7 Queer Moments We Loved in 'One Day at a Time'

The Alvarez Family is here and queer—and we love them!

Ever since its premiere, One Day at a Time has been breaking ground with its incredibly accurate portrayal of a Cuban-American family living the American dream. It also made us a bit weepy with its heartbreaking, but ultimately uplifting, depiction of what it’s like to come out to a Latinx family.

And one of the best parts of the show is the Alvarez family we’ve come to know and love is seen embracing all facets of the LGBTQ community. Even Grandma Lydia is learning a few new things! Here are seven queer moments we absolutely loved.

1. Elena’s lesson in pronouns

Elena Alvarez gives us all a much-needed lesson on the importance of pronouns. As she introduces her new group of friends to her family, she makes sure everyone is aware of their preferred pronouns. While it’s confusing at first for all most of the Alvarez crew, Abuelita Lydia is the one who embraces the group's preferred pronouns and even uses them throughout the show. Representation for the win!

2. Elena’s crash-and-burn crush on Dani

First crushes are hard, especially if you’re not 100 percent certain that your crush is queer. We get a taste of that kind of teenage heartache when Elena begins crushing on Dani and is flustered whenever the opportunity to flirt presents itself. Unfortunately for Elena, Dani is taken (by a girl!) but that doesn’t stop her from trying to find a new partner in crime.

3. Elena, Syd, and the flirting cookie

Elena’s idea of flirting is basically standing around like a dope and waiting for love to come her way. That is, until Syd goes out on a limb and asks Elena if she wants to share a cookie. For the two teens, this is their moment of self-realization and the beginning of a lovely relationship.

4. Lydia teaches Elena how to flirt

We all know by now that Lydia is an expert when it comes to flirting. So, when she sees Elena struggling to get her girl crush’s attention, Lydia steps in to help her granddaughter. It’s a great moment of unconditional love and acceptance that’s all too rare in Latino families. And come on, who doesn’t love Lydia and her flirtatious ways?

5. Syd asks Elena to the school dance

For many of us, the school dance is a pivotal moment in our dating history. Hopefully, we all got the kind of invitation Elena did. Syd steps out of their comfort zone to give Elena a special performance as an invitation to the school dance. Syd, who’s homeschooled, has never been to a school dance before and is really putting everything they’ve got into this effort. One of the sweetest moments of the series, for sure!

6. Elena and Syd hold their own on the dance floor

Unbeknownst to Syd, Elena isn’t exactly popular at school. After spending ages to trying to rub shoulders with the cool kids, Elena and Syd eventually find their own corner of the dance floor and let loose. It’s adorable and really gives you a sense that each of these kids has found true companionship in one another.

7. Syd and Elena’s fire escape kiss

While Elena’s apartment building is on lockdown (there’s a criminal on the loose), she and Syd are stuck at home with not much else to do. Elena, who hasn’t been very successful at expressing romantic interest, has been ignoring Syd for the better part of the day and Syd is pretty much done with it all...until Elena takes Syd in her arms and kisses them on the fire escape outside the apartment. Okay, so it’s not quite a balcony kiss, but the comparison stands!