FLASHBACK: Ellen DeGeneres Comes Out As A Lesbian On The Cover Of Time (April 14, 1997)

April 14, 1997: Today in LGBTQ+ history…

Ellen DeGeneres has been a champion for the LGBTQ+ community for two decades now, ever since stating “Yep, I’m Gay” and coming out as a lesbian on the cover of Time magazine on April, 14 1997.

In the summer of 1996, DeGeneres called a meeting with the writers of her hit show Ellen, who were about to write the fourth season, and told them that she wanted her character to come out on the show. Next? She decided to come out in real life before her character did on the show, with high-profile interviews with Diane Sawyer on Primetime Live, on The Oprah Winfrey Show, and with an appearance on the cover of Time (which the magazine considers one of the most lasting images to appear within its red border).

“I never thought it was anybody’s business, who I am and who I am with. And then I realized since I had this secret that worried me all the time that it made it feel like something was wrong,” DeGeneres told Winfrey at the time.