Velvetpark's Official Top 25 Most Significant Queer Women of 2009

5 ) The Whistle Blower - Pam Spaulding, Blogger

While it seems our LGBT Rights organizations have been content to wag a finger or two at the behavoir of politicians and the broken promises of the Obama Administration, it's been the bloggers who have been front and center of our fight. Pam Spaulding has been on the scene since 2005, picking through every press release, news story, or relevant tip, elucidating the information for the rest of us. Blogging from her site Pams's House Blend, Spaulding has taken our failed LGBT leadership to task, launching an organization called the Dallas Principles with other like-minded thinkers, donors and activists, committed to not leaving any part of our community behind in our struggle for civil rights.

6 ) The Truth Teller - Staceyann Chin, Poet/Performance Artist/Activist

Of everything we read in 2009, nothing had heart (or teeth) quite like Staceyann Chin's queer memoir The Other Side of Paradise. The book traces renowned poet and performance artist Chin's early life in Jamaica, beautifully detailing the origins and development of the "big mouth" that marked her as an artist, an iconoclast and a "troublemaker" from early on. A compelling tale of a young girl who overcame poverty, neglect and abuse armed only with courage, brains, and sheer obstinacy, Chin's story is heartbreaking and uplifting all at once, an utterly absorbing read.

7 )The Great Debater - Therese Stewart, Civil Rights Attorney

When Therese Stewart argued before the CA Supreme Court as part of the legal team challenging the constitutionality of Prop 8 in early 2009, she single-handedly made lawyering seem wicked sexy alluva sudden. A third-generation San Francisco resident, Stewart married her partner of 17 years before Prop 8 was passed by California voters in November of 2008 and her impassioned and eloquent argument on behalf of the rights of same sex couples was truly magnificent to behold. On the subject of "separate but equal" civil unions, she says: "The question is, can the state exclude gay people from marriage, from all its tradition and prestige, and instead have a parallel institution and say it's equal? Of course not. Because symbolically it tells our society something it's been telling us for a long time: Your relationships are not the same."

8 )The Prom Queen - Beth Ditto, Musician/Fashionista

Formerly a queer underground gem, The Gossip's Music for Men (on many top albums of 2010 lists) thrust the band into unexpected, yet much-deserved international stardom this year. Lead singer Beth Ditto has one of the most amazing voices in music today, and so to see her garner so much attention is thrilling. Beth has always been a fat femme queer activist and fame is not changing that one bit. She has always talked about the fact that dressing fabulously is hard for larger people and so has had to rely on her DIY sensibilities, altering and/or making her own clothes from day one. This year she realized her dream of fashion design by launching her own plus-size clothing line for British store Evans. She rocked the world by posing nude once again (she previously graced the cover of NME sans-clothing) for LOVE Magazine, shattering traditional beauty standards and becoming a role model for women of all sizes. (In 2010 look out for Beth's memoir, Coal To Diamonds, written with help from her buddy Michelle Tea.)