“More people say they have seen a ghost than know a trans person”
BY ELLA GAUCI, IMAGE BY ©SPORTSFILE
Sarah Kate Ellis, the CEO and President of GLAAD, spoke about the “life-saving” power of queer stories on screen during her acceptance speech at the Emmys. The non-profit LGBTQIA organisation was awarded the Governor’s Award at the 75th annual Emmy Awards.
Presented by queer ally Hannah Waddingham and gay icon Colman Domingo, the award was given to GLAAD in order to celebrate their tireless work to achieve fair, accurate, and diverse representation of LGBTQIA people in the media.
Sarah said in her heartfelt speech: “For all of us at GLAAD, this work is personal, for me, it’s about my wife and our kids because what the world sees on TV directly influences how we treat each other and the decisions we make in our living rooms, schools, at work, and at the ballot box.”
She then made a plea for more trans stories to be told. “The world urgently needs culture-changing stories about transgender people,” Sarah continued. “More people say they have seen a ghost than know a trans person.”
“When you don’t know people, it’s easy to demonise them. Visibility creates understanding and opens doors, it’s life-saving. Our community has achieved so much and yet, we are still being victimised and villainised with cruel and harmful lies. Sharing stories is the antidote.”
Last year, GLAAD found that LGBTQIA representation was at an all-time high, with shows like Heartstopper and films like Everything Everywhere All At Once leading the way. At the 2024 Emmys alone, LGBTQIA actors like Niecy Nash and Ayo Edebiri took home awards.
DIVA magazine celebrates 30 years in print in 2024. If you like what we do, then get behind LGBTQIA media and keep us going for another generation. Your support is invaluable.
