Masked voices : gay men and lesbians in Cold War America / Craig M. Loftin.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Loftin, Craig M.

Series:

SUNY series in queer politics and cultures

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Homosexuality--United States.

Homosexuality.

United States.

Gay people--United States.

Gay people.

One (Los Angeles, Calif.).

Physical Description:

xiii, 310 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm.

Place of Publication:

Albany : State University of New York Press, [2012]

Summary:

In this compelling social history, Craig M. Loftin describes how gay people in the United States experienced the 1950s and early 1960s, a time when rapidly growing gay and lesbian subcultures suffered widespread discrimination. The book is based on a remarkable and unique historical source: letters written to ONE magazine, the first openly gay publication in the United States. These letters, most of which have never before been published, provide extraordinary insight into the experiences, droughts, and feelings of gay men and lesbians nationwide, especially as they coped with the anxieties of the McCarthy era. The letters reveal how gay people dealt with issues highly relevant to LGBT life today, including job discrimination, police harassment, marriage, homophobia in families, and persecution in churches and the military. Loftin shows that gay men and lesbians responded to intolerance and bigotry with resilience, creativity, and an invigorated belief in their right to live their lives as gay men and lesbians long before this was accepted and considered safe. Groundbreaking chapters address gay marriage and family life, international gay activism, and how antigay federal government policies reverberated throughout the country. Book jacket.

Contents:

Chapter 1 ONE Magazine and Its Readers 17

Chapter 2 Newsstand Encounters: ONE Magazine's Volunteer Agents and Public Visibility 43

Chapter 3 Imagining a Gay World: The American Homophile Movement in Global Perspective 63

Chapter 4 ONE Magazine Letter Archetypes 83

Chapter 5 "Branded Like a Horse": Homosexuality, the Military, and Work 101

Chapter 6 Classroom Anxieties: Educators and Homosexuality 121

Chapter 7 Family Anxieties: Parent and Family Responses to Homosexual Disclosures 141

Chapter 8 Homosexuals and Marriage under the Shadow of McCarthy 157

Chapter 9 "I shall always cherish Sunday" 181

Chapter 10 Unacceptable Mannerisms: Gender, Sexuality, and Swish in Postwar America 203.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9781438440149

1438440146

9781438440156

1438440154

OCLC:

711959842