Subjects:  1. 1949-    2. Capitalism    3. Heterosexism    4. Lesbian Studies    5. Lesbian activists    6. Religion    7. Segrest, Mab,    8. Sociology    9. Theology    10. Travel   

Subjects:  1. Biography    2. Biography / Autobiography    3. Gay Studies    4. Gay activists    5. Gay liberation movement    6. History    7. Social Science    8. Sociology    9. Sociology - General    10. Specific Groups - Male Gay Studies    11. United States    12. Biography: general    13. Demonstrations & protest movements    14. Gay & Lesbian studies    15. Social history   

Subjects:  1. Gay Studies    2. Gay men    3. Gay rights    4. Homosexuality    5. Ireland    6. Lesbian Studies    7. Lesbians    8. Political Freedom & Security - Civil Rights    9. Political activity    10. Politics / Current Events    11. Social Movements    12. Sociology    13. Gay & Lesbian studies    14. History / Ireland    15. Human rights   

Reviews (2)

The "Other" Sides
"Beyond Queer" is a collection of various authors' articles and essays written in the mid-1990s, claiming the ultra-left orthodoxy of gay activists have not achieved the goals they set out to ascertain. Ten years later, all but a few articles are still engaging. All of the authors take a "contrarian" point of view from the "normative" neo-Marxist, ultra-far-left, and counterculture stereotype of gays and lesbians. Some authors are conservatives, others libertarian, and still others Republicans and Democrats. Among them are Jonathan Rauch, Paul Vernell, Andrew Sullivan, and Bruce Brawer.
A hymn to individuality -- gay or straight
There is nothing more frustrating than being fully misrepresented in the sweep of fierce political debate, demonstrations, and dogmatic activism from both sides of an issue.As a gay man who neither abuses children nor devotes all his time to "eating, sleeping, and drinking GAY," I am overlooked by both the Religious Right and the lockstep ideology of the more vocal gay activists.Finally, voices are being heard (and published!) which speak a truth that a silent majority has wanted to convey for so long: most gay people are individuals first.Despite what the higher-ups among the left-wing gay activists claim, being gay does not imply supporting a disparate array of trendy leftist ideals -- in other words, "gay Marxist" should not be assumed redundant.Paradoxically, this left-wing orthodoxy resists and opposes some of the most crucial and potentially benefitial goals gays and lesbians might work for: the right to recognized marriages or honest military service, for instance.We who support such issues, or who are not die- hard statists, are lampooned as the gay equivilant of an "Uncle Tom" by many liberals, gay or straight.Meanwhile, a vocal group on the right continues its religiously-tinged bigotry.Where to turn? Bruce Bawer's new reader is a worthy place to start.Like his earlier monograph, A PLACE AT THE TABLE, BEYOND QUEER offers a diverse selection of essays on many issues related to being gay in today's society, all unified by the idea that for most, being gay is secondary to being an individual -- and this is as it should be. That Bawer's book has been written, published, and is being read, is a heartening sign that this new focus is being noticed, and, hopefully acted upon.Anyone concerned with the dignity of the individual will find this book compelling and valuable. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Gay Studies    2. Gay liberation movement    3. Gays    4. General    5. Homosexuality    6. Political activity    7. Political aspects    8. Politics - Current Events    9. Social Science    10. Sociology    11. Sociology - General    12. United States    13. Current Events / General    14. Gay & Lesbian studies   

Reviews (1)

Thinking about lesbian and gay existence as an "ethos"
Mark Blasius is a thoughtful and prolific political theorist who writes on matters of sexuality. This book's frequent invocations of Foucault, academic-jargony style, and sometimes difficult arguments make it perhaps best suited for the reading list of a graduate seminar. Blasius is persuasive, though, in advancing his interesting and worthwhile central thesis: that lesbian and gay existence should be conceived as an "ethos" - something at once more personal and more political than merely a sexual orientation, a lifestyle, or even a community. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Gay Studies    2. Gay men    3. Gay/Lesbian Nonfiction    4. Homosexuality    5. Lesbian Studies    6. Lesbianism    7. Political Process - General    8. Political activity    9. Political aspects    10. Politics / Current Events    11. Social Science    12. United States    13. Gay & Lesbian studies    14. Political ideologies   

Subjects:  1. Gay Studies    2. Gay liberation movement    3. Gay rights    4. Gays    5. Lesbian Studies    6. Political activity    7. Politics / Current Events    8. Public Policy - General    9. Social Science    10. Sociology    11. Gay & Lesbian studies    12. Gender Studies    13. Political Science and International Relations    14. Political science & theory    15. Social Science / Gay Studies    16. Social groups & communities   

Reviews (3)

