Racism and the Making of Gay Rights: A Sexologist, His Student, and the Empire of Queer Love

by Laurie Marhoefer

In 1931, a sexologist arrived in colonial Shanghai to give a public lecture about homosexuality. In the audience was a medical student, and after the lecture concluded, he introduced himself. The sexologist, Magnus Hirschfeld, fell in love with the medical student, Li Shiu Tong. Li became Hirschfeld’s assistant on a lecture tour around the world – the first time in history that a renowned expert defended homosexuality to so many people in so many countries.

Racism and the Making of Gay Rights shows how Hirschfeld laid the groundwork for modern gay rights, and how he did so by borrowing from a disturbing set of racist, imperial, and eugenic ideas. Yet on his journey with Li, Hirschfeld also had inspiring moments – including when he formulated gay rights as a broad, anti-colonial struggle and as a movement that could be linked to Jewish emancipation.

Following Hirschfeld and Li in their travels through the American, Dutch, and British empires, from Manila to Tel Aviv to having tea with Langston Hughes in New York City, and then into exile in Hitler’s Europe, Laurie Marhoefer provides a vivid portrait of queer lives in the 1930s and of the turbulent, often-forgotten first chapter of gay rights.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, LGBT, Queer, Race, Politics, Sociology

320 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 2022

About the author

@L_Marhoefer

https://badgayspod.com/episode-archiv...

Reviews

[laurel [the suspected bibliophile] · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very, very in-depth, detailed and tad-repetitive look at famed sexologist Magnus Hirschfeld and his relationship with his student/assistant/lover Li Shiu Tong during their world-wide lecture tour in 1931.

It was good, and I learned a lot. I hadn't known much of Hirschfeld aside from his Berlin Institute of Sex Research, where he revolutionized a lot of studies about LGBTQ+ people. Hirschfeld was a man of his time, and while his views were progressive, he was a racist eugenist imperialist (despite proclaiming to be anti-racist). His relationship with Li didn't negate that, although it did affect some of his views.

Again, I liked it. I learned a lot. It just felt in many ways very repetitive. The highlights were when Marhoefer took the book beyond Hirschfeld to Li's own (unpublished) works, and how the student surpassed and even rebuked his teacher in many ways.

[M · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think overall this was a good read. I am really enjoying this trend of bringing LGBT history and stories that have been suppressed back to the forefront and I hope it continues. For me this one was not as great in the first half, but much better in the second. The author really found a stride, but still lost it at times in the second half. The author tended to get a little chaotic especially in the middle of the chapters. I think it began to get a little convoluted because in addition to the story they were trying to tell, and in the point the author was trying to make about Magnus Hirschfield being a problematic gay historical figure they would offer personal opinion and almost debate themself in a way. Hirschfield (63) was in a long term professional, mentorship, and romantic relationship with Li Shiu Tong (24) who he hoped would inherit, and carry on his legacy. The author would base opinions about what the subjects of the book thought, or felt offering little to no evidence to back up why they felt the way they did which was sad because this book was clearly very well researched. This was a really interesting story that I feel was well written, but could have used more editing. I think less personal opinion and debate, and more facts and telling the story, and when personal opinion is stated more evidence would have been helpful to painting the picture of why they had formed those opinions. I really enjoyed learning about people I didn’t know anything about prior, but wished it were a little more polished.

Release date: May 17th 2022

*a copy of this book was provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

[Clementine · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 🌟

Thank you to NetGalley and U of T Press for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. This one is out in May.

This is an academic text and I'm evaluating it as such. My own doctoral research is heavily informed by queer theory, including queer of colour critique. I am, however, not a historian.

Magnus Hirschfeld was a prominent sexologist who argued for homosexuality as an innate, biological category and for the rights of people within that category. In the 1930s, he met Li Shiu Tong in Shanghai and took him on as a protegé and probably lover. Marhoefer exposes the flaws in Hirschfeld's theories - particularly the endemic racism and sexism and the missed opportunity to critique empire - and attempts to write Li back into a story he has been largely erased from.

