Cinco de Mayo is a day of celebration of Mexican heritage and pride, which means we shouldn’t leave out our Mexican (and Mexican-American) lesbians and the women who play them on TV. Here are 14 of them we’d love to share a margarita with – one straw. The actress came out officially in June of 2010 but has been with her partner for more than six years. She told a reporter, “I spent all my life pretending, being someone else to please everyone or because I was afraid of lose job opportunities. Sometimes, you just do everything to stay in the business and at the end you lose yourself.” The two out members of Girl in a Coma are Mexican-American and some of their love of Mexican art and culture seeps it’s way into their genre-fusing rock music. The legendary vocalist came out as a lesbian in 2000 at the age of 81, but has been in relationships with women all of her life. Most notably, she romanced Frida Kahlo.
The out actress starred on E.R. before working on her new lesbian-themed film, Slip Away, which also stars Thea Gill and Wilson Cruz. The singer may be competing on The Voice, but she’s been in the music industry long before she signed on to the show. One of her songs won an Out Music Award in 2009 and another salutes her home country, the appropriately named “Mexico.” The Tecate-based exotic dancer/lesbian mother is the focus of the 2010 documentary Tierra Madre. The film has won several awards, and Aidee was a co-producer as well.
Fictional Fernanda Castillo and Ducle Maria had some steamy scenes together last year when Eliana reunites with her former lover, Joanna, on Mujeres Asesinas. Las Aparicio‘s lesbian couple have had their ups-and-downs, but their struggles have only brought them closer. But since it’s a soap, they can never just stay happy together for long. Sigh. As one of The L Word‘s most well-loved characters, Carmen was also one of the only women on the show whose family life and heritage was highlighted as part of a storyline. While Carmen first found it difficult to tell her family she was a lesbian, eventually they came to support her and her relationship with Shane. Niñas Mal is a telenovela set at an all-girl charm school – of course there’s a lesbian couple! The teen bad girls found each other and a legion of fans who couldn’t get enough. The show’s first season had great ratings, so a second season looks highly possible!
