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Biography · Civil Rights

William Dorsey Swann

1858–1925

United States

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Biography

William Dorsey Swann (November 4, 1860 – c. December 23, 1925) was an American activist. An African-American born into slavery, Swann was the first person in the United States to lead a gay resistance group and the first known person to self-identify as a "queen of drag".

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Biography text · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Source checked 2026-10-20

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