339 Americans have trained as NASA astronauts. None have flown into space as an openly LGBTQ+ person.
Further, astronauts in NASA’s Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo programs were required to take two heterosexuality tests. And in 1994, NASA asked flight surgeon Dr. Patricia Santy, “to include homosexuality as a psychiatrically disqualifying condition” for astronauts.
The Gay Space Agency confronts the American space program’s historical exclusion of openly queer astronauts to work towards a more inclusive future.
In 1983, Sally Ride became not only the first American woman in space, but is now recognized as the first queer astronaut. However, her sexuality would not become public until 2012 when her obituary revealed that she had a female partner of 27 years. She was never out in her lifetime. Since then, two other astronauts’ sexual identities have become public after going into space.
The LGBTQ+ STEM community, whether above or below our atmosphere, faces significantly higher levels of harassment, has fewer career opportunities, and their work is often devalued. Because of this, fewer queer-identifying people enter the STEM fields.
Sally Ride said, “You can’t be what you can’t see.” What if a gay man soared into space at the height of the AIDS crisis? What if the first person to walk on Mars is non-binary? By traversing its edges, we can imagine a world that is not limited by anti-LGBTQ+ sentiments.
As NASA’s Artemis program aims to establish a permanent presence on the moon, The Gay Space Agency asks what it truly means to have the “right stuff.”
— Mackenzie Calle
This project was a Jurors’ Pick for the 2023 LensCulture Emerging Talent Awards. Discover all 25 winners.