Every day during the month of June, we will be spotlighting our 2020 Logo30. This powerful series profiles ordinary and extraordinary people who show pride in unique and provocative ways. Visit the Logo30 homepage to view current and past honorees.

Dr. Eric Cervini made history earlier this month when his nonfiction book, The Deviant's War, debuted at no. 14 on The New York Times Best Sellers List. It was the first time an LGBTQ history book had made the chart in 27 years.

The Deviant's War traces the origins of the fight for queer rights in the U.S. back to the wrongful termination of a Frank Kameny, gay government employee and founding member of the Mattachine Society. Kameny's firing and his prolonged fight for his rights predated the 1969 Stonewall Uprising, which is often cited as the watershed moment for queer liberation in America.

As NewNowNext previously reported, in The Deviant's War, Cervini pulls from court documents, FBI records, and upwards of 40,000 personal documents, shedding light on Kameny's legacy as an early and largely secret champion of LGBTQ equality.

"Even before Stonewall, activists declared their Pride in opposition to a government that told them they were sick and immoral," Cervini told Logo and NewNowNext. "The very first Pride parade exactly 50 years ago was a march of resistance. It involved demonstrations in front of the governor's office and political organizing workshops. And now, as we unite to protect the most marginalized in our community, it is time to make Pride an act of resistance once again."

We think Kameny would be proud. Watch interviews with our 2020 Logo30 honorees, including Cervini, below.