The United States of Captain America is set to release this June with the first ever LGBTQ+ character to take over the shield.
Aaron Fischer will be the self-proclaimed “Captain America of the Railways,” protecting runaways and the homeless. As an openly gay person, this is a fitting character to help kick off Pride Month this June.
The Marvel story will follow our four previous shield-wielder’s, Steve Rogers, Sam Wilson, Bucky Barnes and John Walker, as they head off on an adventure to find Cap’s lost shield. This is where they encounter Fischer, doing what he can to protect, without the resources or powers of a traditional superhero. Aaron will debut in the first issue of The United States of Captain America and will star in a backup feature written by Joshua Trujillo and drawn by Jan Bazaldua, the characters creators.
In a Marvel press release the creators stated,
“Aaron is inspired by heroes of the queer community: activists, leaders, and everyday folks pushing for a better life. He stands for the oppressed, and the forgotten. I hope his debut story resonates with readers, and helps inspire the next generation of heroes.”
“I want to thank Editor Alanna Smith and Joshua Trujillo very much for asking me to create Aaron,” Bazaldua said. “I 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. While I was drawing him, I thought, well, Cap fights against super-powerful beings and saves the world almost always, but Aaron helps those who walk alone in the street with problems that they face every day. I hope people like the end result!”
The LGBTQ+ community is slowly being represented in comics and mainstream media, though the work is nowhere near done. Trujillo is thrilled to get to introduce this character in The United States of Captain America and I hope Aaron Fischer is met with the same enthusiasm from the rest of the community and comic book fans as a whole.
