Aaron Fischer in Marvel’s The United States of Captain America
Marvel has introduced its first gay Captain America in a new limited comic series.
Part of Marvel’s 80th anniversary celebration of the debut of Captain America, The United States of Captain America will focus on Steve Rogers and his companions Falcon (Sam Wilson), Winter Soldier (Bucky Barnes), and U.S. Agent (John Walker) as they venture out to find the Cap’s stolen shield, Entertainment Weekly reports.
While on the hunt, the foursome meet various people who have adopted Captain America’s name in order to defend their own communities from ne’er-do-wells.
One of those such people is Aaron Fischer, the “Captain America of the Railways,” a “fearless teen who stepped up to protect fellow runaways and the unhoused.”
The overall series is written by Christopher Cantwell and drawn by Dale Eaglesham, with each issue featuring guest writers and artists to flesh out the world and characters.
Aaron will debut in The United States Of Captain America #1 and is written by Joshua Trujillo and drawn by Jan Bazaldua, both members of the LGBTQ community.
Design for Aaron Fischer — Photo: Marvel
The character is “inspired by heroes of the queer community: activists, leaders, and everyday folks pushing for a better life,” Trujillo said.
“He stands for the oppressed, and the forgotten,” Trujillo added. “I hope his debut story resonates with readers, and helps inspire the next generation of heroes.”
Bazaldua said she “really enjoyed designing him, and as a transgender person, I am happy to be able to present an openly gay person who admires Captain America and fights against evil to help those who are almost invisible to society.”
With the overall series, Cantwell said they hope to “explore what the idea of Captain America means at this precise moment — not just on the grand stage of the world — but to everyday and often overlooked communities throughout the United States.”
The United States of Captain Marvel #1 is set to debut on June 2, just in time for LGBTQ Pride Month, something Marvel noted in their announcement, saying they were “proud to honor Pride Month with the rise of this new LGBTQ+ hero.”
Col. Edward Thomas Ryan died on June 1, the first day of Pride Month, at the age of 85 from complications related to intestinal cancer.
The decorated Army veteran's obituary, which ran in the June 8 edition of the Albany Times-Union, included a message he wrote ahead of his death.
"I must tell you one more thing," the message begins. "I was Gay all my life: thru grade school, thru High School, thru College, thru Life."
The message then reveals Ryan "was in a loving and caring relationship with Paul Cavagnaro of North Greenbush. He was the love of my life. We had 25 great years together. Paul died in 1994 from a medical procedure gone wrong. I'll be buried next to Paul.
Russian authorities reportedly forced at least two men to participate in a sting designed to entrap and imprison gay men.
Matvey Volodin, a Moscow resident who creates adult content under the name USSRboy, was lured by police in the autonomous Republic of Dagestan, located in the North Caucasus region, according to the independent investigative Russian newspaper Novaya Gazeta.
Volodin -- who reportedly identifies as a heterosexual who has sex with men -- came to Dagestan in late May in response to an invitation from presumed fans who contacted him online and told them they had rented him an apartment in Makhachkala, Dagestan's largest city.
A California man has been convicted on murder and hate crime charges for the 2018 stabbing death of a gay, Jewish University of Pennsylvania student.
Samuel Woodward, 26, was found guilty of first-degree murder, plus a hate crime enhancement, for killing Blaze Bernstein, who had been visiting his family in southern California on winter break when he went missing around January 2, 2018.
After eight days, authorities searching for him found his body in a shallow grave at a nearby park.
Both Woodward and Bernstein had attended the same high school, Orange County School of the Arts, for a little over two years. According to testimony at trial, Woodward said he matched Bernstein on the dating app Tinder, in 2017.
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