All year, our staff has tried to answer the question, "What is the LGBTQ nation?"
Not the website but the interconnected worldwide LGBTQ community, the global tribe with all our glorious diversity. While we're a U.S.-based website, readers regularly message us from outside of America, asking us to cover their issues and advances. "We don't have a queer outlet here," one reader wrote. "And we're part of the LGBTQ nation too. Tell our stories too."
That's what we've tried to do over the past year, tell stories. We've featured more long-form journalism that allowed writers to step beyond the usual limitations of news reporting. And we've made sure the writers reflected the diversity of our beautiful worldwide community.
And whether it was the eye-opening piece about Formula One's forgotten gay pioneer or a report from Nigeria about Lil Nas X's influence on the country's queer community, LGBTQ+ people from around the world told us stories. The photo series of an Indian transgender tattoo artist's daily transformation was a particular favorite. Reporter Molly Sprayregen's piece connected women in the global coffee industry. And as Iran erupted in protests over civil rights, Kamiab Ghorbanpour reported about the secret gay neighborhood inside Tehran - and how the queer community was joining the resistance.
Challenges remain for the queer community in 2023, but there are also victories to celebrate and many more stories to tell. I'm incredibly proud that our first foray onto such a larger stage has been such an overwhelming success - and even happier that LGBTQ Nation is lifting up voices from around the world to share their accomplishments too.
I look forward to joining you for the global travel we'll be doing in the year ahead. -BIL
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