The subject of bisexuality continues to divide the lesbian and gay community. At pride marches, in films such as Go Fish, at academic conferences, the role and status of bisexuals is hotly contested. Within lesbian communities, formed to support lesbians in a patriarchal and heterosexist society, bisexual women are often perceived as a threat or as a political weakness. Bisexual women feel that they are regarded with suspicion and distrust, if not openly scorned. Drawing on her research with over 400 bisexual and lesbian women, surveying the treatment of bisexuality in the lesbian and gay press, and examining the recent growth of a self-consciously political bisexual movement, Paula Rust addresses a range of questions pertaining to the political and social relationships between lesbians and bisexual women. By tracing the roots of the controversy over bisexuality among lesbians back to the early lesbian feminist debates of the 1970s, Rust argues that those debates created the circumstances in which bisexuality became an inevitable challenge to lesbian politics. She also traces it forward, predicting the future of sexual politics.

A groundbreaking volume surveying the contributions that gay and lesbian Americans have made to the democratic process. In 1969, when lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people first participated as a group in the political process, they faced an imposing array of obstacles. Everything from personal rejection and violence; state anti-sodomy laws; exclusion from the armed forces; and legal discrimination in employment, housing, credit, consumer service, and public accommodations. Nevertheless, by the end of the millennium, LGBT people had transformed themselves into a well-organized and begrudgingly respected political force. In the process, they dramatically changed laws and attitudes across the nation. This new volume tells the story of the rapid growth and remarkable successes of the LGBT movement—a record that makes it one of the most successful social movements in U.S. history and, ironically, the least studied.

The contributors to this volume thoroughly investigate the politics of the gay and lesbian movement, beginning with its political organizations and tactics. The essays also address the strategies and ideology of conservative opposition groups.

An active participant in and theorist of the gay and lesbian movement, Mark Blasius contends that being gay or lesbian is by definition political. By extension, the phenomenon of a movement founded on collective identity is a quintessential part of American politics. The continually rising public consciousness of the needs and interest of gays and lesbians provides Blasius with a vehicle for showing how a particular aspect of human life comes to assume political dimensions. Upon this premise, he analyzes the process of how power is exercised through sexuality and traces the historical conditions that have made possible a gay and lesbian politics Drawing on works of political philosophy, social science, including Foucault, and gay and lesbian studies, Blasius explores the invention of a gay and lesbian ethos, through which participation, even for apolitical gays and lesbians, goes beyond a shared culture and perspective. It is a way of life more encompassing than either sexual orientation or lifestyle alone. Though he acknowledges and reflects upon the divergent range of gay and lesbian experiences, Blasius provides a framework based on theories of power, sexuality, and ethics that elaborates the significance of the movement as a whole within contemporary society. Author note: Mark Blasius, Associate Professor of Political Science at City University of New York, LaGuardia, is the co-author of We Are Everywhere: An Historical Sourcebook in Gay and Lesbian Politics.

First Published in 1997. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

Rich accounts of gay and lesbian groups on five continents.

"From Harvey Milk to Barney Frank, and from ACT UP to Proposition 8, in the past few decades, no political change has been more significant than the civil rights advancements of LGBTQ citizens. LGBTQ Politics is the first authoritative reader to approach the complexity of queer politics from a political science persective, bringing together original contributions from leadings scholars in the field on key issues in LGBTQ politics. These original essays cover a wide range of essential topics, including marriage equality, transgender discrimination, gay and lesbian political candidates, LGBTQ human rights advocacy, HIV prevention, and LGBTQ movements of the Global South. The volume also includes a number of critical essays that reflect upon the state of political science as a discipline that has struggled to address queer politics. Contributors draw from a variety of subfields in political science, including comparative politics, political theory, American politics, public law, and international relations. Essays that focus on mainstream institutional politics appear alongside contributions grounded in grassroots movements and critical theory. While some essays express concerns that the democratic basis of the LGBTQ movement has been undermined, others celebrate the movement's successes and offer visions for the future. A comprehensive, thought-provoking, and authoritative collection, LGBTQ Politics: A Critical Reader is required reading for anyone looking to learn about the politics of sexuality"--Back cover.