The strength of this book is in Marhoefer's complex treatment of Hirschfeld's ideas. They centrally argue that the understanding of homosexuality as biologically innate and immutable informs gay rights rhetoric today. They expose the downfalls of this theory and explain that many of the exclusions of mainstream gay activism come from the shortcomings in Hirschfeld's own conception of sexuality. Hirschfeld was against biological racism but indulged many racist tropes in his own work and was particularly anti-Black. He also largely excluded women from his work. This leads to his concept of "the homosexual" being implicitly gendered and racialized as a white man. I like Marhoefer's conclusion that Hirschfeld's work shouldn't be ignored but that we should instead look at his ideas more fully, with a critical eye that does not dismiss the ways in which it fails.

A lot of Marhoefer's attempts to bring Li back into this narrative rely on statements like "I assume", "One can assume", statements which guess at his presence or thoughts. In turn, I would assume that a trained historian has good reasons for making these assumptions, and I would have liked more clarity and transparency about these thought processes. There has been a widespread erasure of Li's contributions to Hirschfeld's research as well as his literal physical presence, and I wanted more in the way of evidence or at least reasonable guesses that he was indeed present. The reading of the little of Li's own thought that survives is insightful and convincing.

I think the title somewhat oversells what this book offers: while there is some link drawn between Hirschfeld's ideas and modern gay rights movements in the introduction and conclusion, that connection is not maintained throughout the book. As a historical account and reading of Hirschfeld's work it is strong. But I'm not sure it is quite doing what the title implies, which is to provide a thorough and sustained account of how Hirschfeld's own racism has a direct link to mainstream gay rights movements that focus on assimilation and respectability and often have very exclusionary politics. The book is not a broad look at "Racism and the making of gay rights" - it is the account of one influential sexologist's racist theory of homosexuality. I think it generally succeeds at that task, but I would have liked a more comprehensive engagement with modern queer activism and its links to the past. As it is, the book largely glosses over everything that happened between Hirschfeld's 1935 death and the present day.

I can see myself referencing sections of this book in my own dissertation.

[Leo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Note: This review comes from a queer, non-binary person who is white.

*Special thanks to NetGallery and University of Toronto Press for the eARC of this book*

TW: Racism, colourism, homophobia, transphobia, suicide, eugenics, forced castration

This book is right up my ally as someone who has been focusing on reading about anti-racism and queer history. I've been fascinated by Magnus Hirschfeld and his library that was lost during WWII, and all I've learned about him was very positive, his forward thinking, his support of transgender folks and being a safe place in Germany's queer scene. This book has both confirmed that, but also turned it all on its head.

This book focuses on Hirschfeld's impact on queer history, but also how much of it was taken from the fight for civil rights, and again, it's mostly white (or people arguing they are white, as Hirschfeld does) taking advantage of activism for their own gains, without giving credit, or helping to continue the fight for those root causes.

There is amazing complexity, as Hirschfeld is both incredibly before his time, but also incredibly a product of it. Yes he believed homosexuality was a natural part of our world, but he also argued for eugenics and that queer people should never have children; yes he considered himself anti-racist, but he was also incredibly racist and dismissive to Black people.

Now onto the other focus of this book, Li Shiu Tong. He contributed so much to Hirschfeld's work, but is never credited. Li was Hirschfeld's apprentice, assistant, and probable lover. He was also a very complex person, and taken advantage of for Hirschfeld's own gains and fancies. Much of the book is dedicated to Li, which I find appropriate and needed, as in all my learnings I had never heard of him, and yet Hirschfeld would not have been able to do all he did without Li.

Li is an unsung leader in queer history and finally gets the spotlight he deserves after being abandoned to history. Just as Hirschfeld before him, Li also had problematic points, such as believing homosexuality was learned, not inate. We still know so little about him, as much of his work was lost after he died, but what we have managed to rescue needs to be displayed in the same import as Hirschfeld's work.

