But We Loved Podcast: Queer History From LGBTQ+ Elders Who Lived It

 I must give credit to the people who continue to whitewash American history because they do not wish to face a painful fact: As a nation, we did some nasty shit: chattel slavery, subjugation of indigenous people, and cruel legislation and court rulings like Dred Scott and The Chinese Exclusion Act. It's a long list. 

Because of their insistence that history only portray the nation's halo and not the evil counterpart, people from myriad groups are now exploring their history with a sense that much has been hidden from them in the name of jingoistic purity. 

A newly released iHeart podcast, host Jordan Gonsalves (who is also creator of the groundbreaking podcast Unshaming) uncovers the untold stories of queer history through intimate interviews with LGBTQ+ elders in But We Loved. In that process, Gonsalves discovers the role models he always needed and the wisdom they’ve been waiting to pass down.

As a gay kid growing up Catholic, in conservative Texas, Jordan Gonsalves knew nothing about queer history. Now, as a journalist, he’s searching for the stories he craved when he was coming
of age. Through the show, he discovers the role models he always needed and the wisdom they’ve been waiting to pass down.

This weekly show will cover major historical topics like Stonewall, gay marriage, and the AIDS crisis — but also other areas of queer life like sex work, coming out on YouTube, and the history of Vouging. Guests include Jim Obergefell, the plaintiff in the case that legalized gay marriage for all Americans, and Eric Marcus, host of Making Gay History.

“Growing up, I thought being gay was the worst thing I could ever be. But making this show has forced me to completely unlearn that. These are amazing stories of bravery and perseverance,”
says Gonsalves.

Host Jordan Gonsalves is a graduate of the Columbia School of Journalism and creator of the
groundbreaking interview podcast Unshaming. He has a unique beat: shame and its impact on
people. His master's thesis from Columbia on HIV in the military was published in Time
Magazine.

The first two episodes dropped on Wednesday, May 15th.

I've listened to the first two episodes and found them utterly fascinating, disturbing, and deeply emotional. In the first episode, Gonsalves interviews Martin Boyce who was a youngster at the time of the Stonewall Riots in 1969. Boyce gives a graphic depiction of what it was like to be gay in the 50s. He tells a harrowing tale of a group of marauding boys with baseball bats searching for him with the idea that their bat would contact his head. 

Boyce relates how he told his father -- a lifelong city cabdriver -- who accepted him because he was his son and loved him. Not all of Boyce's family was as accepting however. 

Boyce echoes a common sentiment in the first two episodes and that is of shame. How Boyce and ultimately the host Gonsalves deal with that emotion is a central point of the podcast. 

In the second episode, Gonsalves pivots to an inspired, and ultimately successful, podcast strategy. He has another podcast host interview him so the listeners can learn more about their host. I've witnessed this strategy done well with Kimi Cupl in All The Wiser when she had a friend interview her about her mental health struggles.

Here, Gonsalves chooses Eric Marcus, the host of Making Gay History. Marcus is the author of a dozen books, including two editions of Making Gay History (the original 1992 edition is entitled Making History), Why Suicide?, and Breaking the Surface, the #1 New York Times bestselling autobiography of Olympic diving champion Greg Louganis. He is the founder and chair emeritus of the Stonewall 50 Consortium and is a founding board member of the American LGBTQ+ Museum.

Marcus is an inspired choice, and he guides Gonsalves through his own personal journey with the steady hand of a ship's captain in a storm. I don't want to spoil Gonsalves's personal tale, but I recommend you listen. It's compelling. 

Clearly, Gonsalves has plans to release episodes about seminal events in gay history. I'd love to hear episodes about gay life in the ancient world like Greece, Rome, and other dynastic cultures.

 I'm looking forward to these future episodes because learning about gay history is one key to accepting and understanding the LGBTQ+ community.

As historian David McCullough once said, "History is who we are and why we are the way we are."