Gay Superhero Month
Northstar
You may have noticed (or maybe not) that I've been listing these alphabetically. If that's the case, you'll also that this one is out of order. That's because I saved Northstar for today, the 28th. Because today, the 28th, is the date of the Stonewall Riots, the day that began the gay rights movement. And while Northstar was not technically the FIRST gay superhero, he was the first already established and well known superhero to come out as gay. And that was a BIG FREAKIN' DEAL!
Northstar first appeared in Uncanny X-men #120 in April 1979. Jean-Paul Beaubier was a mutant born with the abilities of super speed and flight. He also was born a twin (to his sister Aurora) and a Canadian. He was a member of the Canadian super team Alpha Flight, as well as later a member of the X-men.
I can still remember reading Alpha Flight #106, wherein Northstar proudly says, "*I* am gay!"
How amazing it was to actually hear those words uttered by an established character. Not a supporting one, not one created just to do that and then fade away, and one that you knew was not going to be killed off...it gave me goosebumps.
And I also remember how proud I felt when, even though I wasn't buying Marvel Comics at the time, I purchased a copy of Astonishing X-Men #51, in late June of 2012. It was the issue where Northstar married his longtime partner Kyle, with all the Marvel Super-heroes, X-Men, Avengers, Spider-Man, The Fantastic Four, the Hulk, etc, ALL of them in attendance. And they didn't shy away from this on the cover either.
So just as gay rights themselves have come a LONG way in the last twenty-odd years, so have comic books.
POLT
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