The final takeaway from this book is that queer history, and current day queer politics are rooted in racist actions, but it doesn't have to be so now. For example, I do not need to exploit other races and their cultures to validate myself, a white person, being non-binary. It is important to know our messy and complicated past, so that we don't repeat it in our present activism, as we so often do.

[Sonja__Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you netgalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I struggle to read nonfiction books. But, I have been trying my hardest to get into them and this book was perfect for that. It was not only concerning a topic that was personal to me but it was written in such a way that it didn't feel boring. Racism and the Making of Gay Rights addressed a lot of really important issues in the history of queer activism as well as making it clear that intersectionality is extremely important. It taught me a lot about the establishment of queerness as an idea. It's a great read for those that are curious.

[Alexandra DuSablon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic book by UW History Professor that goes into the history (or rather, roots) of the fight for gay rights, revealing how whiteness has historically been centered in the struggle for queer liberation. Analysis and narrative are woven together in a way that makes this very enjoyable to read. I only wish I could more succinctly communicate all the great points that are made in this book, but I think this further highlights just how deep and rich Marhoefer's analysis is!

[Claudia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yes, I learned about this one from the Bad Gays podcast episode about Magnus Hirschfeld, in which the author of this book was a guest.

"If you think homosexuality is an inborn quality that cannot be changed and has a biological root but is not an illness, and if you think gay people are a 'sexual minority' who are born that way and who deserve legal protections just as racial minorities do, you owe those ideas to Hirschfeld and a handful of others."

Laurie Marhoefer, a scholar of queer and trans people in Weimar and Nazi Germany, writes this book to challenge contemporary understandings (and misunderstandings) of Magnus Hirschfeld's ubiquity in "queer hero" narratives, providing an interpretation of him as an influential but highly flawed figure whose history and beliefs have been misrepresented or omitted in favor of a more sanitized presentation of his beliefs and body of work. Modern-day narratives of Hirschfeld have presented him as an out-and-proud heroic advocate whose beliefs were a departure from the scientific racism-riddled, pathologizing theories of his contemporaries. In reality, while Hirschfeld's theories provided part of the groundwork of modern queer rights, he was in fact closeted throughout his life and had his own troubling "theory of the races". At different points in his life, his feelings toward imperialism and racism varied, though he did hold a strong (if not entirely cohesive or productively expressed) anti-imperialist sentiment toward the end of his life.

Sexologists, Hirschfeld included, often looked to the colonized regions across the world as sources for research; proof that homosexuality and transgender identity must be "natural" if both Europeans and the "less civilized peoples" expressed these behaviors or presentations. White European expatriates who traveled to colonized regions and had sexual encounters with locals served as the sources for reports of same-sex sexuality and diverse gender expression–in other words, sexologists were getting their information from colonist sex tourists. Marhoefer's theory of the titular "empire of queer love" draws on this phenomenon.

Marhoefer also brings to the forefront an oft-neglected figure in Hirschfeld's life: his student-assistant-lover, Li Shiu Tong, a wealthy young student who Hirschfeld met on his world travels in China who was so taken with Hirschfeld (and Hirschfeld with him) that he accompanied the aging sexologist on the rest of his world journey and joined him in his studies in Berlin. Marhoefer invites the reader to consider Li's role in the sexology movement and his presence in Hirschfeld's life–valued yet exoticized, understood as a curiosity by many of Hirschfeld's contemporaries. Yet Li had his own theories of sexology, though much of his life in Canada after Hirschfeld's exile is unknown today.

This was kind of a slow read for me, but I am really fascinated by the construction of the modern gay rights movement and its evolution. I was inspired to learn more about Hirschfeld and sexology in Weimar Berlin after reading "On the Clinics and Bars of Weimar Berlin" by Leah Tigers, an essay focusing on the experiences of trans women in Weimar Berlin, in particular of women who worked at Hirschfeld's clinic. As reactionaries like Joanne Rowling spread dangerous misinformation about this period, I think it's more important than ever to learn more (see this interview with Marhoefer, "Yes, JK Rowling, the Nazis did persecute trans people"). Anyways....if you'd like to understand more about the evolution and origin of the gay rights movement in its present state, you might get a lot out of this book.

