The World Turned: Essays on Gay History, Politics, and Culture - Softcover

D'Emilio, John

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0822330237 ISBN 13: 9780822330233

Publisher: Duke University Press, 2002

Synopsis

Something happened in the 1990s, something dramatic and irreversible. A group of people long considered a moral menace and an issue previously deemed unmentionable in public discourse were transformed into a matter of human rights, discussed in every institution of American society. Marriage, the military, parenting, media and the arts, hate violence, electoral politics, public school curricula, human genetics, religion: Name the issue, and the the role of gays and lesbians was a subject of debate. During the 1990s, the world seemed finally to turn and take notice of the gay people in its midst. In The World Turned, distinguished historian and leading gay-rights activist John D’Emilio shows how gay issues moved from the margins to the center of national consciousness during the critical decade of the 1990s.

In this collection of essays, D’Emilio brings his historian’s eye to bear on these profound changes in American society, culture, and politics. He explores the career of Bayard Rustin, a civil rights leader and pacifist who was openly gay a generation before almost everyone else; the legacy of radical gay and lesbian liberation; the influence of AIDS activist and writer Larry Kramer; the scapegoating of gays and lesbians by the Christian Right; the gay-gene controversy and the debate over whether people are "born gay"; and the explosion of attention focused on queer families. He illuminates the historical roots of contemporary debates over identity politics and explains why the gay community has become, over the last decade, such a visible part of American life.

About this title

About the Author

John D’Emilio is Professor of History and Gender and Women’s Studies at the University of Illinois at Chicago. He is the author of Sexual Politics, Sexual Communities: The Making of a Homosexual Minority in the United States, 1940–1970 and Intimate Matters: A History of Sexuality in America (with Estelle B. Freedman). He was the first director of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force’s Policy Institute.

From the Back Cover

"This insightful and absorbing collection confirms John D'Emilio's stature as the gay and lesbian movement's premier chronicler and analyst. D'Emilio is a rare scholar and activist whose writing is clear and direct. Each essay tells vivid stories, shares wisdom earned through participation and observation--all in an engaging and inclusive voice. This is one of the most interesting collections on contemporary gay and lesbian history yet to be published."--Urvashi Vaid, columnist for "The Advocate" and long-time activist

Reviews

Collections of previously published academic essays are useful primarily because of the convenience they provide readers already interested in the author's work and glad to throw away their accumulated photocopies. But the essays and speeches collected here hold together in a more profound way. Leading gay activist D'Emilio (Univ. of Illinois, Chicago) is one of the great pioneers of gay history, having published the first academic monograph on the subject in 1983. He was also head of the Public Policy Institute of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force. The 16 pieces collected here, which cover historical topics, contemporary issues, and personal essays, blend together into a vivid portrait of gay thought in the past 15 years, showing how the gay community became a vital part of American life during the 1990s. D'Emilio's historical interest in Bayard Rustin, the unsung hero of the civil rights era, dovetails well with his contemporary political commentary. There are also essays on the influence of AIDS activist and writer Larry Kramer, the gay gene controversy, the legacy of radical gay liberation, and more. All academic libraries will want this title, and many public libraries need to consider it as well because the essays are not only inherently interesting but also clearly and accessibly written. D.S. Azzolina, Univ. of Pennsylvania Libs., Philadelphia
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: Duke University Press
• Publication date: 2002
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0822330237
• ISBN 13: 9780822330233
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 280