All Gave Some + Some Gave All
Honoring + Remembering LGBTQ Military Members
Memorial Day means many things to many people.
For some, it's the unofficial start of summer, a time for burgers on the grill, cold beverages by the pool, and long-awaited reunions with friends and family.
For others, itās a quieter, heavier dayāone that invites reflection, remembrance, and gratitude.
And for those of us in the LGBTQ community, itās a moment to honor those among us who served, fought, and fellāoften without recognition or the freedom to live openly while they did it.
In between the fun and the sun, letās remember the brave who served us all.
MANY GAVE MORE THAN WE KNOW
Queer history is filled with stories that were nearly erased. LGBTQ service members have fought in every major US conflictāfrom the American Revolution to Iraq and Afghanistanāwhile often having to conceal their identities to serve their country.
Under policies like āDonāt Ask, Donāt Tell,ā LGBTQ soldiers were forced to live double lives, navigating loyalty and service in silence.
Some were discharged without honor. Others were buried without acknowledgment of their partners, their identities, or the communities they quietly fought for both on and off the battlefield.
Still, they showed up. They stood tall. And too many never made it home.
IN MEMORIAM
Memorial Day doesnāt ask us to be solemn all day long. Joy, after all, is its own form of remembrance. Living freely is a tribute to those who couldnāt live loudly or proudly. So in between hot dogs and hammocks, letās carve out moments to remember those who fought for our freedoms. Light a candle. Raise a glass. Remember their names.
Think of people like Leonard Matlovich, the decorated Vietnam War veteran who famously came out on the cover of Time in 1975. His tombstone reads:
āWhen I was in the military, they gave me a medal for killing two men and a discharge for loving one.ā
Think of the many unnamed and unknown. The ones who served in silence and the ones whose stories have been lost to history.
THE ONGOING BATTLE
LGBTQ service members continue to face discrimination, harassment, and barriers to health care and benefits. Especially trans veterans. Especially under Chumpās regime.
Honoring all whoāve served and continue to serve on Memorial Day is not just about honoring the past and presentāitās about fighting for a future where all who serve are treated with dignity, honor, love, and respect.
HOW WE REMEMBER
Here are a few ways you might pause and remember them today:
Share a post highlighting LGBTQ veterans or memorials.
Visit a virtual memorial or learn about the LGBTQ Veterans Memorial at Desert Memorial Park in Cathedral City, Californiaāthe first of its kind in the nation.
Watch a documentary or read a personal story of an LGBTQ service member. Let their words carry the weight of memory.
Say thank you. To a vet. To their families. To the ones who continue carrying their stories forward, not to mention the ones continuing to fight for our rights.
PATRIOTISM + PRIDE CAN COEXIST
We can wear our rainbow flags and our stars and stripes together. We can celebrate who we are while honoring where weāve beenāand who weāve lost along the way.
This Memorial Day, let us embrace that middle space.
Between the cookouts and the parades, thereās room for reverence.
In those quiet moments, let us remember: Freedom is never free!
And for many LGBTQ service members, freedom came at the ultimate price.
We remember you. We thank you. We will not forget your sacrifices.
Best wishes for peace,
Clint šāļø
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FOR YOUR (SUBSTACK) CONSIDERATION
The Original "Daddy" of Gay Erotica (
)Self-Publishing and the Quiet Power of Yes (
)Feeling NaĆÆve on Memorial Day (
)- )
ON THIS DAY = MAY 26
BIRTHDAYS
1863 = Mathilde de Morny = French noblewoman and artist š
1886 = Al Jolson, American singer and actor
1895 = Dorothea Lange, American photographer and journalist
1907 = John Wayne, American actor, director, and producer
1913 = Peter Cushing, English actor
1920 = Peggy Lee, American singer-songwriter and actor
1923 = James Arness, American actor
1926 = Miles Davis, American trumpet player, composer, and bandleader
1928 = Jack Kevorkian, American pathologist, author, and activist
1940 = Levon Helm, American singer-songwriter
1948 = Stevie Nicks, American singer-songwriter
1949 = Hank Williams Jr., American singer-songwriter
1949 = Pam Grier, American actor
1949 = Philip Michael Thomas, American actor
1951 = Sally Ride = American astronaut š
1954 = Alan Hollinghurst = English writer š
1957 = Ulrike Lunacek = Austrian politician š
1962 = Bobcat Goldthwait, American actor, director, and screenwriter
1964 = Lenny Kravitz, American singer-songwriter
1966 = Helena Bonham Carter, English actor
1968 = Kim Coco Iwamoto = Hawaiian-American politician and activist š
1971 = Matt Stone, American actor, animator, screenwriter, producer, and composer
1975 = Lauryn Hill, American singer-songwriter
EVENTS
1783 = A Great Jubilee Day held at North Stratford, Connecticut, celebrates the end of fighting in the American Revolutionary War.
1896 = Charles Dow publishes the first edition of the Dow Jones Industrial Average.
1913 = Actors' Equity Association forms in NYC.
1923 = The first 24 Hours of Le Mans is held in France. Run annually in June thereafter, it became the oldest endurance racing event in the world.
1927 = The last Ford Model T rolls off the assembly line after a production run of 15,007,003 vehicles.
1967 = The Beatles' album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band is released.
HOLIDAYS + OBSERVANCES
PORTRAIT + QUOTES OF THE DAY
āI'm always thinking about creating. My future starts when I wake up every morning... Every day I find something creative to do with my life.ā
Miles Davis
āI'll play it first and tell you what it is later.ā
Miles Davis
š Salute each and everyone, no matter what country they served for. Government's and Leaders decide but it's the Joe Blogs that have to......fight, live or die for others decisions. Respect DougT š«š“š¬š§
Good to mark the occasion , Clint - the message of Memorial Day is often forgotten. And thanks for the mention of mine! š«”