[Emma C · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an amazing book, as a non-status indigenous queer woman I think there is so much to learn from this book.

For myself personally, I know I fell into the thinking of other civil rights, such as queerness/religion (etc.) as being equal and interconnected with racial issues. But that comes from a history of privilege from those of us who are white or white passing/raised in white societies. Like myself who lost my indigenous heritage due to the residential schools and grandparents who "chose" to assimilate rather than raise their families on said reserves after the traumas they experienced. I have the privilege of looking more European than a good half of my family.

My fight for my heritage isn't super relevant to this book, but what I related to was the concept of theft from racial civil movements and using them to fight queer issues - without recognition. So as much as media & allies/the LGBTQIA+ community tend to act as if they're strong allies for racial issues, there is a huge disparity there. Books like this need to exist because there need to be acknowledgments for these racist issues in every movement. Without the recognition there can't be any growth towards less exclusive and discriminatory outcomes.

And, in my opinion, being a true anti-racist means acknowledging and making appropriate and equivalent reparations for the racist acts of those who came before us. Like the colonizers in half of my family who forced the other half to assimilate. And like the queer people before me who stood on the backs of people of colour while pretending to fight for equality.

Freedom at the expense of another persons freedom isn't freedom at all.

Thank you Netgalley and UOT Press for the opportunity to read this book. Amazingly put together. Love that this came from Canada.

[R.J. Gilmour · Rating 3 out of 5]

Marhoefer's book looks at the interconnected lives of Magnus Hirschfeld & Li Shiu Tong & their work with the German Institute of Sexuality. At the same time she argues for continuity between modern gay rights movements & the ideas promulgated by Hirschfeld. While the relationship between Hirscfeld & Li remains the most fascinating part of the book because the author wants to create connections between Hirschfeld's ideas & modern gay rights movements she spends too much time measuring Hirschfeld's ideas against contemporary ideas. By framing his ideas in relation to modern concepts & not within those of his contemporaries the author actually decontextualizes his work. At the same time the author engages in a lot of supposition when the historical documentation does not exist leading to lots of "what could have" or "possibly" making for a weaker overall argument. In the end the strength of the book remains the focus on the relationship between Hirschfeld & Li.

"Hirschfeld and Li's story opens up a window onto how racism-as well as antiracism-and colonialism-together with anticolonialism-were all present at the very beginning of gay politics." 5

"In the 1920s, across Europe, everyone was talking about the rights of "peoples" and "nations." The fact was not lost on a new generation of activists who joined the homosexual emancipation movement in wake of the First World War." 81

"The phrase "Sexual minority" seems to have been coined by Kurt Hiller." 82

[Shelley Anderson · Rating 4 out of 5]

In 1931, a sexologist arrived in colonial Shanghai to give a public lecture about homosexuality. In the audience was a medical student, and after the lecture concluded, he introduced himself. The sexologist, Magnus Hirschfeld, fell in love with the medical student, Li Shiu Tong. Li became Hirschfeld’s assistant on a lecture tour around the world – the first time in history that a renowned expert defended homosexuality to so many people in so many countries.

Racism and the Making of Gay Rights shows how Hirschfeld laid the groundwork for modern gay rights, and how he did so by borrowing from a disturbing set of racist, imperial, and eugenic ideas. Yet on his journey with Li, Hirschfeld also had inspiring moments – including when he formulated gay rights as a broad, anti-colonial struggle and as a movement that could be linked to Jewish emancipation.

