This Lesbian Visibility Week we question how far we’ve come and where we still need to go
BY HEBE HANCOCK, IMAGE BY A24
In 2024, it felt like lesbians were everywhere – on our screens, in our memes, at the Met Gala, and finally on magazine covers that weren’t just “Pride specials.” The sapphic takeover was real: from the muscle-bound mayhem of Love Lies Bleeding to the chaotic brilliance of Bottoms, lesbian stories weren’t just being told, but celebrated.
But now that the glitter has settled and Lesbian Visibility Week rolls around again, we’re left with a question: was it a breakthrough?
Let’s give credit where it’s due. 2024 gave us the lesbian cinematic universe. Kristen Stewart in full swagger mode, Ayo Edebiri taking over the world, and even hyper-masc TikTok thirst traps becoming a cultural moment. For once, it wasn’t just queer-coded characters or background girlfriends. These were fully fleshed-out lesbian leads, created by us, for us.
But for every sapphic win, there’s a slight eye-roll. The rise of “sapphic aesthetic” content has led to lesbian identity being flattened into a Pinterest board: soft lighting, oversized shirts, and a tragic haircut or two. There’s nothing wrong with lesbian fashion going mainstream – but it starts to feel like a branding exercise when big brands jump on the sapphic trend just in time for Pride, then vanish in July.
So, is 2025 the year we take control of the narrative?
There’s a darker side to the lesbian boom. As sapphic culture goes mainstream, it also becomes a target. The political discourse in the UK and beyond has grown increasingly hostile – especially towards LGBTQIA women, trans people, and anyone who doesn’t conform to neat, heteronormative boxes.
In 2024, we saw rising anti-LGBTQIA rhetoric from politicians and media outlets, often painting “lesbian spaces” as under threat from within the community, ignoring the real issues like funding cuts to LGBTQIA services, rising hate crimes, and the lack of comprehensive sex education. While we’re finally seeing lesbians on billboards, the grassroots organisations that protect our rights are struggling to stay afloat.
So in 2025, visibility needs to be more than a buzzword. It needs to mean protection, funding, and amplification – especially for those most often left out of the conversation.
The question we should all be asking is: which lesbians got to be visible in 2024?
Because while it’s great that sapphic content is thriving, the leading faces are still overwhelmingly white, femme, able-bodied and thin. Butch representation? Barely there. Older lesbians? Hard to find. Working-class stories? Almost non-existent. And Black and Brown queer women? Still fighting to be seen at all.
In 2025, it’s time for a broader lens. Visibility should include the full range of lesbian experiences – without asking anyone to shrink themselves to be more palatable.
So if 2024 was the year of the lesbian, let 2025 be the year we deepen it.
Let’s move past mere representation into reclamation. Let’s fund our spaces, build queer media that tells all our stories, and stop apologising for wanting more than crumbs. Let’s stop asking to be included – and start curating our own spaces, platforms, and futures.
DIVA magazine celebrates 31 years in print in 2025. If you like what we do, then get behind LGBTQIA media and keep us going for another generation. Your support is invaluable.
