100 Women We Love, Queer Women We Love, Wonder Women

100 Women We Love 2012

June 15, 2012 Destiny Dejesus

“Knowing that my election showed Charlotteans and the world that we are not bound by discrimination wakes me every morning with pride,” proclaims LaWana Mayfield, the City Council representative for District 3 in Charlotte, NC, and the city’s first openly gay elected official. Last November, she trounced her Republican opponent in the council election with 78 percent of the vote, replacing an eight-year incumbent. Now, continuously building on her 15 years of activism, her other leadership posts include the Charlotte Mecklenburg Community Relations Committee, Mecklenburg County Development Corp. Board, Smart Start Board and the Charlotte Lesbian and Gay Fund Board of Advisors. Prior to the election, Mayfield took an active role in LGBT activism as the Human Rights Campaign’s Diversity Co-Chair. “I believe that my role, along with growing the City of Charlotte, is to open the door for LGBTQ dialogue and to create pathways to service. I have this amazing opportunity to help direct the growth of the City of Charlotte through my vote,” Mayfield says. “I am right where I am supposed to be, and I love my job!”

Drum roll, please! We’re excited to present this year’s 100 Women We Love—our most diverse group of out entertainers, artists, athletes, activists, business principals and elected officials yet. Each of these women is a superstar in her own right. Their achievements and contributions shape our lives —and elevate us in the eyes of the world . They’re working to raise LGBT awareness, increase our visibility and quicken our progress toward a just society.

We are extremely proud to present the class of 2012. There are no rankings or numbers. They are all leaders.

Natalie Hope McDonald
“My goal has always been to shed light on issues in a fair and honest way,” Natalie Hope McDonald says of her 20-year career in journalism. Currently the editor of G Philly, an LGBT publication produced by Philadelphia magazine, the self-identified bisexual McDonald has been covering stories about the LGBT community in the mainstream press for many years. Her work has been featured in national magazines, newspapers and journals, including Newsweek, The Advocate and The Harvard Gay & Lesbian Review, among others. Also an artist and photographer, she launched her career while still in high school, drawing political cartoons and writing op-eds for her hometown newspaper. “As a kid, I always knew I would somehow go into a creative field,“ she explains. Combining her creative talents with journalism at G Philly, McDonald believes in the importance of creating a place where LGBT people can communicate their cares and concerns, while spotlighting the diversity of opinion within the community. “If we can’t respect and listen to each other,“ she asks, “how can we expect anyone else to do that for us?” Based in Philadelphia for more than a decade, McDonald lives with her partner and their Brussels Griffon, Louise.