Following Hirschfeld and Li in their travels through the American, Dutch, and British empires, from Manila to Tel Aviv to having tea with Langston Hughes in New York City, and then into exile in Hitler’s Europe, Laurie Marhoefer provides a vivid portrait of queer lives in the 1930s and of the turbulent, often-forgotten first chapter of gay rights.

Laurie Marhoefer is the Jon Bridgman Endowed Associate Professor in History at the University of Washington.

[Jona · Rating 4 out of 5]

As someone who is really interested in Hirschfeld’s life, this book is a great addition, especially as it argues against the common narrative and instead discusses why Hirschfeld is a problematic gay figure. The book focuses closely on his relationship with Li Shiu Tong, a man who gave up his studies and entire life to travel with Hirschfeld, yet barely gets any credit for all the work and research he has done. With this book, Marhoefer not only shows how most of Hirschfeld’s theories are based on racism and sexism but also explains the different (and problematic) views on homosexuality of both men.

It has already been mentioned that Marhoefer often offers personal opinions and makes assumptions about specific feelings. As someone who mainly enjoys fiction, I appreciated Marhoefer's personal insights and emotional assumptions, which made the book easier to relate to and more enjoyable (It even made me laugh a few times). Although I appreciated the personal remarks, I was sometimes intrigued by how Marhoefer reached certain conclusions about the feelings of Hirschfeld, Li, and Giese, as all of them are dead. Thus, at times, it felt quite fictional to me.

But overall it's their writing style and I really did enjoy this book. It’s thought-provoking and essential for critically reexamining the narratives of queer history.

[AC · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read a bit more like an inspirational non fiction book as opposed to rigorously researched towards the latter half, likely due to fewer first hand sources and fewer ideas.

Some questions from me:
- I understand that intersectionality views are critical because queer experiences are different across races and classes and gender, but does it help from a political advocacy standpoint to emphasize those differences? Or perhaps it's more about recognizing those differences and trying not to act along them?
- queerness is a blackness, which means wokeness is about fighting on the side of the marginalized - but are they truly intertwined other than empathy about being marginalized? Does not the conflation go against the former point about how these different "queer" / "black" experiences are too different to be grouped?

[Camille · Rating 4 out of 5]

**I received this book as an e-arc from NetGalley in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.**

I thought this was a really interesting book. I had never heard of Magnus Hirschfeld or Tao Li, but rhey had realt interesting lives and conteibutions ro the queer community and queer history, especially at a time when it wasn’t easy or even possible to be out. While these men were not perfect by any means, they did dedicate their lives to sexology. At times, their views were written in a confusing way, but their views were often confusing and contradictory, so it makes sense that that happens. But otherwise I think it was well-written and interesting.

Review is rounded up from 3.5.

[Hana Gabrielle (HG) Bidon · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like how in-depth the book was in discussing about gay rights, more specifically how race, eugenics, and women were intertwined throughout history in multiple countries, like the United States, Germany, the Philippines, and Malaysia. I was pleased with looking at how women were affected by the gay rights movement, especially how lesbians were perceived by the general public along with gay men. I wish there was more content in the book, but was pleasantly surprised at how much I learned with this book.

[liv · Rating 4 out of 5]

this book has such buttery language. there are so many truly devastating lines in this book. there are so many shockingly horrifying reveals of informational that made me have to sit with the implications of truths I’d never known before. however, in the author’s flippant overly reductive style, there was at times a very subtle, almost translucent tint of orientalism.

[Dannie Lynn Fountain · Rating 4 out of 5]

An unexpectedly delightful read - I learned far more than I thought possible. There is so much for our community to be grateful to our ancestors for.

[Anja V · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5

[Christopher Rigaux · Rating 3 out of 5]

Generally a very interesting look at an important part of history, although not all the arguments landed effectively. The narrative descriptions of Hirschfeld and Li's lives were excellent.

[Mx Phoebe · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love learning about new rainbow areas in history and I had not heard of this person or their story. Thanks to the author for researching and sharing it with us. Great book to add to any library.

[Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

wish it was longer

[em · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5