An Inexorable Element of Gay Studies
Vern's introduction credited me with suggesting that he replace Wayne Dynes, after Dynes resigned, as the editor of Before Stonewall.I'm happy that John De Cecco, the editor at Haworth, accepted my suggestion.John, who has edited the Journal of Homosexuality and a number of other Haworth Journal and series, is beyond question the most important gay editor since Magnus Hirschhfeld.He has made the Journal the place of record for gay studies, and Vern Bullough, with over fifty books to his credit is also the leading living historian of sex.Both of those scholars have braved the slings and arrows of the religious right, the child abuse industry, and others suffering from sexual panic.They did a splendid job on this much needed work, which contradicts the present-minded, now the vast majority of the gay rights movement, who maintain that nothing significant happened before Stonewall.
A Fascinating Collection!
A collection of fascinating personal stories of individual and collection action against injustice! This book dispels myths that give central location to the Stonewall rebellion, showing instead a much more complex history of activism for gay and lesbian rights. Although the biographies are uneven (some are too short, and some are written by their subjects' partners, hence too celebratory), most of these approximately forty biographies show the successes and charms, foibles and failures of a remarkable group of people -- gay, lesbian, bisexual, heterosexual, transgendered, non-transgendered -- who all made a tremendous difference in the quality of life possible for gays and lesbians in the United States today.

Indispensable documentation of a major social movement
Launched a half-century ago, the American gay and lesbian rights movement has achieved a remarkable success.Its influence has spread throughout the world, contributing enormously to the happiness, productivity, and self-esteem of homosexual citizens elsewhere.For the most part, those who launched this wonderful development in the 1950s did not realize, or did not record, the essence of their achievement.They were too busy doing their work. Now, under the guidance of Vern Bullough, a major scholar in the field, it has been written down.In biographies of some forty individuals, many fascinating in their own right, the story is told.It is as if one received a whole raft of biographies in one volume!This book must be seen and read in order to understand its remarkable contribution, a contribution that is significant for all of us. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Biography    2. Civil Rights    3. Gay Studies    4. Gay activists    5. Gay liberation movement    6. Gender Studies    7. History    8. Lesbian Studies    9. Social Science    10. Sociology    11. Biography: general    12. Gay & Lesbian studies   

Reviews (1)

Identity politics lives
Bailey, a political scientist who until his untimely death in 2001 was one of the foremost authorities on gay politics and voting patterns in large cities, blends data with detailed studies of New York, Chicago, San Francisco, and Birmingham, Alabama, to illustrate the role gays and lesbians play as distinctive members of urban political communities, where they have traditionally been part of liberal coalitions.Bailey argues that the ends of urban-based gay political involvement have had more to do with the definition and assertion of identity than with influencing the levers of economic policy-making.At a time when "identity politics" as a mode of analysis has fallen out of fashion in academic gay studies, Bailey compiles an impressive array of evidence that identity politics, at least in the urban setting, actually is becoming more important as municipal politicians seek to build coalitions and consensus. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Gay Studies    2. Gays    3. Government - State & Provincial    4. Identity    5. Lesbian Studies    6. Men's Studies - Masculinity    7. Municipal government    8. Political Process - Elections    9. Political activity    10. Politics - Current Events    11. Politics / Current Events    12. Social Science    13. Sociology    14. United States    15. Political Science / Government / National   

Subjects:  1. Anthropology - Cultural    2. Archaeology / Anthropology    3. Civil rights    4. Emigration & Immigration    5. Gay Studies    6. Politics and government    7. Social Science    8. Societies, etc    9. Sociology    10. South Asian Americans    11. Women's Studies - General    12. ASIA    13. Asian American Studies    14. Civil rights & citizenship    15. Gender Studies/Feminist Theory    16. Multicultural studies    17. Political activism    18. USA   

Reviews (2)

Too Many Inaccuracies Poison the Well
I found this book easy and fun to read, and it's useful to have an overview of L.A.'s gay and lesbianhistory, even if an overview never goes deep enough to be fully satisfying. However, there many mistakes in this book, as pointed out by another reviewer; one more for the list is that the Black Cat bar, site of an important protest in 1968 (not 1986) isn't at the address Kenney gives for it. When so many mistakes are obvious during a casual read through a book, I can't feel confident that it is reliable on things I don't know much about. I wish this had been an important contribution to the growing body of work in local U.S. gay and lesbian history -- or, better yet, LGBT history -- that, taken together, will someday give us a rich, deep, insightful understanding of the formation of sex, gender, and sexuality in the U.S.

