Posts by Sofia:

On this day in queerstory: male homosexuality decriminalized in Ireland

On January 11, 1993, the Irish government formally announced the decriminalization of male homosexual acts, bringing the country into line with a 1988 ruling by the European Court of Human Rights. While the legislation itself had passed weeks earlier, January 11 marked the public implementation date: the law took effect, police guidance was updated, and […]

On this day in queerstory: Europe unites

On January 10, 1975, representatives from newly formed LGBTQ+ organisations across Europe met in Brussels to lay the groundwork for what would become one of the first sustained transnational queer rights networks. The meeting, modest in scale but ambitious in scope, brought together activists from Belgium, the Netherlands, France, West Germany, and the UK. Their […]

On this day in queerstory: new DSM published, legal changes in Germany and South Africa

January 9 appears in queer history as a date when LGBTQ+ existence was formally documented—sometimes protected, sometimes exposed, but no longer invisible. Across different countries and decades, January 9 marks moments when queer lives entered official records: court files, medical classifications, censuses, and state archives. What followed was never neutral. A key moment occurred on […]

On this day in queerstory: David Bowie makes final appearance as Ziggy Stardust

January 8 has repeatedly marked moments when queer culture crossed from subculture into public life, not quietly, but with confidence. Across different countries and decades, this date shows up as a point where LGBTQ+ people didn’t just demand rights—they shaped culture, taste, and public conversation in ways that could not be undone. One significant moment […]

On this day in queerstory: European Court of Human Rights rules on same-sex rights

On January 7, 2011, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) delivered its landmark ruling in Oliari and Others v. Italy. In a decision that expanded queer marriage rights across Europe, the court ruled that countries signatory to the European Convention on Human Rights must provide some form of legal recognition for same-sex couples. Italy […]

On this day in queerstory: important restructuring of ACT UP

January 6 is a strange hinge in the calendar. The holidays are officially over, work is back in full swing, and the year’s unresolved tensions begin to surface. In queer history, this date has often marked moments when LGBTQ+ communities faced instability—and responded not with spectacle, but with care. One revealing example comes from January […]