VOTE: SheWired's Gay Woman of the Year 2009!

It’s been a year of ups and downs for lesbian visibility with wins and losses for same-sex marriage across the country. While lesbian characters on the small screen dwindled to only a couple in prime-time when The L Word bid its final adieu in March, real gay women continued to provide thoughtful, fun and important representation in reality television, on the Web and in talk and news’ shows.

To honor the year in real-life lesbians and bisexual women who were visible at all costs, we are launching our first annual SheWired’s Gay Woman of the Year. We’ve thrown a wide swath of tried and true favorites, icons who just came out, Web stars, writers, musicians and journalists.  We’ve also included a few teams of lesbians whose work helped make the world a little bit better of a place for budding lesbians worldwide.

Please reminisce about the year in gay women with us, and don’t forget to vote at the end! We will close the voting on New Year's Eve and announce the winner shortly after. You can vote for multiple people. And while we are voting for a winner, these women are all winners for even being on our radar to make the list.

Brandi Carlile

Fans of folk singer Carlile have known for years that the singer of "The Story" is gay, but it wasn't until an October interview with the Los Angeles Times that the subject came up and she publicly came out. Carlile, who gained fans after songs from her last album were featured on Grey's Anatomy, hit the road again this year in support of Give Up the Ghost, her third full-length album. Featuring songs like "Dreams" and "I Will," the emotionally charged album continues to win the out singer-songwriter fans by the handful. An addition to Sarah McLachlan's Lilith Fair 2010 was almost a no-brainer.

Leisha Hailey

Hailey, as Alice Pieszecki, was the only out actress to survive all six seasons of The L Word. Jenny stole her script, her best friend and her spotlight, but she couldn't steal the spirit of the landmark lesbian show, which ended its run in January. While the show really revolved around Jenny's lesbian experience, Hailey was and will remain the heart and driving force of the drama. Hailey continues to make beautiful music with her band Uh Huh Her. 

Kelly McGillis

She was queen of the big screen in the late 80's, facing off with heavy hitters Tom Cruise, Harrison Ford and Jodie Foster in Top Gun, Witness and The Accused, respectively. And while that lesbian urban legend about Kelly McGillis’ three-way battle royale with Jodie and Whitney Houston was the stuff that gay girls’ dreams are made of, 20 years after The Accused, McGillis came out as a lesbian on SheWired’s Girl Rock video blog with Jennifer Corday. She did dip her toes professionally playing a lesbian in indie The Monkey’s Mask and as a closeted DADT prosecutor on The L Word, but McGillis’ classy and humble coming out paired with a successful return to stage in The Pasadena Playhouse’s Little Foxes as well as a spot on the Out 100 makes her a strong contender for our Woman of the Year.

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