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Disruptors
Harper Steele
Meet one of the artists, disruptors, educators, groundbreakers, innovators, and storytellers who all helped make the world a better place for LGBTQ+ people.
After over three decades of friendship, Will Ferrell probably thought he knew everything there was to know about Harper Steele, a former SNL writer who collaborated with the comedic actor on some of his most iconic sketches and films.
Not the case. As seen in the vital new Netflix documentary Will & Harper, Steele came out as transgender during the pandemic and embarked on a cross-country road trip with Ferrell to get reacquainted — with each other and America.
Experiencing the United States as an out trans person is a far different experience than it was before Steele began living her truth. While she encountered hatred and ignorance on the road, wrestling with her “internalized transphobia” has been her year’s biggest obstacle. “I’m not sure I did overcome it. I think freedom overcame me, and we’re still working on it. The more work I do, the more free I become,” she says.
But she’s not backing down, and she has a strong message for her haters. “I’m queer. You’re queer. The world is queer,” she says. “Deal with it.”
Mey Rude
Mey Rude is a journalist and cultural critic who has been covering queer news for a decade. The transgender, Latina lesbian lives in Los Angeles with her fiancée.
Mey Rude is a journalist and cultural critic who has been covering queer news for a decade. The transgender, Latina lesbian lives in Los Angeles with her fiancée.
Anonymous
Bernardo SimBernardo Sim is the deputy editor of Out, as well as a writer and content creator. Born in Brazil, he currently lives in South Florida. You can follow him on Instagram at @bernardosim.
Bernardo Sim is the deputy editor of Out, as well as a writer and content creator. Born in Brazil, he currently lives in South Florida. You can follow him on Instagram at @bernardosim.
Bernardo Sim is the deputy editor of Out, as well as a writer and content creator. Born in Brazil, he currently lives in South Florida. You can follow him on Instagram at @bernardosim.
Natalie Wynn
Meet one of the artists, disruptors, educators, groundbreakers, innovators, and storytellers who all helped make the world a better place for LGBTQ+ people.
Anonymous
Known to fans as ContraPoints, Natalie Wynn amassed 1.83 million YouTube subscribers by creating what she says are “video essays about politics and social issues, from online hate movements to the madness of J.K. Rowling.”
The transgender lesbian influencer makes epic, hours-long video essays that approach topics with academic rigor while creating hilarious and profound pieces of media that involve sets, costumes, ambient lighting, and the intellectual threading of philosophy with pop culture. This year, Wynn released a three-hour-long video where she “mapped the intricate depravities of heterosexual fantasy by studying The Twilight Saga.” In six months, the video amassed 4.5 million views.
However, being continually online has its pitfalls. “My biggest obstacle is the mental illness that afflicts anyone with an online reputation,” she says. “The love and the hate are equally dangerous. Narcissism and paranoia go together. The only cure is knowing when to step away.”
Wynn, an essential voice for her generation, wants the world to know that “LGBTQ+ people are just like everybody else, except more gay.” @contrapoints