Long before the internet, social media, and Pride celebrations, many lesbians lived in profound isolation. For countless women, there were no visible communities, no local organisations, and often nobody with whom they could openly discuss their feelings.

One of the few lifelines available was *The Ladder*, the magazine published by the Daughters of Bilitis, the first lesbian civil and political rights organisation in the United States.

From Jakarta, Ger van Braam began corresponding with the magazine and its readers. Through letters that travelled thousands of miles, she became part of an emerging international network of women seeking understanding, friendship, and community.

In 1964, Ger appeared on the cover of *The Ladder*, becoming the first woman living outside the United States to do so.

That may not seem remarkable today.

But at a time when many LGBTQ+ people risked losing their jobs, reputations, relationships, and even their safety if they were identified publicly, visibility required extraordinary courage.

For readers around the world, seeing someone like themselves mattered.

Many later described magazines like *The Ladder* as lifelines. They offered reassurance that they were not alone and that a wider community existed beyond the silence many had grown up with.

Ger van Braam never became famous.

But history is not shaped only by politicians, celebrities, or revolutionaries.

Sometimes it is shaped by ordinary people who quietly help others understand that they belong.

Before hashtags.

Before Pride marches.

Before social media.

Women like Ger van Braam were already finding ways to tell one another:

You are not alone.

🏳️‍🌈❤️

\#feministhistory #herstory #lgbtq #pridemonth

Meet Ger van Braam - the first woman on the cover of a lesbian magazine