Shallow Study
Moira Kenney's Mapping Gay L.A. leaves lots to be desired.If you lived there in the 60's, 70's, 80's or 90's, you'll realize pretty quickly that this is not a map of Gay L.A.; it's a flawed map of and history-lite of just several social service/community agencies prominent during those decades.She bases her obtuse, academic observations (just try reading the first two chapters--don't buy it--get it at the library) on interviews with just a few people from the various eras.It reads as if she just took the word of people she happened to know in L.A. as the end truth--without seeking further others who might help fill in the picture with depth.
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Subjects:  1. California    2. Gay Studies    3. Gay activists    4. Gay communities    5. Gay liberation movement    6. Gender Studies    7. Lesbian Studies    8. Los Angeles Metropolitan Area    9. Political Freedom & Security - Civil Rights    10. Social Science    11. Sociology    12. United States   

Subjects:  1. Sociology - General    2. Vancouver    3. Gay Studies    4. Public Policy - General    5. Canada    6. Civil rights & citizenship    7. HIV / AIDS    8. Immigration & emigration    9. Political science & theory    10. Political structures: democracy    11. Social Science / Human Geography    12. AIDS (Disease)    13. Sociology    14. British Columbia    15. Social aspects   

Reviews (4)

Self-published, recycled, inept
This self-published book summarizes a wide range of research on the origins and prevalence of 'non-heterosexuality' (his term). Nothing here is new, except Holland's awkward handling of the data. Holland hides his moral condemnation of non-heterosexuality in quasi-scientific terms: non-heterosexuality may be 'natural' but it is nevertheless 'abnormal' and is associated with various mental 'disturbances.'
a contribution to science
Facts speak for themselves.And this book is full of facts.Because the book is mostly a synthesis of previously published findings from experiments and correlational analyses, rife with physiological jargon (which is thankfully explained), the book is a challenging read, but the insights gained are more than worth the effort.Holland does make novel arguments, some of which rely on assumptions that might be false, but otherwise the book is difficult to criticize, unless one were to read the studies he cites and find fault with their methods.
Another condescending diatribe about homosexuality.
Another attempt to explain away and condemn homosexuality without admitting to hatred and bigotry.Sure, gays are "natural" in that they have a biological disorder they can't help, but nope, they aren't meant to be here.The author's attempt to dismiss what he seems to think is "feminism"are particularly ham handed, if faintly amusing.Did you know, for example, that most feminists are "female homosexuals?"Oh, and did you know that fashion models are tall and scrawny because most fashion designers are gay and therefore like their models to look like boys?No?Well, now you do.Believe me, if you're looking to actually learn something about EITHER homosexuality OR the religious right, there are far more accredited scholarly books to read, and if you're looking for a fun story about being gay (or being a feminist or being a fashion designer or being a Christian -- or all four together in one happy, well adjusted human being), there are plenty of great reads out there that don't lead you through such tortured, hateful "logic." ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Feminism & Feminist Theory    2. Gay Studies    3. Gender Studies    4. Human Sexuality    5. Social Science    6. Sociology    7. Gay studies (Gay men)    8. Sexual behaviour    9. Social Science / Gay Studies   

Subjects:  1. Lesbians    2. Gender Studies    3. United States    4. Political activity    5. Gay Studies    6. History & Theory - General    7. Lesbian Studies    8. Cultural studies    9. Gay & Lesbian studies    10. Social Science / Feminism & Feminist Theory    11. Politics/International Relations    12. Gay men    13. Identity   

Reviews (2)

Enlightening and well written essays
Especially well written was the thoroughly researched essay by the artist and Lambda Award winning author Tee A. Corinne `How Lesbian Artists Support Their Art".
lesbian activism
This anthology proposes discussing how lesbians fund lesbian-specific activism.Activism is broadly defined here, ranging from the arts, sciences, law, non-profit groups, publications, etc.The writing styles here are diverse, ranging from personal narrative, question and answer, journalistic style, etc.Unlike other books, the variety in styles works well here.
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Subjects:  1. Fund raising    2. Gay rights    3. Lesbian Studies    4. Lesbians    5. Political activity    6. Social Science    7. Sociology    8. United States   

Editorial Review

The personal memoir has become the genre of choice for many writing about AIDS. Works such as Mark Doty's Read more

Reviews (3)

