Apparently the concept of “take pictures of pretty women in swimsuits” is now beyond the ability of the converged Sports Illustrated organization:
Sports Illustrated has revealed the first ever black and Asian transgender model to grace the pages of its annual Swimsuit Issue.
Though the iconic magazine doesn’t launch until July, the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue Instagram account has been unveiling one model a day throughout the month of March — and this morning, they made waves with the announcement that Chicago-born model, dancer, actor, and activist Leyna Bloom, 27, is joining the likes of Lais Ribeiro and Josephine Skriver in the 2021 edition.
Leyna, who is the second trans model to pose for SI Swim, opened up to Good Morning America about her boundary-breaking accomplishment, gushing: ‘I never imagined that I would be born in a time when something like this would happen for someone with my skin tone and for someone with my background.’
Meanwhile, at even-more-converged Marvel, it’s not enough for Captain America to be black. Now he’s also a twinkie:
Marvel Comics Introduces A Gay Captain America For June 2021
Announced last week, Marvel Comics will celebrate the 80th anniversary of Captain America with a brand-new limited series this June titled The United States Of Captain America. Written by Christopher Cantwell with art by Dale Eaglesham, this series will see Steve Rogers teaming up with Captain Americas of the past—Bucky Barnes, Sam Wilson, and John Walker—on a road trip across America to find his stolen shield. Throughout the group’s journey, they’ll discover everyday people from all walks of life who’ve taken up the mantle of Captain America to defend their communities, beginning with Marvel’s newest hero, Aaron Fischer.
Aaron Fischer is described as “the Captain America of the Railways – a fearless teen who stepped up to protect fellow runaways and the unhoused” and that “Marvel Comics is proud to honor Pride Month with the rise of this new LGBTQ+ hero.”
DC, meanwhile, is determined to keep up with the Devil Mouse-owned competition:
DC has announced that they will be launching an initiative this June to celebrate and promote LGBTQ+ Pride, which will consist of variant covers, new releases, and an 80-page anthology tome. Detailed in a recent blog post on the publisher’s website, the “DC Pride” anthology series will include profiles and appearances by some of DC’s most well-known LGBTQ+ characters and the actors who play them in other media.