We’ve come a long way since GLAAD was founded 25 years ago.
The Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation began in 1985 in New York to protest the New York Post‘s coverage of AIDS. The organization has gone on to push for changes throughout the media over the years, encouraging mainstream shows to depict accurate representations of GLBT people, their communities, and their relationships. GLAAD celebrated its anniversary Friday night with a cocktail party in Los Angeles, attended by the likes of Chaz Bono, Amber Heard and Jean Smart.
The crowd heard from Richard Jennings, the former president of GLAAD who said, “The steady stream of negative portrayals and censorship of gay and lesbian lives on film-reviews and in television has given way to much more realistic and life-affirming depictions, such as this year’s ‘The Kids Are All Right’ and TV’s ‘Glee.'”
Part of the celebration was noting how far visibility has come, and attendees were treated to a montage of stand-out TV moments over the years, including the now-famous 1997 episode of Ellen DeGeneres’s sitcom where her character revealed she was a lesbian.