It’s Lesbian Visibility Week, and during a political moment when anti-gay sentiment continues to rear its ugly head, it’s nice to see evidence of queer folks living their best lives and thriving.
RelatedLesbians, assemble!
That was the inspiration behind Carnegie Mellon linguistics scholar and Professor Uju Anya‘s now-viral Twitter thread, which called for lesbians over 40 to reply with pictures of them living their best lives.
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In no time at all, elder lesbians heeded the call, and the results were beautiful to behold. Suddenly, our timelines were filled with thriving couples embracing visibility and showing younger generations how it’s done.
Some women were single, while others proudly showed off their partnerships. The point is that no matter what your life looks like as an older queer person, it’s a life that’s worth celebrating. And it’s a life that younger generations deserve to see.
With so many anti-gay measures currently on their way to legislation across the country, along with a million gay trauma narratives on TV, it can be hard to visualize a happy future. But these women are living proof that queer joy and partnership deserve to be seen and celebrated all year long.
Black lesbians showed up in full force on the thread, and the results were wonderful to see.
Some women responded with hopeful messages for the younger generations, while others responded with thirst. Both incredibly valid!
It’s not always easy to be visibly queer in a country that’s hell bent on restricting your rights, but these women are doing it with strength, heart, and style.
And even folks who didn’t contribute to the thread were so happy to see it. We need more of this energy!
“We get to live” is right.