Sexual Politics, Sexual Communities: The Making of a Homosexual Minority in the United States, 1940-1970

by John D'Emilio

With thorough documentation of the oppression of homosexuals and biographical sketches of the lesbian and gay heroes who helped the contemporary gay culture to emerge, Sexual Politics, Sexual Communities supplies the definitive analysis of the homophile movement in the U.S. from 1940 to 1970. John D'Emilio's new preface and afterword examine the conditions that shaped the book and the growth of gay and lesbian historical literature.

"How many students of American political culture know that during the McCarthy era more people lost their jobs for being alleged homosexuals than for being Communists? . . . These facts are part of the heretofore obscure history of homosexuality in America—a history that John D'Emilio thoroughly documents in this important book."—George DeStefano, Nation

"John D'Emilio provides homosexual political struggles with something that every movement requires—a sympathetic history rendered in a dispassionate voice."— New York Times Book Review

"A milestone in the history of the American gay movement."—Rudy Kikel, Boston Globe

Genres: History, Queer, Nonfiction, LGBT, Politics, American History, Gay

286 pages, Paperback

First published June 15, 1983

About the author

John D'Emilio is a professor emeritus of history and of women's and gender studies at the University of Illinois at Chicago. He taught at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. He earned his B.A. from Columbia College and Ph.D. from Columbia University in 1982, where his advisor was William E. Leuchtenburg. He was a Guggenheim fellow in 1998 and National Endowment for the Humanities fellow in 1997 and also served as Director of the Policy Institute at the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force from 1995 to 1997.

Reviews

[carlageek · Rating 5 out of 5]

Over the last five or six years, I have read a ton of books on midcentury American gay life. All of them have cited this groundbreaking 1983 work. I knew I would have to read it eventually, but for some reason I dragged my feet about it. I feared it would be difficult and academic. I feared it would be implicitly focused on men, treating women as an afterthought, if at all. I feared it wouldn’t tell me anything I hadn’t already learned from the more recent scholarship.

I was wrong on all counts. Sexual Politics, Sexual Communities is one of the best books on midcentury American gay history that I have ever read—and as I mentioned, I’ve read a lot of them.

A smoothly written and readable account, Sexual Politics, Sexual Communities engages deeply with the lives of men and women, giving as much attention to the women of the Daughters of Bilitis as to the men of the Mattachine Society (to which women also contributed, D’Emilio observes). D’Emilio pays careful attention to the way the needs of lesbians, and the social and economic constraints they faced as women, were different from those of gay men, and to how gay men tended to dismiss and neglect these concerns. It is a distinctly feminist reading of the midcentury gay landscape.

It also tells a fascinating story of the evolution of gay identity, from the appeasement-focused, assimilationist early days of the “homophile movement” through its more radical assertion of pride and framing of gay rights as human rights in the later part of the 20th century. This militant political identity, D’Emilio argues, arose through the influence of the civil rights movement, with its profound influence on so much subsequent political discourse.

There is an equally fascinating afterword, added to the book by D’Emilio in the 90s, where he reviews what he sees as his five or so core arguments, and adds the perspective of his own continued scholarship, the influence of the AIDS crisis, and the rapid social change of the intervening decade-plus.

All in all, just an absolutely terrific read. I wish I’d got around to it sooner!

[Kel · Rating 5 out of 5]

focuses a good amount on the mattachine society and daughters of bilitis which is interesting but doesn't relate to my research. not a fault--just sayin.

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really appreciated the detailed way the author described the homophile movement. Today's popular culture still seems to assert that nothing happened before Stonewall, so this is a great book to learn more about what did happen.

[Tynan Brooks]

Nice book on the pre-Stonewall homophile movement. Draws out the way that it, as expected, was overly accommodationist, while leaving room to see the radicalism in aspects of the movement, and how it led to what was to come.

[Walt Odets · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a really good early history of gay people in America, and I think every gay person should read it if they want to understand who they are and how they got there.

[zoe ♡ · Rating 4 out of 5]

i fucking love john d’emilio

[Marsha Altman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent history of the emerging gay civil rights movements in the United States.

[Tinea · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book provides a well-researched history of the origins of the contemporary gay rights movements. It focuses mainly on one particular element of those origins, the fairly conservative, white middle class dominated Mattachine Society of the 1950s and 60s. He also writes about a similar lesbian society, the Daughter of Bilitus.

While centering on these two case studies meant D'Emilio often ignored the experiences of people of color, skimmed over women, and rarely mentioned the affects of class, he still managed to present a compelling history of the subjects he did write about. D'Emilio delves into the intra-organizational politics, hypocrisies, and psychology of white, middle class homosexual men struggling to gain a consciousness as a minority group. How does one organize when you at once wants to fit into a society you otherwise align with, yet come to terms with that society writing you off as mentally ill or perverted? Good questions, hard answers.

The book ends with the Stonewall Riots but does a poor job of putting those riots in context. For that story, check out Stone Butch Blues by Leslie Feinberg.

[Averin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Before there was marriage equality, there was gay liberation, and before that, the homophile movement. This awesome work traces the history of American lesbians and gays from the 'commie-pinko-fag' period of McCarthy to just after Stonewall. Full of references to personal interviews, newspaper articles, dissertations, stuff not even the Internet can find and D'Emilio wrote this for his dissertation. Back in ancient times, with cassettes and microfiche.

[b bb bbbb bbbbbbbb · Rating 3 out of 5]

it did a good job within its (not-very well stated) focus, which is the recent history of white, gay male activistivism. it would be nice if it had directly acknowledged and covered the other participants in the struggle as well as the impact their standing in society had on their experiences and choices. the language used was very readable and accessible which helped make the material engaging.

[Ali · Rating 4 out of 5]

Foundational to understanding queer community transformation in the post WWII era. He draws heavily from Berube and is heavy in his analysis. Though I do not fully agree with D'Emilio in many ways, he is the basis for queer history.

[Brett · Rating 3 out of 5]

dry for my taste.

[Corinne Blackmer · Rating 5 out of 5]

read

[Matt · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is hands down the best Pre-stonewall American Gay History you're gonna find. It's really spectacular. I couldn't recommend it more highly.

[May · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome read for anyone interested in the history of the gay rights movement.