【batille eroticism】

Every day of Pride Month,batille eroticism Mashable will be sharing illuminating conversations with members of the LGBTQ community who are making history right now.

Laverne Cox is a woman of "firsts."

She's the first trans woman of color to have a leading role on a scripted television show, Orange IsThe New Black. She's the first trans person to be nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award. She's the first trans person to be on the cover of Timemagazine. Hell, she's even the first trans person to have a wax figurine at Madame Tussauds.

Beyond all the pop culture accolades, it's Cox's activist work that has cemented her as the trailblazer that brought the 'T' in LGBTQ to the mainstream. She's collaborated with the ACLU on a video highlighting the history of trans resistance, worked with the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) to honor the victims of the Orlando Pulse shooting, and has spoken out against Phoenix, Arizona's "walking while trans" law.

But Cox doesn't want to pontificate on her own impact. There's still more work to be done, after all. Cox points to inequalities the transgender community still faces, such as the fact that, in 26 states, you can legally be fired for being LGBTQ. Because of that, she'd rather focus on the progress that still needs to be made, such as achieving equal rights on-screen and in the workplace.

The interview below has been edited for length and clarity.

Mashable: How has your identity informed your work?

Laverne Cox: I've been thinking a lot about that lately, honestly. My blackness, my transness, they're parts of me, they're not all of me. But they definitely inform the way I see the world, so I'm constantly thinking about how and where trans people are left out, specifically, trans women of color. And I was just recently reminded that I'm not always able to see how other groups are left out as well. So it's really important that we include as many people as possible [in our activism], because there's so many perspectives we can't possibly have. It's really about lifting every voice.

Mashable: What impact do you think you've had on the community?

LC: I really think that's for other people to assess. There's really no way I can have a full perspective on the impact I've had.

But one of the most fun things was that I went to the Met Gala for the first time last week. One of the best moments of the night was seeing a young trans man that I had met about five or six years ago at one of my college talks. [At that talk] we sat down, and he's an actor, and he was like — how do I do this as a trans person? And I sat down with him for an hour and a half and said, "This is how I did it." [Later, at the Met Gala] he said to me that over the years, as he's embarking on his career as an actor, everything I've said to him he's kind of used as he's gone down his path. Now he's working with a major showrunner on a new television show and it's incredible. So I think, for me, it's just about if I can touch someone individually then that's a great thing.

But being in partnership right now with a company, with a brand, like Smirnoff that's in partnership with an organization like HRC, also feels so right to me at a time when the lives of a lot of LGBTQ people are under attack. [Smirnoff has] has pledged to donate $1.5 million dollars to the HRC that does such vital work for LGBTQ equality. So we celebrate this World Pride, this 50th anniversary of Stonewall, but we also remember that there's a lot of progress that needs to be made. [Editor's note: Cox has a sponsorship deal with Smirnoff, which is donating money to the HRC from proceeds of its "Love Wins"-branded bottles.]

Mashable: What does "Pride" mean to you?

LC:For me, it's about owning every single aspect of who I am, unapologetically. It's about embracing and loving every part of myself, every part of my story. And being OK not even just OK, but being in celebration of every aspect of myself. That's really what it's about for me.

It's also about remembering the people who came before me: the people who fought at the Stonewall rebellion, at the uprising 50 years ago, trans people of color, femmes, sex workers, and all the folks who hung out at Stonewall during that time period who fought for the liberation that we're enjoying now. It's always important to remember those people, people like Sylvia Rivera, Marsha P. Johnson, Miss Major, Stormé DeLarverie, and so many more.

Mashable: This year is the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Uprising. Where do you hope the community will stand in society in 50 years?

LC: We have an administration that wants to suggest that trans people, and LGBTQ people as a whole, are not [protected from] sex discrimination [in the workplace]. So in 50 years, I would love for us to be full, equal members of society and not be banned from the military, for example, not have to fight for basic human rights still. In 50 years I hope our environment's, you know, intact [laughs].

Read more great Pride Month stories:

• Ryan Karnoski is a trans man who sued Trump for the right to serve in the military

• The best YouTube videos to help you come out

• Representation is abysmal, so here are 15 animated characters the trans community has claimed