Out in World War II

Queer WWII History

Workshop

Watch the video lecture, films, and complete the readings. Then carefully examine the World War II artwork below. Respond to the following prompts and submit your answers via Canvas:

Based on the video lecture consider:

●How did heterosexual privilege open doors and ensure fair treatment in the World War II period? How did heterosexual privilege interact with racism, sexism and class inequality to protect some people’s interest at the expense of others?

○Brief Answer:

○Specific Example from Lecture or Workshop:

○Specific Example from films/readings:

●How did LGBTQ+ people overcome challenges during WWII? What opportunities did World War II provide for LGBTQ+ people?

 ○ Brief Answer:

○ Specific Example from Lecture or Workshop:

○ Specific Example from films/readings:

Based on your analysis of the evidence below:

● What opportunities did WWII offer LGBTQ+ people? What barriers did WWII pose to LGBTQ+ people?

●How did queer individuals overcome these barriers and form relationships and community during WWII? How did LGBTQ+ folks directly resist or mor

●What do posters suggest about the idealized form of hegemonic masculinity and femininity in the US in the 1940s? How might these posters be read differently through a queer lens? Based on what you know about the queer history of WWII, how do these posters symbolize the queerness of World War

Citation: Esther Herbert and Marvyl Doyle at San Bernardino Army Air Base. One National Gay and Lesbian Archives at the University of Southern California Libraries.

 Marvyl Doyle and Esther Herbert were lesbians who met while serving in the Women’s Army Corps during the World War II. Doyle was a radio mechanic and Herbert eventually became a Technical Sergeant at the San Bernardino Army Airforce Base. They developed a romantic relationship and became lovers. Although they were separated when Doyle was transferred to Patterson Field, Illinois, they reunited ten years later, moving in together and committing their lives to each other.Since gay men and lesbians were not officially allowed to serve in the military, they had to keep their relationships a secret from military officials during the war. When separated, Doyle and Herbert wrote daily letters to each other. They developed a variety of creative methods to prevent others from reading their love letters and deflect suspicion about their relationship.

 Letter from Esther Herbert to Marvyl Doyle, April 30, 1944.

We went to Savio’s and “it brought back so many memories of that night when we had too much, when I knew I loved you & made you kiss me there & leaned on your shoulder in the taxi going home & made you undresss me  . . . I know we’ve talked of that night time after time but I never tire of thinking about it. I can just feel the way you held my head as I sat on the edge of that tut – the way I put my arms around you and we were so close & then the way you kept telling me I’d hate you but you couldn’t help it and then you kissed me – for the first time and I loved it so - & was afraid to tell you I was not drunk & I mean’t it – every bit of it – that was quite an evening.”“The war news sounded pretty good tonight and I hope the push on all fronts in every direction starts soon & finishes it quickly no matter . . . I realize I’m taking it from a very personal angle – in that I have so much to be thankful for – that you are in this country, that you are safe as possible & I can write to you daily & hear from you daily – all these things – and so much to look forward to – and I think that tomorrow will be 5 weeks – 5 weeks that seem like years – and I wonder how much I can take. Looking at the picture as rationally as I am able I realize that the shortest possible time in which the war could end would be six months & add “the 6 mos” to that & you have a year – and that is such a long, long time & I wonder how I can go on like this even with a furlough in between but then I know that if it is to be. I’ll get through it somehow – because I can count on you to help me through it.”

Letter from Esther Herbert to Marvyl Doyle, April 7, 1944

“Hope all my letters & telegrams don’t arouse too much comment . . . your letters take my breath away. They feel me with a mixture of unendurable happiness and sadness . . . all I want is to take you in my arms and keep you there, warm, safe and secure . . . when I opened the first one – with the lock without a key – I almost wept – for there in front of me was a part of you – some of the strands I love to run my fingers through and which I am always pushing back. How can I hope to express what I felt when I saw it. It almost was as you were there.”“Remember I get my mail direct & no one knows how much I get except Pinball & she doesn’t give a damn.”

Letter from Esther Herbert to Marvyl Doyle, April 13, 1944

“You and our life together after WAC are the 2 things I am able to project into the post-war world and know definitely – without hesitation whatsoever – that they will be there like a beacon waiting for me to come – lighting my way.”

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• Peer Response