Ballroom culture, famously documented in the film Paris Is Burning and celebrated in the television series Pose , served as a mutual-aid network and a competitive arena. Terms used widely today—such as "spilling tea," "throwing shade," "vogueing," and "reading"—were created by trans and queer people of color in these spaces.
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This historical debt means that modern LGBTQ culture, from Pride parades to legal advocacy groups (like the Human Rights Campaign and GLAAD), is built on a trans foundation. To celebrate LGBTQ history without centering trans voices is to erase the very people who threw the first bricks.
