How can we hold together idealism and authenticity even when the world is homophobic?

Today we meet Lucas F. Schleusener and we’re talking about the queer book that saved his life: Lost Prophet: The Life and Times of Bayard Rustin by John D'Emilio.

Lucas is a writer, educator, and national security strategist shaping the future of equity across the national security enterprise. As Co-Founder and CEO of Out in National Security he leads a global community that advances LGBTQIA+ inclusion and drives policy change across defense and foreign policy. Luke is a Term Member of the Council on Foreign Relations and previously served as Chairman of the Board of No One Left Behind. His writing has appeared in Foreign Policy, Defense One, The Hill, and Law360.

John D’Emilio, PhD is professor emeritus of history and gender and women’s studies at University of Illinois at Chicago. A Guggenheim Fellow and a pioneer in the field of gay and lesbian studies, he is the author, coauthor, or editor of numerous books, including Sexual Communities and Intimate Matters, which was cited in Justice Anthony Kennedy’s opinion in Lawrence v. Texas, the 2003 Supreme Court case overturning US anti-sodomy laws. John is the founding director of the Policy Institute of the National LGBTQ Task Force, he has also served as President of the Gerber/Hart Library and Archives, a community-based library and historical archives in Chicago.

Connect with Luke and John

Luke's website: outinnationalsecurity.org
linkedin: linkedin.com/in/lucas-f-schleusener-9a470415/

John's website: americanlgbtqmuseum.org/profile/john-demilio/
facebook: facebook.com/john.demilio.7/

Our Bookshop
Visit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook

Buy your copy of Lost Prophet: The Life and Times of Bayard Rustin here: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780226142692

Become an Associate Producer!
Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook

Credits
Host/Founder: John Parker
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Troy Ford, Jonathan Fried, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, Sean Smith, and Karsten Vagner
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, Sofia Nerman, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson

Quatrefoil Library
Quatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1

Support the show

Our first new episode of 2026 drops next week on January 13th! John is really proud of this upcoming episode which is about Bayard Rustin. For this week, we have a recent episode of The Gaily Show which we air in our off weeks.

Today: The 2025 Chicago Journalist of the Year, Jake Wittich, joins us for a special episode of Unpack This For Me. While you know him as a featured contributor to The Gaily Show (bi-weekly on Wednesdays), we take this opportunity for him to unpack how he goes about his work. What does it mean to be a queer journalist when the federal government is dominated by MAGA and using that power to attack the LGBTQ community in blue cities? By sharing his story, we learn more about what it takes to produce quality journalism in a time when the federal government is pumping out dozens of fake news stories and conspiracy theories by the hour.

Windy City Times has been the voice of Chicago’s LGBTQ+ community since 1985. This year marks the news outlet’s 40th anniversary of uplifting queer stories, reporting with Pride and chronicling LGBTQ+ history. Visit WindyCityTimes.com/newsletters to sign up for the publication’s weekly LGBTQ+ news updates.

Jake Wittich is managing editor of Windy City Times, where he reports in-depth stories on Chicago’s LGBTQ+ community and oversees the publication’s growing newsletter operation. And the Chicago Journalist’s Association named him Journalist of the Year 2025.   

Watch on YouTube

We're in video too! You can watch this episode at youtube.com/@thegailyshow

Credits

Host/Founder: John Parker (learn more about my name change)
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Production and Distribution Support: Brett Johnson, AM950
Marketing/Advertising Support: Chad Larson, Laura Hedlund, Jennifer Ogren, AM950
Accounting and Creative Support: Gordy Erickson

Support the show

Today, host John Parker and Executive Producer Jim Pounds wrap up 2025 and preview 2026!

Here's what we discuss:

• Where was our podcast listened to this year? Did we make any chart rankings this year?
• Press coverage!
• Favorite episodes of 2025
• Preview of upcoming episodes in 2026
• Share with us the queer book that saved your life on the podcast!
• Will you join the podcast as an Associate Producer in 2026?

Our Bookshop
Visit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook

Become an Associate Producer!
Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook

Credits
Host/Founder: John Parker
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Troy Ford, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, Sofia Nerman, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson

Quatrefoil Library
Quatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1

Support the show

A look back at 2025 and a preview of 2026 will air on December 30th! In our off weeks we play episodes of The Gaily Show which John hosts. The Gaily Show is the only daily LGBTQ progressive news and talk radio show in the country airing in Minneapolis (AM950-KTNF) and Chicago (WCPT 820).

In this episode, Ilana Masad joins us on The Gaily Show on the third Fridays of the month to share books you need to be reading!

