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Ten Reasons We’re Thankful in 2010

2010 has been some kind of trip on the Equality Roller Coaster, huh? “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” has been overturned and under-turned and sideways-turned and flipped and flopped and hammered and puffed up and knocked down and rolled over so may times we don’t even know which way is up anymore. President Obama has remained mostly silent on gay rights. More gay and lesbian teenagers than we can bare to count took their own lives this year. And a majority of Americans still don’t support same-sex marriage.

And yet, 2010 was also full of bright moments that made us feel warm and fuzzy and tearful in the very best way. If this year had an equality slogan, it would surely be “It Gets Better,” and we believe that! It is getting better! And so just in time for (American) Thanksgiving, we’ve compiled a list of ten reasons we’re thankful this year.

Openly gay athletes at the 2010 Winter Olympics

Despite the fact that it is positively inundated with lesbian and bisexual woman, the sports world is still a shockingly homophobic place. And with the fleeting nature of fame and the small window of marketability, no one could blame Olympic athletes for not going public with their sexuality. These women train their entire lives for a single moment on the international stage. But in February in Vancouver, Ireen Wust of the Netherlands, Sarah Vaillancourt of Canada, Erika Holst from Sweden and Vibeke Skofterud from Norway competed in the 21st Winter Olympic games as openly gay athletes. They even took home four medals between them!

Jennifer Knapp and Chely Wright

Jennifer Knapp is a former contemporary Christian artist and Chely Wright is a country music star, and if you’re thinking those are the two most conservative music industries on earth, you are correct. Wright and Knapp both came out this year, and each took a turn on Larry King, speaking candidly about their sexuality. And Chely took it a step further, becoming a willing torchbearer for equality after releasing her profoundly moving memoir Like Me. At the risk of being ostracized from the country music community, she became a vocal advocate for the repeal of DADT, for marriage equality all over the world, and for various campaigns aimed at educating young people on the dangers of homophobic bullying. Every time a celebrity comes out of the closet, it leaves the door open a little wider for those who will come behind them. But we think it’s fair to say Chely and Jennifer busted the door wide open in their respective communities.

Judge Walker’s Prop. 8 Ruling

California’s Proposition 8 has been a dark cloud hanging over the LGBT community since it passed in 2008’s general election, but this year, in a 138-page ruling, District Judge Vaughn Walker struck it down. Rachel Maddow said the ruling was “I kid you not … better than whatever novel you are currently reading, and you should print it out and curl up with it instead! You will not be disappointed!” Judge Walker ruled Prop. 8 unconstitutional under equal protection and due process clauses.

The battle for marriage equality is far from over, but we think history will prove Judge Walker’s ruling as the first of the fatal blows dealt by the good guys.

“It Gets Better”

Dan Savage started “It Gets Better” long before the tragic teen suicides that brought global attention to the project, but it turned out to be exactly the thing we needed to feel our way out of the dark. It started with a couple of gay guys making YouTube videos promising LGBT teenagers that life gets better after high school, but in the wake of deaths brought about by bullying, hundreds of celebrities lent their voice to the campaign.

Ellen DeGeneres, Neil Patrick Harris, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, the entire cast of Glee, and even Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and American president Barack Obama joined together to offer a message of hope. Some of the most poignant “It Gets Better” messages came from regular people like you and me. Joel Burns and the gay and lesbian folks at Pixar make us cry every time we watch their videos. “It Gets Better” is more than a catchy slogan; it’s true.

Portia and Ellen

We are always thankful to the world’s most famous lesbians. They are consistently warm and funny and articulate, and everywhere they go, they diffuse the stigma that sometimes surrounds gay and lesbian couples. In the last two years, especially, Portia and Ellen have really taken a stand for equality. Ellen hasn’t shied away from talking about things like Prop. 8 and DADT on her talk show, and when Portia drops by to promote her projects – like her moving memoir, Unbearable Lightness – or just try to identify the magical creatures in the woodland behind their house, the couple is affectionate and familiar. Portia changed her last name to “DeGeneres” this year, too, as a symbol of her commitment to her wife.

Lesbian-centric web series

We often bemoan the lack of quality lesbian programming on our TVs, but lesbian and bisexual women have some of the best web series on the internet. Anyone But Me continues to wow us with poignant storylines, snappy dialogue and Liza Weil’s delicious voice. Venice meets our soapy needs. Vag Magazine makes us remember why we’re all in love with Kate McKinnon. And on and on and on. There’s Out With Dad, The Real Girl’s Guide to Everything Else and Girl/Girl Scene. You could spend half your work day watching lesbian stories online. Your boss might not like it, but we totally approve.

Mary Glasspool

Seven years after consecrating its first openly gay bishop, the Episcopal Church made history by bestowing that title for the first time on a lesbian. In May, Rev. Canon Mary Glasspool became the second female bishop in the 100-year history of the Diocese of Los Angeles. While other Anglican denominations continue to oppose same-sex marriages, the Episcopal Church is striving to prove its commitment to its lesbian and gay parishioners.

Costa Rica, Argentina, Portugal, Iceland, Washington D.C., New Hampshire and Mexico City

They all legalized same-sex marriage in 2010!

Jane Lynch

If it were up to us, it would be a federal law that Jane Lynch always be referred to as “Jane Effing Lynch,” and after this year, we don’t think many people would object. Jane has been on our radar for a long, long time – we remember when she was Nurse #2 on Gilmore Girls – but now the world has finally recognized her talent, and we couldn’t be happier.

Lynch has an Emmy on one arm and her new wife Lara Embry on the other. She hosted Saturday Night Live this year, charmed the pants off of every audience on every talk show she visited and even made a guest appearance on iCarly, her stepdaughter’s favorite Nickelodeon show. She has never kept her sexuality a secret, and when interviewers ask her about her wedding or her wife, she absolutely glows. 2010 made us remember, again, how lucky we are to have her on our team.

Lisa Cholodenko and The Kids Are All Right

Sometimes it’s still hard to believe Lisa Cholodenko’s The Kids Are All Right really exists. Annette Bening and Julianne Moore, both Oscar-nominated actors, played a lesbian couple in a movie that screened in wide release and pulled in a 95 percent Rotten Tomatoes rating, making it one of the best-reviewed films of the entire year. There’s even some Oscar buzz starting to build around Benning.

There are those who would bash Kids for the age-old “lesbian sleeps with a man” trope, but Cholodenko’s film is so much more than that. It’s organic and real; it refuses to gloss over the quirks and imperfections that make us human. It ends on a happy, hopeful note that leaves us wanting more. More authentic lesbian movies! More well-acted lesbian couples! More Nic and Jules! (Yes, we really want to see a sequel.)

Lesbian characters on British television

2010 was a banner year for lesbian characters on British television. Skins kicked it off with Naomi and Emily, taking them through every phase of heartbreak before knitting them back together. Coronation Street‘s Sophie and Sian storyline has blown us away with its tenderness and authenticity. And Lip Service made us forget why we endured those late seasons of The L Word. The fictional lesbian stories out of the UK this year were raw and real and deeply entertaining. (On a related note, American lesbians are wildly thankful for the power of YouTube.)

What are you thankful for this year?

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