Documentary Portrays Abraham Lincoln as Secretly Gay
The trailer of a new documentary called Lover of Men: The Untold History of Abraham Lincoln suggests the former US president was gay. But is it a true revelation or merely a ploy to attract viewers?
The upcoming production is expected to closely examine Honest Abe’s private life, including what he went through before his 1860 presidency. The film’s description reads, “Lover Of Men examines the intimate life of America’s most consequential president, Abraham Lincoln, as told by preeminent Lincoln scholars and never before seen photographs and letters, the film details Lincoln’s romantic relationships with men.”
It continues, “The film fills in an important missing piece of American history and challenges the audience to consider why we hold such a limited view of human sexuality… Lover of Men is not only an exploration of gender roles and sexual identity, but also serves as an examination of American intolerance.”
With Director Shaun Peterson at the helm, the controversial video features interviews with historians from Rutgers, Wellesley, Brown, Columbia, and Harvard.
Speculation regarding Lincoln’s sexual preferences is nothing new. The idea has been suggested several times throughout history. Though many scholars and observers have written about it, this is the first time the matter is being explored on film.
In 2019, author Louis Bayard probed the subject through his fictional novel Courting Mr. Lincoln. It depicted a possible romance between Lincoln and former Kentucky State Representative Joshua Fry Speed.
A Vanity Fair essay supports the theory. “The young Lincoln had a love affair with a handsome youth and store owner, Joshua Speed, in Springfield, Illinois. They shared a bed for four years, not necessarily, in those frontier days, the sign of a smoking gun—only messy male housekeeping,” wrote Gore Vidal.
“The gun proved to be the letters that passed between them when Joshua went home to Kentucky to marry, while Lincoln was readying himself for marriage in Springfield. Each youth betrays considerable anxiety about the wedding night ahead,” Vidal elaborated.
Meanwhile, a Broadway play with a similar theme opened yesterday, July 11, 2024. While Courting Mr. Lincoln is sensitive and thought-provoking, Oh, Mary! is campy, funny, and shameless during its 80-minute performance.
Lover of Men: The Untold History of Abraham Lincoln takes a more scholarly approach. It includes insights from more than a dozen experts without downplaying the US president’s unquestionable legacy.
Lover of Men will be shown in movie theaters in September 2024. Watch the trailer here.
