lesbian history queer history American history feminism lesbianism 20th century America Daughters of Bilitis National Organization for Women Radicalesbians Combahee River Collective
Abstract:
Despite the growth of Queer History over the last two decades, the literature as well as popular representations of queer history have remained overwhelmingly male and white. Information about gay male activism abounds but the same cannot be said about lesbian activism and activism of queer people of color. This thesis analyzes mid to late twentieth-century lesbian feminist activism in order to recover the long history of lesbian organizing and explore the tensions and possibilities within robust lesbian history. Using a feminist and critical lens, this thesis is broken down into three chronological chapters that center on different organizations and methods of activism. By juxtaposing assimilationist tactics used by the homophile movement in the 1950s, with liberal feminist organizations and radical groups of 1970s and 1980s, this thesis tracks the ways in which lesbian activism evolved and how individual lesbians navigated the social and political landscape as organizations offered differing visions of what liberation and equality looked like. Taken together, this thesis recovers overlooked histories of lesbians and offers a fuller picture of queer history in the mid to late 20th century.
