The Path to Gay Rights

June 1, 2018
Public opinion is often slow to change, but not in the case of gay rights when a significant and positive cultural shift occurred due to LGBTQ activism in the wake of the devastating AIDS crisis and an increased familiarity with gays and lesbians in the public sphere. As Garretson notes, this attitudinal transformation has been?and continues to be?one of the most rapid and sustained shifts in mass attitudes since the start of public polling. In his view, this progress was rooted in expansion of and support for the civil liberties of gays and lesbians; freedom from discrimination in employment; and the legality of homosexual behavior, including same-sex marriage. This fine study examines how the change in public opinion took place over the years while looking at the ultimate causes of social change generally. Garretson offers his theory of affective liberalization, sharing his belief that recognition of gay rights is based on the various ways in which gays and lesbians fought back against negative stereotypes in the media, politics, and society. An important addition to the LGBTQ bookshelf.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)