress Jamie Clayton.

In the last ten years, more beloved lesbians have graced our screens, in series such as Supergirl (2015-2021), One Day at a Time (2017-2020), Batwoman (2019-2022), The Sex Lives of College Girls (2021-Present), and Heartstopper (2022-Present), to name only a handful of examples.

Progress has been made in lesbian representation and in how sapphic relationships are portrayed on television, but there is significant room for necessary improvement nonetheless. However mainly because we carry on to strive for even more different and exact manifestation, 7 days seeing that a new time to celebrate put on’capital t forget to as well make use of Lesbian Visibility. You can find some more lesbian content to enjoy with last year’s blog post, and check out this year’s GLAAD Press Awards nominees for more queer recommendations even!