The lesbian and gay movements : assimilation or liberation? / Craig A Rimmerman.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Rimmerman, Craig A.

Series:

Dilemmas in American politics

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Gay liberation movement--United States.

Gay liberation movement.

Homosexuality--Political aspects.

Homosexuality.

United States.

Gay rights--United States.

Gay rights.

Homosexuality--Political aspects--United States.

Assimilation (Sociology).

United States--Social conditions.

Social conditions.

United States--Politics and government.

Politics and government.

Political science.

Social history.

Physical Description:

xiii, 235 pages ; 23 cm.

Edition:

Second Edition.

Place of Publication:

Boulder : Westview Press, 2014.

Summary:

"Throughout their relatively short history, lesbian and gay movements in the United States have endured searing conflicts over whether to embrace assimilationist or liberationist strategies. The Lesbian and Gay Movements explores this dilemma in both contemporary and historical contexts, describing the sources of these conflicts, to what extent the conflicts have been resolved, and how they might be resolved in future. Rimmerman also tackles the challenging issue of what constitutes movement "effectiveness" and how "effective" the assimilationist and liberationist strategies have been in three contentious policy arenas: the military ban, same-sex marriage, and AIDS. Considerable attention is devoted to how policy elites-presidents, federal and state legislatures, courts-have responded to the movements' grievances. Since the publication of the first edition in 2007, there have been enormous changes in the landscape of lesbian and gay movements and rights. The thoroughly revised second edition includes updated discussion of LGBT movements' undertakings in, as well the Obama administration's response to, AIDS/HIV policy, the fight to legalize same-sex marriage and overturn the Defense of Marriage Act, and the repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." "-- Provided by publisher.

"Throughout their relatively short history, the lesbian and gay movements in the United States have endured searing conflicts over whether to embrace assimilationist or liberationist strategies. This new book explores this dilemma in both contemporary and historical contexts, describing the sources of these conflicts, to what extent the conflicts have been resolved, and how they might be resolved in future. The text also tackles the challenging issue of what constitutes movement "effectiveness" and how "effective" the assimilationist and liberationist strategies have been in three contentious policy arenas: the military ban, same-sex marriage, and AIDS. Considerable attention is devoted to how policy elites--most notably Presidents Reagan, Bush, and Clinton; Congress; and the Supreme Court--have responded to the movements' grievances. The book examines the George W. Bush presidency with an eye to assessing how political opportunities have informed the broader lesbian and gay movements' strategies, and also details the response of the Christian Right to the movements' various assimilationist and liberationist strategies"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

1 Introduction to the Core Dilemma

2 The Assimilationist and Liberationist Strategies in Historical Context

The Birth of the Homophile Movement and the Foundations for Contemporary Politics

The Stonewall Rebellion and Beyond

The 1970s and the Challenge of the Christian Right

Conclusion

3 The Conflict Over HIV/AIDS Policy

The Early History of AIDS in the United States

AIDS Policy in The Reagan/Bush Years

Response of the Lesbian and Gay Movements to the Reagan/Bush Years

AIDS Policy in the Clinton/Bush/Obama Years

Response of the Lesbian and Gay Movements to the Clinton/Bush/Obama Years

4 "Don't Ask, Don't Tell": Policy Perspectives on the Military Ban

Military Integration in Historical Context,

The Early Days of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell": Debates and Policy

Implementation of the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" Policy

The Repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell"

The Case for the Military Ban

The Case Against the Military Ban

5 Jilted at the Altar: The Debate Over Same-Sex Marriage

Same-Sex Marriage in Historical Context

The Implications of the Marriage Debate for the Lesbian and Gay Movements

The Case for Same-Sex Marriage

The Case Against Same-Sex Marriage

6 The Movements' Futures

The Assimilationist and Liberationist Strategies Revisited

Coalition Politics

Barriers to Building Coalitions

Appendix 1: AIDS Timeline

Appendix 2: The "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" Law

Appendix 3: Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Christian Right Organizations

Discussion Questions

Glossary

Notes

References

Index.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

0813348498

9780813348490

0813348501

9780813348506

OCLC:

881387044

Publisher Number:

99961300946