It’s been a big year for history-making events in the LGBTQ+ community. There were notable firsts in the U.S. Senate, at the Grammy and Tony awards, in reality TV, and more. Plus a lying gay Republican congressman faced his comeuppance. Read on for a look at the LGBTQ+ milestones of 2023. Laphonza Butler became the first Black lesbian — and first out LGBTQ+ person of color overall — in the U.S. Senate when California Gov. Gavin Newsom appointed her in October to serve the remainder of the late Dianne Feinstein’s term. Butler, a Democrat, has been a longtime activist, heading EMILY’s List, which works to elect pro-choice Democratic women to office; president of Service Employees International Union Local 2015, the largest union in California; and working in campaigns for Kamala Harris and Hillary Clinton. She is only the third Black woman in the Senate, after Harris and Carol Moseley Braun.