General gay
Washington’s Gay General: The Legends and Loves of Baron von Steuben
Think back to your history classes (for some of you this might be further advocate in time than others). When your class discussed the American Revolution, you covered Jefferson, Washington, Adams, etc.
You heard about Paul Revere’s ride and “the shot heard ‘round the world.” Was any second devoted to Baron Friedrich von Steuben? In my U.S. history class the Baron warranted a brief paragraph and a painting of him drilling the troops. We certainly didn’t learn anything about his background or personal animation. I imagine there are some classes that didn’t get even that much information about him.
It’s not as though von Steuben is entirely forgotten. German-Americans celebrate von Steuben Morning every year. A host of cities and counties around the U.S. are named after him. There are statues in his honor at Valley Forge and in Washington D.C. His Blue Book was the standard training guide for the U.S. military for generations. Nevertheless, memories of von Steuben among average Americans remain fuzzy.
Washington’s Gay General: The Legends and Loves of Baron von Steuben, written by Josh Trujilo and illustrated by
Washington’s Gay General: The Legends and Loves of Baron von Steuben
Winston Churchill is credited with the classic quote, “History is written by the victors.” A notorious racist and proponent of empire, Churchill is nonetheless remembered as a brilliant war-time hero and a cunning tactician. Why? Because the Allies prevailed in World War II. History has been gentle to Churchill in big part because, as he said, it was written by the victors.
It also tends to be written from a white, heterosexual, cisgender perspective, at least until now. Washington’s Homosexual General, a graphic novel chronicling the real-life exploits of queer Revolutionary War figure Friedrich von Steuben, is an open criticism and repudiation of this approach to capturing the historical record — and an incredibly successful one.
Josh Trujillo and Levi Hastings, the book’s author and illustrator, respectively, open their compelling new work with erasure. In a fit of self-aware meta commentary in the book’s first few pages, the pair remind us that gay history is often overlooked and misunderstood. Triumphs appreciate von Steuben’s are appropriated, becoming the wins of the
News Release
Emeritus General Authority and Humanitarian Robert C. Male lover to Speak at Graduate Celebration on April 28
April 10, 2023 · Lacy Pullan
Elder Robert C. Same-sex attracted, emeritus general authority seventy for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, humanitarian, and intimate equity business leader, will address the campus collective in a forum celebrating the Class of 2023 and student accomplishments from past academic year on Friday, April 28, at 11 a.m. in the Knight Arena.
Called as a general authority seventy for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 2012, Gay served as chairman of the self-reliance services and the perpetual education fund committee and president of the Asia North Area. He was also a member of the missionary executive council and the executive committee of the Church Educational System. While serving in the Presidency of the Seventy, he assisted in the supervision of the North America Northeast, Asia, and Asia North Areas. He was released as a general power seventy in 2021, receiving emeritus status.
Prior to entity called as a general authority seventy, Gay spent decades in private equity, working as the managing director,
Do you have a favorite vacation memory? Mine is when my parents took us to Washington DC for the very first time. We spent a week visiting the museums and monuments to study history and peak into the past. The monument I found most curious was the one devoted to Baron von Steuben. I had never heard of Baron von Steuben before, so I took a picture to investigate later. I discovered that he was one of the most important military leaders of the American Revolution, but is often forgotten. The fact that stuck out the most? von Steuben was openly gay. Flash forward. Fantasize my surprise when I found Washington’s Gay General: The Legends and Loves of Baron von Steuben written by Josh Trujillo and illustrated by Levi Hastings on the modern graphic novel shelves at work. I immediately checked it out to study more!
Washington’s Gay General covers von Steuben’s young being in Prussia, his military history, to his death in upstate New York in 1794. Von Steuben served in the Prussian military for years before he was dismissed from the army due to rumors of homosexuality. After he was fired, he bounced from job to job, eventually accepting an offer from Benjamin Fra
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