This is the grave of Technical Sergeant Leonard Matlovich. It does not display his name because he wanted it to serve as a memorial honoring all gay veterans, not just himself.
The grave of Technical Sergeant Leonard Matlovich in Washington D.C.’s Congressional Cemetery was intentionally created without his name so it could stand as a memorial for all gay veterans. A highly decorated Air Force veteran who earned the Purple Heart and Bronze Star during the Vietnam War, Matlovich became a major LGBTQ+ rights figure in 1975 when he publicly revealed his sexuality to challenge the military’s ban on homosexual service members, later appearing on the cover of Time magazine.
After being diagnosed with AIDS, Matlovich designed his own black granite marker using the same reflective material as the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. Instead of his name, it carries the powerful inscription:
“When I was in the military, they gave me a medal for killing two men and a discharge for loving one.”
The grave also features two pink triangles, transforming a symbol once used by Nazis to persecute gay people into one of pride and remembrance. By leaving out his own identity, Matlovich created a lasting tribute to the LGBTQ+ service members who served in silence or faced discrimination because of who they loved.