Victory: The Triumphant Gay Revolution - Softcover

Hirshman, Linda

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0061965510 ISBN 13: 9780061965517

Publisher: Harper Perennial, 2013

Synopsis

Victory Successful social movements are always extraordinary, but these advances were something of a miracle. This title recounts long roads that led to these victories, viewing gay rights movement within the tradition of American freedom as third great modern social-justice movement, alongside the civil rights movement and the women's rights movement. Full description

About this title

Review:

“An astonishing work that seamlessly weaves together multiple stories into one authoritative volume. Highly recommended for political scientists, civil rights activists, and students of LGBT history.” (Library Journal (starred review))

“Hirshman has produced a remarkable history of the gay-rights movement in America by chronicling many of the people and events that shaped it. She has a smart and engaging style, which is serious but not ponderous. . . . with new clarity and simple, fresh insight.” (NewYorker.com)

“Linda Hirshman has written an important and necessary book that should be read in every school and every home in the country.” (Amanda Foreman, author of A World on Fire)

“I picked this book up one night and never got to sleep. Victory is an epic account of our movement’s progress; a beautifully written and fast moving narrative that is poignant, humorous, and inspiring.” (Cleve Jones, Founder of The NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt)

“As popular history, Victory excels. Hirshman is a nimble storyteller with an agile curatorial eye for what matters. . . . Exemplary. . . . I find Victory to be an astute jolt, as remarkable for its emotional punch as for its historical insight.” (Rich Benjamin, New York Times Book Review)

“Sharp and cogent throughout. . . . Victory is ultimately a deeply moving narrative of a not-quite-finished freedom struggle.” (Boston Globe)

“Given that the gay rights saga is very much in process, the ending of Hirshman’s book is a cliffhanger, but she does a masterful job of making her readers, whether they’re familiar with the material or not, want to know what happens next.” (Los Angeles Times)

“Exhilarating. . . . As an overview of recent American LGBT history, Victory has plenty to recommend it. . . . A good starting point for learning about recent gay history.” (San Francisco Chronicle)

“Victory is one of the most important (and readable) gay-history texts around.” (Philadelphia City Paper)

“An inclusive, fascinating history of the gay rights movement that provides fertile grounds for passionate debate.” (Shelf Awareness)

From the Back Cover:

When the modern struggle for gay rights erupted in the summer of 1969, forty-nine states outlawed sex between people of the same gender. Four decades later, in 2011, New York legalized gay marriage and the armed services stopped enforcing Don't Ask, Don't Tell. Successful social movements are always extraordinary, but these advances were something of a miracle.

Supreme Court lawyer and political pundit Linda Hirshman recounts the long roads that led to these victories, detailing the enthralling and groundbreaking story of the movement that has blurred rigid gender lines, altered the shared culture, and broadened our definitions of family. Written in vivid prose, at once emotional and erudite, Victory is an utterly vibrant work of reportage and eyewitness accounts, revealing how, in a matter of decades, a focused group of activists forged a classic campaign for cultural change that will serve as a model for all future political movements.

About this edition

• Publisher: Harper Perennial
• Publication date: 2013
• ISBN 10: 0061965510
• ISBN 13: 9780061965517
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 464