14 LGBTQ+ Characters Who Forged the Path For Representation on TV

As one of the pioneers in queer representation in mainstream media, Queer as Folk pushed boundaries with its queer-centric stories and cast. Although the show has so many incredible characters and portrayals to choose from, Justin Taylor (Randy Harrison) remains a standout. Justin's journey of self-discovery, which spans from high school into his early adult years, is a portrait of what being a young gay man in the early 2000s was really like — something that wasn't very prominent on TV at the time.