Today’s books:

• The Safekeep by Yael van der Wouden
• This Place Kills Me by Mariko Tamaki, illustrated by Nicole Goux
• Dinner on Monster Island by Tania De Rozario

Get them here: https://bookshop.org/lists/the-gaily-show

Ilana Masad is a writer of fiction, nonfiction, and criticism whose work has been widely published. She holds a PhD from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, and is the author of the novels All My Mother’s Lovers and Beings, as well as the coeditor of the forthcoming anthology Here for All the Reasons: Why We Watch The Bachelor. https://www.ilanamasad.com/

Watch on YouTube

We're in video too! You can watch this episode at youtube.com/@thegailyshow

Credits

Host/Founder: John Parker (learn more about my name change)
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Production and Distribution Support: Brett Johnson, AM950
Marketing/Advertising Support: Chad Larson, Laura Hedlund, Jennifer Ogren, AM950
Accounting and Creative Support: Gordy Erickson

Support the show

One of the world's oldest surviving novels was a queer book?!

Today we meet Neil Laird and we’re talking about the queer book that saved his life: The Satyricon by Petronius.

Neil is a multiple Emmy-nominated Executive Producer who has worked extensively on both the network and production side of non-fiction TV since 1997. He's developed, overseen, and produced over 1,000 hours of non-fiction programs and specials in nearly every genre, with a particular passion, expertise, and contacts in history, archaeology, and international exploration. He write a series of satirical adventure novels: Prime Time Travelers, Prime Time Pompeii, and, the forthcoming Prime Time Troy. They're all about a time-traveling TV crew uncovering forgotten LGBTQ voices from the past.

Petronius (20 C.E. - 66 C.E.) served as a Governor in the Roman Empire and ultimately as Consul, the most powerful position in the Empire. When he left public service, Emperor Nero named him the Arbiter Elegantiae, or master of elegance. A prominent writer, Petronius is considered the likely author of The Satyricon.

Connect with Neil

website: neillaird.com
instagram: @primetimeauthor
facebook: facebook.com/neil-laird-author

Our Bookshop
Visit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook

Buy your copy of The Satyricon here: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780806144382

For the forthcoming Prime Time Troy, as well as Prime Time Travelers and Prime Time Pompeii, check this out: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Neil-Laird/author/B0CYJ7HDB4

Become an Associate Producer!
Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook

Credits
Host/Founder: John Parker
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Troy Ford, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, Sofia Nerman, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil Library
Quatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1

Support the show

A new episode of This Queer Book Saved My Life drops on December 16th! In our off weeks we play episodes of The Gaily Show which John hosts. The Gaily Show is the only daily LGBTQ progressive news and talk radio show in the country airing in Minneapolis (AM950-KTNF) and Chicago (WCPT 820).

In this episode, Queer Word is a phenomenal weekly e-newsletter that introduces you to queer history and culture one word at a time. It also includes headlines about queer joy and queer rage. It’s a newsletter I personally read every week and recommend! Subscribe here: https://queer-word.beehiiv.com

Queer Word is written by K Anderson, who also hosted the Lost Spaces podcast.

Lost Spaces was a conversation based podcast where every week K Anderson spoke to a different person about a lost queer space from their past, what they got up to there, and how it helped to shape the person they’ve become. Check it out here: https://lostspacespodcast.com

Watch on YouTube

We're in video too! You can watch this episode at youtube.com/@thegailyshow

Credits

Host/Founder: John Parker (learn more about my name change)
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Production and Distribution Support: Brett Johnson, AM950
Marketing/Advertising Support: Chad Larson, Laura Hedlund, Jennifer Ogren, AM950
Accounting and Creative Support: Gordy Erickson

Support the show

We have a new episode of This Queer Book Saved My Life on December 16th! Today, Once Upon a Crime Books presents 7 Minutes in Book Heaven, the podcast where we interview LGBTQ authors about the new books they have coming out for us to love and cuddle up with.

Visit them online: onceuponacrimebooks.com

Once Upon a Crime Books is an independent bookstore specializing in mystery fiction. Located in Uptown Minneapolis, you can shop in their store Monday through Saturday 11am – 5:30pm. Or, visit their website! There, you can browse all of their books, from new releases to classic mysteries.

In this new episode, Once Upon a Crime Books introduces us to Anne Laughlin and her new novel: Clean Kill which is available to buy in in-store or on their website.

Anne Laughlin has written seven books for Bold Strokes Books, all stand alone crime novels of the classic mystery, police procedural, and psychological thrill variety. She is the winner of four Goldie Awards from the Golden Crown Literary Society and has been short listed three times for a Lammy Award from the Lambda Literary Foundation. Currently a board member of Mystery Writers of America/Midwest and MWA's Queer Advisory Board, Anne believes in giving back to the crime writing community. Anne lives in Chicago with her wife, Linda Braasch, and their two cats.

