Held on April 26 every year, Lesbian Visibility Day showcases women-loving-women, providing a platform for lesbian role models to speak out on the issues facing female sexual minorities. This is a day to celebrate and bring visibility to a section of the LGBTQ+ community and a chance to share stories and experiences from lesbians across the world. 

The International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia was created in 2004 to draw the attention to the violence and discrimination experienced by lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and intersex people and all other people with diverse sexual orientations, gender identities or expressions, and sex characteristics.

The date of May 17th was specifically chosen to commemorate the World Health Organisation’s decision in 1990 to declassify homosexuality as a mental disorder.

The Day represents a major global annual landmark to draw the attention of decision-makers, the media, the public, corporations, opinion leaders, local authorities, etc. to the alarming situation faced by people with diverse sexual orientations, gender identities or expressions, and sex characteristics.

Harvey Milk Day is celebrated each year on May 22 in memory of Harvey Milk, a gay rights activist assassinated in 1978.

Harvey Milk served less than a year in public office before his brutal assassination, but his life profoundly changed a city, state, nation and a global community. His courage, passion and sense of justice rocked a country and stirred the very core of a put down and pushed out community, bringing forward new hope and a new vision of freedom. This day is a chance to honour his life and legacy and every year it highlights the strides we have taken to make society a better place for LGBTQ+ people and how far we still have to go to achieve an equal society. 

Pan Visibility Day is on May 24th and is a day to celebrate and recognize those who identify as pansexual.

Pansexuality is different from bisexuality but the two aren’t mutually exclusive. Being bisexual means being attracted to more than one gender, while being pansexual means being attracted to people regardless of gender. Pansexuality and bisexuality are not in conflict, some people believe that pansexuality better includes people all genders while others are happy identifying as Bi  In fact, some bisexual people also identify as pansexual, and vice versa. Pansexuality is included under the bisexual umbrella, which covers anyone who experiences sexual or romantic attraction to more than one gender.

Like its LGBTQ+ counterparts, Pan visibility day is an opportunity to bring to light the stories and experiences of Pansexual people in society and look at how we can work to improve inclusivity for pansexual people.

The month of June was chosen for LGBT Pride Month to commemorate the Stonewall riots, which occurred at the end of June 1969. As a result, many pride events are held during this month to recognize the impact LGBT people have had in the world.

There are so many Pride events today that they can no longer fit in just one month and now cover most of the summer months. While this is an amazing indication of how far the LGBTQ+ community has come, there is still work to be done, and celebrating Pride Month is a way to draw attention to that work and protest the injustices the LGBTQ+ community still face.

On 28th June 1969, an uprising took place at the Stonewall Inn in New York City. As it was raided by the police in the early hours, three nights of unrest followed, with LGBT people, long frustrated by police brutality, finally fighting back. Lesbians and trans women of colour were some of the key people involved in the act of resistance, including Stormé DeLarverie, Sylvia Rivera and Marsha P. Johnson. This anniversary is a reminder of the power of standing together in defiance of those who seek to divide us.