Pride 2023: Celebrity Allies Standing Up For The LGBTQ+ Community

By Corey Atad. 1 Jun 2023 9:00 AM

Pride month is here again, and as the the queer community celebrates, ET Canada is looking back at the celebrities who have stood in support of LGBTQ+ rights, and against drag bans, anti-trans laws and more.

Photo: SARAH YENESEL/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock

Photo: Matteo Prandoni/BFA.com/Shutterstock

Photo: Eric Charbonneau/Shutterstock

Photo: Luca Carlino/NurPhoto/Shutterstock

Photo: Image Press Agency/NurPhoto/Shutterstock

Photo: Richard Young/Shutterstock

Photo: Chelsea Lauren/Shutterstock

Photo: Aaron Josefczyk/UPI/Shutterstock

Photo: Image Press Agency/NurPhoto/Shutterstoc

Photo: Daniel DeSlover/Shutterstock

Photo: Matt Baron/BEI/Shutterstock

Photo: ETIENNE LAURENT/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock

Photo: Chris Chew/UPI/Shutterstock

Photo: Erik Pendzich/Shutterstock

Photo: Chelsea Lauren/Shutterstock

Photo: Anthony Harvey/Shutterstock

Photo: Shutterstock

Photo: Image Press Agency/NurPhoto/Shutterstock

Photo: Rocco Spaziani/UPI/Shutterstock

Photo: Matt Baron/Shutterstock

START OVER

Next Gallery: Stars Spotted At Paris Fashion Week SS24: Zoe Kravitz, Demi Moore And Austin Butler Show Off Their Style

More Galleries

1 of 20

Taylor Swift
Photo: SARAH YENESEL/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock
Taylor Swift is long spoken out in support of LGBTQ rights, including releasing the anthem "You Ned to Calm Down" in 2019, with lyrics like, “Why are you mad? / When you could be GLAAD?” and “Sunshine on the street at the parade / But you would rather be in the dark age.”
Gabrielle Union & Dwyane Wade
Photo: Matteo Prandoni/BFA.com/Shutterstock
Along with raising a trans daughter, Gabrielle Union and Dwyane Wade have been outspoken in defending LGBTQ rights, including calling out Tennessee's drag ban.

"There is an army that rebukes you, that does not agree with you and that will not lie down while this fascist rule is instituted," Union told Variety. "And that's just one state. There are several states who were doing the same thing, and they will be met with resistance. People are not going to take this lying down. They're just not. So if you thought this was going to be a cakewalk, you're in for a rude awakening."
Jamie Lee Curtis
Photo: Eric Charbonneau/Shutterstock
In a post on her Instagram account this year, Oscar-winner Jamie Lee Curtis wrote, "I STAND WITH THE TRANS COMMUNITY. THE MISSINFORMATION CAMPAIGN MUST BE STOPPED! It is absolutely F*CKED witnessing the ongoing normalization of eliminationist transphobia. The right's war on queer people, most specifically trans people, is both bizarre and abhorrent. There is no debate to argue here. Trans people have been here forever and aren't going anywhere. There is no ideology here. It's simple. Trans rights are human rights. Anything stating the contrary is wrong."
Charlize Theron
Photo: Luca Carlino/NurPhoto/Shutterstock
Appearing during this year's "Drag Isn't Dangerous" telethon, Charlize Theron said, "We love you queens! We're in your corner and we've got you, and I will f**k anybody up who's trying to f**k with anything with you guys."
Shania Twain
Photo: Image Press Agency/NurPhoto/Shutterstock
Canadian country icon spoke about her admiration for drag queens in an interview with GLAAD in the wake of Tennessee's anti-drag law.

"I’m very inspired by it," she said. "I think we need this inspiration. We need drag queens to share their talent with us."
Beyoncé & Jay-Z
Photo: Richard Young/Shutterstock
Beyoncé and Jay-Z have bother been strong supporters of the LGBTQ community, with the rapper opening up about his mom being lesbian in 2018.

The couple were honoured for their advocacy by GLAAD in 2019.

“We are here to promote love for every human being,” Beyoncé said in their acceptance speech at the time. “Let’s tell them they are loved, tell them they are beautiful, speak out and protect them. And parents, let’s love our kids in their truest form.”
Reba McEntire
Photo: Chelsea Lauren/Shutterstock
In an interview with The Los Angeles Times, country icon Reba McEntire spoke out about the passage of anti-trans and anti-drag laws.

"I wish they would spend that much time and energy and money on feeding the homeless children in those two counties…I mean, we've got a real problem in this country, and to be worrying about men wanting to dress up as women?" she said. "God bless ’em to wear those high heels -- I feel for 'em. But let’s center our attention on something that really needs attention."
LeBron James
Photo: Aaron Josefczyk/UPI/Shutterstock
NBA star LeBron James stood in support of drag queens and the LGBTQ community, retweeting a clip from "The Problem with Jon Stewart" in which the comedian exposed the hypocrisy of an anti-drag politician.

"🗣️🗣️🗣️🗣️🗣️🗣️🗣️🗣️!!! AT ITS HIGHEST ORDER!! 🫡" James wrote.
Maren Morris
Photo: Image Press Agency/NurPhoto/Shutterstoc
Country star Maren Morris spoke out against drag bans during the "Love Rising" benefit concert.