Buy Clean Kill

Visit Once Upon a Crime Books in-person or buy online: https://onceuponacrimebooks.com/book/9781636796345

Connect with Anne Laughlin

website: annelaughlinwriter.com
facebook: facebook.com/anne.laughlin

Credits

Presented by: Once Upon a Crime Books
Host/Founder: John Parker
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Theme music: Summer Mood by lesfm

Support the show

Next week we have a special 7 Minutes in Book Heaven episode for you! And then, a new episode of This Queer Book Saved My Life drops on December 16th! In our off weeks we play episodes of The Gaily Show which John hosts. The Gaily Show is the only daily LGBTQ progressive news and talk radio show in the country airing in Minneapolis (AM950-KTNF) and Chicago (WCPT 820).

In this episode, The Gaily Show starts a new partnership with author and critic Ilana Masad. She will join us on the third Fridays of the month to share LGBTQ books you need to be reading. Today’s books:

• The Future Was Color by Patrick Nathan
• Confidence by Rafael Frumkin
• Blue Skinned Gods by SJ Sindu

Get them here: https://bookshop.org/lists/the-gaily-show

But up first, Jim and I give you our reviews of Netflix’s Boots, FX’s English Teacher, and Hulu’s Golden Girls: 40 Years of Friendship.

Ilana Masad is a writer of fiction, nonfiction, and criticism whose work has been widely published. She holds a PhD from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, and is the author of the novels All My Mother’s Lovers and Beings, as well as the coeditor of the forthcoming anthology Here for All the Reasons: Why We Watch The Bachelor. https://www.ilanamasad.com/

Watch on YouTube

We're in video too! You can watch this episode at youtube.com/@thegailyshow

Credits

Host/Founder: John Parker (learn more about my name change)
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Production and Distribution Support: Brett Johnson, AM950
Marketing/Advertising Support: Chad Larson, Laura Hedlund, Jennifer Ogren, AM950
Accounting and Creative Support: Gordy Erickson

Support the show

Can you have a happy ending in a gay relationship?

Today we meet Bobbie Smith and we’re talking about the queer book that saved his life: Coming Out by Wallace Hamilton.

Bobbie has been a community activist for 35 years. He helped found the Gay and Lesbian community council in Salt Lake City, Utah of which he was a member. He also founded the Sacred Fairies. Bobbie started the Stonewall Community Center in Salt Lake City, where he served as its first Librarian and donated over 1,000 books to that library. He has been a leader in the local leather community here in Minnesota since 2000. He is a props designer for various community theaters in the Twin Cities, primarily with Theatre in the Round.

Wallace Hamilton was a novelist and playwright. His four novels include Coming Out and Christopher and Gay. He wrote fourteen plays and co-wrote the screenplay for Streetchild. He graduated from Harvard and was a World War II conscientious objector.

Content Warning: This episode contains a description of a suicide attempt.

Our Bookshop
Visit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook

Coming Out is not available on Bookshop.org, but you can find copies at AbeBooks or Thriftbooks.

Become an Associate Producer!
Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook

Credits
Host/Founder: John Parker
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Troy Ford, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, Sofia Nerman, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson

Quatrefoil Library
Quatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1

Support the show

A new episode of This Queer Book Saved My Life drops on November 18th! In our off weeks we play episodes of The Gaily Show which John hosts. The Gaily Show is the only daily LGBTQ progressive news and talk radio show in the country airing in Minneapolis (AM950-KTNF) and Chicago (WCPT 820).

In this episode, Mike Nejman is here to talk about his road-trip memoir Laughing at the Sun. Plus, Mike Albo joins us to talk about his new audio book Hologram Boyfriends!

Connect with Mike Albo: https://www.mikealbo.net
Get your copy of Hologram Boyfriends: https://read.macmillan.com/hologram-boyfriends-audio-original-9781250393821

Connect with Michael Nejman here: https://www.michaelnejman.com
Connect with Robert Fischer: http://www.robertfischerphoto.com/index.html and https://americanart.si.edu/artwork/blue-zebra-8336
Get your copy of Laughing at the Sun here: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781512080971
Get your copy of Homo Erectus here: https://www.amazon.com/Homo-Erectus-Edward-Proffitt/dp/1879194341

Watch on YouTube

We're in video too! You can watch this episode at youtube.com/@thegailyshow

Credits

Host/Founder: John Parker (learn more about my name change)
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Production and Distribution Support: Brett Johnson, AM950
Marketing/Advertising Support: Chad Larson, Laura Hedlund, Jennifer Ogren, AM950
Accounting and Creative Support: Gordy Erickson

Support the show