LGBTQIA+ Icons Across The Globe, You Should Know.

In honor of LGBTQIA+ History month, Warren Wilson Colleges, Center for Gender and Relationships has teamed up with Wilson Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity Office to bring together a list or international LGBTQIA+ icons you should know.

Ruby Rose - Australia She/Hers

gifsrubyrose.tumblr.com

Gender pronouns she/her but Identifies as both male and female

Ruby Rose was born in Melbourne, Australia. She is a model, DJ, recording artist, actress, and television presenter. Ruby Rose is most commonly known for her appearance in seasons three and four of Orange is the New Black. Ruby Rose’s life hasn't been easy. She was verbally and physically abused by her classmates because of her sexuality and sexually abused by a relative. Ruby Rose was one of the very first celebrities to come out as gender fluid. Ruby's openness led to the release of her short film "Break Free". "I am very gender fluid and feel more like I wake up every day sort of gender neutral."

Olly Alexander- Europe Gender pronouns he/his

capitalfm.com

Olly Alexander was born July 15th 1990 in England, United Kingdom. Olly is the lead singer of the band Years & Years. He started his career as an actor. He had roles in the following movies and TV series: Summerhill, Bright Star, Tormented, Entering the Void, Skins and many others. Olly was involved in the Anti-bullying campaign in 2015. In 2015 Olly also promoted Safer Sex and HIV/AIDS testing, during a pop culture interview. Olly has been open about being gay throughout his rise to success.

Ellen Page - North America gender neutral: they/them

pinterest.com

Ellen Page is a Canadian actress. They started small with TV show roles then made their way to leading roles in movies such as Hard Candy, Juno, Smart People, Inception, Super, X-men: Days of Future Past, and Homeless to Harvard. Ellen is a pro-choice feminist and came out as gay during a speech at the Human Rights Campaign, Time to Thrive.

“You think you’re in a place where you’re all ‘I’m thrilled to be gay, I have no issues about being gay anymore, I don’t feel shame about being gay’, but you actually do. You’re just not fully aware of it.”

Cheryl Dunye - Africa Gender pronouns she/her

thefilmexperience.net

heryl Dunye is a film director, producer, screenwriter, editor and actress. Cheryl Was born May 13th, 1966 in Liberia. Cheryl has a consistent theme in all of her work which is race, sexuality and gender (specifically issues relating to the experiences of black lesbians). One of her most recognized works is “The Watermelon Woman”, a film about a young black lesbian working a day job in a video store while trying to make a film about a black actress from the 1930s known for playing the stereotypical "mammy" roles relegated to black actresses during the period. Cheryl now teaches at San Francisco State University and mother of two.

Kalki Subramaniam India Gender she/her

vimeo.com

Kalki is a transgender woman. She is also an artist, actor, writer and entrepreneur. Kalki is from Tamil Nadu, India. She is the first transgender woman in India to star in a lead role in a motion picture. Kalki founded the Sahodari Foundation which is an organization that advocates for transgender people in India.

Taiga Ishikawa - Asia Gender pronouns: His/He

2bmag.com

Taiga is a LGBT activist and Japanese politician. He is one of the first openly gay politicians to win an election in Japanese history. He also founded the gay male support organization Peer Friends in 2004. Taiga is heavily involved in the Japanese LGBT rights movement. He has also participated in Tokyo Pride Parade

Diane Marie Rodriguez Zambrano - South America Gender Pronouns: she/her

siluetax.org

Diane is a transgender woman. She is an activist in human rights, sexuality, and LGBT rights in Ecuador. She is currently the transgender chair of the Silueta X Association. Diane sued the Civil Registry to change her birth name to Diane Marie. On top of all of this, Diane also became the first openly transgender and LGBTQI candidate to run for elected office in Ecuador.