Does gay marriage support the right-wing goal of linking access to basic human rights like health care and economic security to an inherently conservative tradition?
Will the ability of queers to fight in wars of imperialism help liberate and empower LGBT people around the world?
Does hate-crime legislation affirm and strengthen historically anti-queer institutions like the police and prisons rather than dismantling them?
The Against Equality collective asks some hard questions. These queer thinkers, writers, and artists are committed to undermining a stunted conception of “equality.” In this powerful book, they challenge mainstream gay and lesbian struggles for inclusion in elitist and inhumane institutions. More than a critique, Against Equality seeks to reinvigorate the queer political imagination with fantastic possibility!
"In an era when so much of the lesbian and gay movement seems to echo the rhetoric of the mainstream Establishment, the work of Against Equality is an important provocation and corrective.... I hope this book is read widely, particularly by the people who will most disagree with it; in the tradition of the great political pamphleteers, this collection should spark debate around some of the key issues for our movement." —Dennis Altman, author of Homosexual: Oppression & Liberation
"Against Equality issues a radical call for social transformation. Against and beyond the "holy trinity" of pragmatic gay politics—marriage, militarism, and prison—the queer and trans voices archived in this collection offer a radical left critique of neoliberalism, capitalism, and state oppression. In a format accessible and enlivening, equally at home in the classroom and on the street, this book keeps our political imaginations alive. Prepare to be challenged, educated, and inspired." —Margot Weiss, author of Techniques of Pleasure
In Oakland, California on March 24, 2015 a fire destroyed the AK Press warehouse along with several other businesses. Please consider visiting the AK Press website to learn more about the fundraiser to help them and their neighbors.
Product Details
ISBN-13: 9781849351843
Media Type: Paperback
Publisher: AK Press
Publication Date: 04-15-2014
Pages: 200
Product Dimensions: 5.50(w) x 8.40(h) x 1.00(d)
About the Author
Ryan Conrad is an artist, activist, and scholar from central Maine. He co-founded Against Equality with Yasmin Nair in 2009, and he is currently pursuing an interdisciplinary PhD in Sexuality Studies at Concordia University in Montréal.
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments Queer Revolution, Not Mere Inclusion Ryan Conrad, Karma Chávez, Yasmin Nair, & Deena Loeffler for Against Equality
Part 1 – Marriage Against Equality, Against Marriage: An Introduction Yasmin Nair An Open Letter to LGBT Leaders Who Are Pushing Marriage Equality Kate Bornstein Marriage is Murder: On the Discursive Limits of Matrimony Eric Stanley I Still Think Marriage is the Wrong Goal Dean Spade & Craig Willse Is Gay Marriage Anti-Black??? Kenyon Farrow Gay Marriage: Civil Right or Civil Wrong Kate and Deeg, La Gai The Marriage Fight is Setting Us Back John D’Emilio Against Equality, in Maine and Everywhere Ryan Conrad Who’s Illegal Now?: Immigration, Marriage, and the Violence of Inclusion Yasmin Nair Queer Kids of Queer Parents Against Gay Marriage MJ Kaufman & Katie Miles Why Gay Marriage IS the End of the World (or the queer world, at least) Mattilda Bernstein Sycamore
Part 2 – Military “Community Spirit”: The New Gay Patriot and the Right to Fight in Unjust Wars, An Introduction Mattilda Bernstein Sycamore A Military Job Is Not Economic Justice Kenyon Farrow for QEJ’s Statement on DADT Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, Don’t Serve Cecilia Cissell Lucas Rage, Or the Lack Thereof Yasmin Nair Queer eyes on what prize? Ending DADT Erica Meiners & Therese Quinn Why I Oppose Repealing DADT & the Passage of the DREAM Act Tamara K. Nopper Bradley Manning: Rich Man’s War, Poor (Gay) Man’s Fight Larry Goldsmith Why I Won’t Be Celebrating the Repeal of DADT: Queer Soldiers are Still Agents of Genocide Jamal Rashad Jones Pictures at an Execution Bill Andriette Illustrating Against Militarism Mr. Fish
Part 3 – Prisons Their Laws Will Never Make Us Safer Dean Spade A Compilation of Critiques on Hate Crime Legislation Jason Lydon for Black & Pink SRLP opposes the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act Sylvia Rivera Law Project Do Hate Crime Laws Do Any Good? Liliana Segura Sanesha Stewart, Lawrence King, and Why Hate Crime Legislation Won’t Help Jack Aponte Why Hate Crime Legislation Is Still Not a Solution Yasmin Nair Lesbians Sentenced for Self-Defense: All-White Jury Convicts Black Women Imani Keith Henry First Coffins, Now Prison? Sébastien Barraud for PolitiQ-queers solidaires! The Devil in Gay Inc.: How the Gay Establishment Ignored a Sex Panic Fueled by Homophobia James D’Entremont “Worst of the Worst”? Queer Investments in Challenging Sex Offender Registries Erica Meiners, Liam Michaud, Josh Pavan, Bridget Simpson