MILWAUKEE, Wis. — Wisconsin was the first state in the country to enact a law prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation. That was 43 years ago, in 1982.

Today, the Wisconsin LGBTQ History Project works to preserve Wisconsin’s LGBTQ+ history across the state. It’s an all volunteer group that researches, documents, preserves and elevates the people, places and events that make up the state’s LGBTQ+ history.

“Wisconsin history is LGBTQ history and LGBTQ history is Wisconsin History,” said Dan Terrio, a community advisor with the Wisconsin LGBTQ History Project.

Terrio grew up on a Native American reservation in northern Wisconsin. He said he knew he was gay at a young age, but at the time, it was not widely accepted or talked about on the reservation, which he said made him feel alone.

“Many people would leave our community,” Terrio said. “They would come out and you never see them again.”

Terrio helps with the Wisconsin LGBTQ History Project because he is proud of his own history. He identifies as Two-Spirit, a term used in indigenous cultures to refer to a person who embodies both masculine and feminine spirits.

“It brings a perspective that the average person may not know about, and we’re touching on LGBTQ culture within indigenous tribes,” Terrio said.

Michail Takach, the chair of the Wisconsin LGBTQ History Project, said giving a voice to those who have had to stay silent is why they give their time to create the state’s largest digital collection of historical LGBTQ+ media.

“I think that my favorite part of the history project is just connecting with elders who never thought they would be able to share their stories, who spent their whole lives hidden, secretive and trying to keep themselves out of the public eye,” Takach said.

The Wisconsin LGBTQ History Project also offers guided tours of landmarks, curates exhibits, hosts presentations and organizes community outreach.

“For so many LGBTQ people, history begins when they join the community, when they come out, when they transition, what have you, and they don’t know what came before,” Takach said.

Terrio said knowing what came before is imperative in creating a better future.

“I don’t want a young person to have to experience what I did growing up, not having that representation,” he said. “Furthermore, I also know that our ancestors, the people that came before us, don’t want that either.”