Multiple perspectives on the AIDS crisis
This frequently moving memoir wears three distinctly different hats. First, it is a vivid portrait of a young lawyer who feels compelled to join the front lines of the emerging AIDS crisis. Senak was there at the beginning in the early 1980s, when the main work of those who cared was to help people die, when no one knew how the disease was transmitted or who would get it. The first third of the book presents some astounding stories, both of cowardice and cruelty and extraordinary courage. Second, it is a moving love story as Senak chronicles his meeting and brief, happy existence with Joseph, a waiter/actor with AIDS who turns to him for help. Third, it is a tale of an altogether different existence for Senak as he moves to Los Angeles and witnesses the disease invading ever more privileged and glamorous circles. A Fragile Circle is Definitely Worth Reading!
A Fragile Circle provides a very honest and personal account of what went on in the hearts and minds of many who were most directly in the path of HIV from the outset.As a surviving 'footsoldier', Mark Senak's account of having been plunged into a state of secret panic, paranoia, ostracism and devastating loss is told in a way that not only challenges our collective level of compassion and response to this pandemic but holds the reflective mirror in a way that one is bound to examine the truth of our very own brand of fear and denial. An important and touching memoir of the AIDS epidemic
Full disclosure - as founding president of NY's Bar Association for Human Rights, I was present to observe some of the events Mark Senak describes in this important and touching memoir of the AIDS epidemic.This is an important book, especially for younger folks who came of age at a later point in the epidemic and whose understanding of the current challenges should be informed by the experiences of the past. Unfortunately, it appears that Mark's manuscript received the kind of "hands-off" editing characteristic of all too many small presses today.A really good editor would have helped him to shape it into a much more effective book, and a thorough copy editor would have taken care of the occasional incomplete sentences, run-together sentences, and rare but distracting grammatical faux pas. But that's beside the point and doesn't get in the way of communication. Some of the stories he has to tell are absolutely priceless and compelling, especially concerning his experiences in supervising deathbed will ceremonies and the support and care for his lover, Joe.I urge those concerned with AIDS issues to read this book. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. AIDS activists    2. Biography    3. Biography / Autobiography    4. Biography/Autobiography    5. California    6. Friends and associates    7. Gay Studies    8. Gay men    9. General    10. Los Angeles    11. Senak, Mark S.    12. Social Science    13. Specific Groups    14. Specific Groups - Male Gay Studies    15. Biography: general    16. Gay & Lesbian studies    17. Senak, Mark S   

Reviews (1)

A good overview
I enjoyed the book overall, but found it lacking in someperspectives.It's wonderful from a multi-cultural standpoint, butthere is very little information about rural bisexuals, or those _not_ living out, queer lives.It's a good place to start reading on the subject, though, and the historical perspective was interesting. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Bisexuality    2. Bisexuals    3. Gay Studies    4. Gender Studies    5. History & Theory - General    6. Lesbian Studies    7. Political activity    8. Social Science    9. Sociology   

Subjects:  1. Feminism & Feminist Theory    2. Feminist theater    3. Gay Studies    4. Gay and lesbian studies    5. Gay theater    6. Performing Arts    7. Performing Arts/Dance    8. Theater - General    9. Theater - History & Criticism    10. United States    11. Women's studies    12. Gay & Lesbian studies    13. Performing Arts / Theater / General   

Reviews (1)

a cute little resource
This book is part of a series of all kinds of minorities and their political participation.This is the second great book on gay voter behavior that I've found from Haider-Markel.This book discusses the history of American gay rights, gay voting traits, and gay/lesbian officials in office.Though I found this book in a university library, I think the book would be quite accessible to non-academic readers.You can tell the editors did much numbers-crunching and studies-summarizing.There are no photos or charts here, which is a shame.This is a survey book and those knowledgeable about gay rights or gay studies may be frustrated.For example, presidential candidate Michael Dukakis was an outspoken foe of gay rights, yet this is not mentioned here.In discussing gays in the judicial branch, nothing is mentioned of BJ Cruz, the openly gay Supreme Court justice in Guam.The status of gay rights and gay voters keeps morphing, so I hope the editors keep printing updates of their text.All in all, this was a decent introduction to the topic. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Gay Studies    2. Gay/Lesbian Nonfiction    3. Gays    4. Gender Studies    5. Handbooks, manuals, etc    6. History    7. History: World    8. Homosexuality    9. Lesbian Studies    10. Political Process - General    11. Political activity    12. Reference    13. U.S. Ethnic Politics    14. United States    15. Law / General   

Editorial Review

Moving beyond finding new ways to critique literature and philosophy,queer and postmodern theory delves into analyzing the concrete world. Aaron Betsky's Read more

Subjects:  1. Gay Studies    2. Gay communities    3. Gay men    4. Gender Studies    5. Homosexuality    6. Identity    7. Lesbian Studies    8. Lesbians    9. Political activity    10. Social Science    11. Sociology    12. Cultural studies    13. Gay & Lesbian studies   

Reviews (1)

American History Indeed
Schulman is right.This is American History.And since it's not in the textbooks, someone like Schulman has to put it out there in print.Read more

Subjects:  1. Feminism    2. Homosexuality    3. Lesbians    4. Political activity    5. Political aspects    6. Sociology    7. Sociology - General    8. United States    9. American history: Vietnam War    10. Lesbian studies    11. Social Science / Lesbian Studies    12. USA