The Queer Face of War

The Queer Face of War was written and photographed by J. Lester Feder, an American journalist of Ukrainian descent, based on reporting in and around Ukraine since 2013. 

From 2013 to 2020, he was the senior world correspondent covering LGBTQ+ rights for BuzzFeed News, and he has been a senior fellow at the global LGBTQ+ human rights organization Outright International and the Human Rights and Gender Justice Clinic of the City University of New York. 

His cover essay for The New York Times Sunday Opinion Section, "Putin Is Showing Us What Homophobia Looks Like as a Weapon of War," was recently awarded a 2024 Excellence in Journalism Award by the National Association of LGBTQ Journalists, which previously named him Journalist of the Year. His photography has been recognized by a Feature Shoot Emerging Photography Award and a grant from the New York State Council for the Arts. His photos and writing have appeared in numerous other outlets including The New Yorker, Rolling Stone, and Vanity Fair.

To learn more about his work, please visit www.LesterFeder.com.