Was sally ride gay

Her memorial fund is going to be in support of pancreatic cancer. In a statement prepared before her death on Monday of pancreatic cancer, Ride, 61, acknowledged publicly for the first time that she had a longstanding relationship with a woman, Tam. Ride (who also once served as president of ) chose to disclose her LGBTQ+ status posthumously; as such, she is also the first known member of that community to fly in space.

Sally died the same way she lived: without fear. In an email today, Sally Ride's sister, Bear Ride, explained why the former astronaut kept quiet about her sexual orientation. The revelation came in a low-key way: Monday's obituary from Sally Ride Science, the educational venture she founded a decade ago, referred to Tam O'Shaughnessy as "her partner of 27 years.

Queer Portraits in History

Sally died peacefully on July 23rd after a courageous month battle with pancreatic cancer. Sally's signature statement was 'Reach for the Stars. In life, Sally Ride became famous as America's first woman in space — and in death, she's now added to her fame as the first acknowledged gay astronaut.

For 17 months, nobody knew, and everyone does now. Sally had a very fundamental sense of privacy, it was just her nature, because we're Norwegians, through and through. Not right or wrong — simply Sally. She became an astronaut and I was ordained as a Presbyterian minister.

Her personal feelings were just that: personal. In Newsweek quoted our father as saying, 'We might have encouraged, but mostly we just let them explore. Sally never hid her relationship with Tam. They were partners, business partners in Sally Ride Science, they wrote books together, and Sally's very close friends, of course, knew of their love for each other.

We grew up in Encino, CA. Our parents, Joyce and Dale Ride, encouraged us to study hard, to do our best and to be anything we wanted to be.

After death Sally Ride

In life, Sally Ride became famous as America's first woman in space — and in death, she's now added to her fame as the first acknowledged gay revelation came in a low-key way. I was at her side. She wanted to get the job done. Her integrity was absolute; her spirit was immeasurable; her approach to life was fearless.

Our parents taught us to explore, and we did. People did not know she had pancreatic cancer, this is bound to be a huge shock. Everyone who knows her well really got that about her. Here's the essay that Bear Ride has been sending around as a tribute to her sister:.

Sally studied science and I went to seminary.