"I brought my son here earlier today for soundcheck, and he's turning 3 this week, and we got to go in the room where all the queens were getting ready and doing their makeup," she said. "And he freaked out when he went in there because it's just magic what drag queens do. There's wigs everywhere, and the smell of hairspray and wig glue; there's glitter; everyone's in a good mood. It's just like a room of love. And we went back to my dressing room and my son is like, 'I need the queens!' I'm like, uh, you're looking at her?"

Morris added, "Yes I introduced my son to some drag queens today. So Tennessee, f**king arrest me."
Lizzo
Photo: Daniel DeSlover/Shutterstock
During a concert in Tennessee, Lizzo brought a group of drag queens onstage in protest of the state's anti-drag law.

"In light of recent and tragic events and current events, I was told by people on the internet, 'Cancel your shows in Tennessee, Don't go to Tennessee,'" she told the crowd. "Why would I not create a safe space in Tennessee where we can celebrate drag entertainers and celebrate our differences?"

She added, "What people in Tennessee are doing is giving hope, so thank you so much for standing up for your rights, protecting each other and holding the people accountable who should be protecting us."
Elliot Page
Photo: Matt Baron/BEI/Shutterstock
Canadian actor Elliot Page came out as transgender in 2020, and has worked as a strong advocate for trans people around the world, and leading fans to support efforts against anti-trans legislation in the U.S.

"The trans community, particularly trans youth, are facing unprecedented assaults on their rights and survival in state legislatures," he wrote on Instagram.
Ariana Grande
Photo: ETIENNE LAURENT/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock
Ariana Grande also spoke out against drag bans, writing on Instagram, "Tennessee just banned Drag Shows. However Nazi's [sic] and the KKK can still hold protests and meetings there. Take a long moment and let that sink in very deeply."
Kevin Bacon & Kyra Sedgwick
Photo: Chris Chew/UPI/Shutterstock
In a TikTok post, Kyra Sedgwick and Kevin Bacon shared a video of themselves dancing to a Taylor Swift song while wearing shirts that read, "Drag is an art and drag is a right."

In the caption, Bacon added, "Drag Bans are bad karma. Right now, drag performers and the LGBTQIA+ community need our help."
Daniel Radcliffe
Photo: Erik Pendzich/Shutterstock
"Harry Potter" star Daniel Radcliffe has been a longtime supporter of LGBTQ rights, recently partnering with The Trevor Project for a web series called "Sharing Space", exploring ally-ship with trans and nonbinary youth.

"There are some people in this world not trying to engage with this conversation in any kind of good faith," he said. "I think a lot of the time it's just because people don't know a young, trans person, so there's just this theoretical idea about this in their heads."
Lady Gaga
Photo: Chelsea Lauren/Shutterstock
"Born This Way" singer Lady Gaga has been a vocal support for LGBTQ rights from the beginning of her career.

“I’ve always had gay friends and I have been very involved in the gay community since I was young,” she said once in an interview with Fab Magazine. “I feel a moral obligation to defend my fan base and make the world a better place.”
Harry Styles
Photo: Anthony Harvey/Shutterstock
Former One Direction singer Harry Styles has been a longtime supporter of the LGBTQ community, often waving Pride flags at his concerts.

At one concert, he actually helped a fan in the audience named Grace come out to her mother.

"He's a proud supporter of the LGBTQ+ community and he's made a lot of fans feel comfortable and proud to be who they are and I'm just one example of that," Grace said in an interview later.
Bruce Springsteen
Photo: Shutterstock
“Born in the U.S.A.” singer Bruce Springsteen pulled out of a North Carolina concert in April 2016 over an anti-LGBT law passed in the state.

“To my mind, it’s an attempt by people who cannot stand the progress our country has made in recognizing the human rights of all of our citizens to overturn that progress,” he said in a statement at the time.
Billy Porter
Photo: Image Press Agency/NurPhoto/Shutterstock
"Pose" star Billy Porter has been a longtime advocate for his fellow members of the LGBTQ community.

"LGBTQ+ Black folks are Black people, too!" he said during the Black Lives Matter protests in 2020. "Our lives matter, too! So this is my response to those of y'all who don't understand that: F**k you! And, yes, I am cussing. It's time for cussing."
Jane Fonda
Photo: Rocco Spaziani/UPI/Shutterstock
Jane Fonda's support for the queer community stretches back decades.

After the White Night riots in San Francisco in 1979, Fonda was asked in an interview about her organization Campaign for Economic Democracy being used by the LGBTG+ community.

"Culturally, psychologically, economically, politically — gays and lesbians are discriminated against," she said at the time.

“What am I here for if not to be used by good people for good things? I’m part of an organization and you could also be cynical as you are and ask me isn’t the organization using me?" Fonda went on. “But you could also think, aren’t I using the organization just the way the gays and lesbians here are using the organization they’re a part of if it helps give us perspective, helps us keep our values intact, it increases our power — because as individuals we don’t have very much, but altogether, we have a lot of power.”
Miley Cyrus
Photo: Matt Baron/Shutterstock
In 2014, Miley Cyrus founded the Happy Hippie Foundation.

"Our mission is to rally young people to fight injustice facing homeless youth, LGBTQ youth and other vulnerable populations,” the nonprofit's mission statement reads.

Pride 2023: Celebrity Allies Standing Up For The LGBTQ+ Community

More Galleries

Latest Galleries