Smash the Church, Smash the State! : The Early Years of Gay Liberation

This anthology by former members of the Gay Liberation Front (GLF) captures the history and spirit of the revolutionary time just after Stonewall, when thousands came out of the closet to claim their sexuality, and when queer resistance coalesced into a turbulent, joyous liberation movement—one whose lasting influence would ultimately inform and profoundly shape the LGBT community of today. Personal essays explore the philosophy and culture of the stridently anti-assimilationist GLF: the actions, demonstrations, and marches; views on marriage, religion, and gender; the drugs, orgies, and communes; and GLF’s relationship to the hippies, the Black Panthers, the straight Left, the women’s movement, civil rights, and the antiwar struggle. The collection includes contributions from Martha Shelley, Cei Bell, Paola Bacchetta, Susan Stryker, Tom Ammiano, Nikos Diaman, Mark Segal, Barbara Ruth, and Perry Brass. 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Church_Page_153_1L 306 Smash the Church_Page_153_2R 307 Smash the Church_Page_154_1L 308 Smash the Church_Page_154_2R 309 Smash the Church_Page_155_1L 310 Smash the Church_Page_155_2R 311 Smash the Church_Page_156_1L 312 Smash the Church_Page_156_2R 313 Smash the Church_Page_157_1L 314 Smash the Church_Page_157_2R 315 Smash the Church_Page_158_1L 316 Smash the Church_Page_158_2R 317 Smash the Church_Page_159_1L 318 Smash the Church_Page_159_2R 319 Smash the Church_Page_160_1L 320 Smash the Church_Page_160_2R 321 Smash the Church_Page_161_1L 322 Smash the Church_Page_161_2R 323 Forty Years After Stonewall, A Look At The Origins And Influences Of The Gay Liberation Movement. Out Of The Bars And Into The Streets -- Militant Foreshadowings / Susan Stryker 3 -- Eighth Grade Epiphany / Kenneth Laverne Bunch 11 -- Kiyoshi Kuromiya: Intergrating The Issues / Liz Highleyman 17 -- A Consciousness Raised / Hal Tarr 22 -- Coming Out And Into The Glf: Banned No More In Boston / John Kyper 31 -- My Adventures As A Gay Teacher / Tom Ammiano 40 -- Pre-now / James C. Roberts 43 -- My Memories As A Gay Militant In Nyc / Nestor Latronico 48 -- From The Closets Of New Haven To The Collectives Of New York Glf / Jason Serinus 55 -- Even Iowa Homos Got The Blues / Dennis Brumm 62 -- There's A Certain Kind Of Woman / Mara Math 68 -- A Poem / Fran Winant 74 -- Tuning In -- No Girl In My Soup / Thom Nickels 79 -- Coming Out As A Reluctant Activist In A Gay Maoist Cell Who Mostly Just Wanted To Get Laid / Mark Freeman 85 -- Our Passion Shook The World / Martha Shelley 93 -- Sylvester: A Singer Without A Closet 97 -- Living Lesbian Nation / Victoria Brownworth 99 -- Radical Spirit And Vision / John Lauritsen 108 -- Radicalqueens Manifesto #1 113 -- Radicalqueens Manifesto #2 114 -- The Radicalqueens Trans-formation / Cei Bell 116 -- A Woman Of Vision / Pat Parker 125 -- Sisters And Brothers: A Writer Hungering For Family Finds Glf / Perry Brass 127 -- Dyketactics!: Electrifying The Imaginations Of The Gay And Women's Communities / Barbara Ruth 137 -- A Life Of Seeing Connections / Simeon White 147 -- Fopping It Up: Former Cockette Rumi's Story Interview With / Rumi Missabu 150 -- Gay Raiders / Mark Segal 156 -- Revolution Around Every Corner -- Between Bohemia And Revolution / Flavia Rando 163 -- Gay Liberation Front: Report From London / Richard Bolingbroke 168 -- Sylvia Rivera: A Woman Before Her Time / Liz Highleyman 172 -- Two Songs / Blackberri 177 -- Honey, We Unshrunk The Shrinks! / Pam Mitchell 182 -- The Radicalesbian Story: An Evolution Of Consciousness / Ellen Shumsky 190 -- The Woman Identified Woman Manifesto 197 -- Berkeley & The Fight For An Effeminist, Socially Transformative Gay Identity / Nick Benton 203 -- Two Poems / Dajenya 210 -- The Effeminist Moment / Steven F. Dansky 213 -- Dyketactics!: Notes Toward An Un-silencing / Paola Bacchetta 218 -- Two Poems / Barbara Ruth 232 -- The Baltic Street Collective / N.a. Diaman 234 -- Gay Pagans And Atheists Manifesto 242 -- 40 Years After Stonewall -- Looking Back From The Mexico-u.s. Border / Roberto Camp 249 -- A Letter From Huey Newton To The Revolutionary Brothers And Sisters About The Women's Liberation And Gay Liberation Movements 252 -- Making History / Sidney Brinkley 255 -- New York City Legend / Marsha P. Johnson 261 -- Lessons From The Enda Mess / Doug Ireland 263 -- Happy To Be Childless / Allen Young 269 -- The Gay Community In Crisis / Don Kilhefner 273 -- Stonewall Was A Riot -- Now We Need A Revolution / Merle Woo 282 -- Gay Liberation Media 295. Edited By Tommi Avicolli Mecca. Includes Bibliographical References. Was a rallying cry for many in those days, and the lesbians, gay men and transgenders whose stories are collected here were frequently involved in battling oppression on many fronts. For the first time together in one volue, these writers share unique perspectives, occasional regrets and changes of ideology, personal memories, and a celebration of the revolutionary spirit that shaped and guided the movement