Letter from the Co-Chairs

 

We, your Lambda Classical Caucus co-chairs, would like to call your attention to the LCC events at the upcoming APA-AIA meetings.  Of course, weíll kick off the conference weekend Friday night with the Opening Reception jointly hosted with the Womenís Classical Caucus and the Committee on the Status of Women & Minority Groups.  Over the past few years, this reception has grown into a must-attend affair, but perhaps it needs a touch of queer Mardigras pizzazz??  We encourage all LCC members and allies to dress for the occasion with their boldest fashion choice -- feathers and leather, plastic or elastic.

 

Our other networking opportunity will take place Sunday afternoon at 4:30, following the LCC-sponsored session Regulating Sex in the Ancient World.  The discussion of deviancy and politics will set the stage for our LCC Business Meeting/Cocktail Hour at the nearby Club 360.  Thatís right, the best view of New Orleans is from the worldís largest revolving lounge just down the street from the convention hotel.  In this richly draped parlor atop the World Trade Center, weíll escape the convention crowd and make our own plans for San Francisco 2004.

 

See you in New Orleans,

 

         Bryan & Kristina

 

Bryan Burns, University of Southern

            California

Kristina Milnor, Barnard College

 

LAMBDA PANEL 2003: ìRegulating Sex in the Ancient Worldî

 

Mark Masterson, organizer

 

In much of the modern world, the mores and laws regulating sexual behavior have liberalized. Whether such liberalization will persist or be regarded as characteristic of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries is a question upon which history will rule. Indeed, as these words are being written (August 2001), two courts and two legislative bodies in Louisiana, the site of this APA Meeting, are struggling over whether to invalidate, modify, or leave unchanged the law outlawing ìcrimes against nature,î R.S. 14:89. Presently in Louisiana, anal and oral sex between any persons whatsoever are classified as felonies punishable by a prison term of five years (with or without hard labor) and/or a fine of $2000. R.S. 14:89 specifies these penalties for bestiality too. Sexual behavior, then, even in the liberalizing context of the twenty-first century United States, can be illegal and subject to severe sanction.

 

If we consider R.S. 14:89 more closely, we see that the lawís very designation--it outlaws ìcrimes against natureî--trades on the elementally powerful and powerfully contingent category of the natural. The law also conjoins, to great stigmatizing effect, bestiality and sexual behavior between persons. Furthermore, since the law does not distinguish between consensual and non-consensual sexual acts, its very existence raises questions about freedom and privacy. Sodomy statutes accordingly provide a fruitful point of access to knowledge about our society because arguments for and against these statutes offer and deploy definitions of community and of humanity itself.

 

Prompted both by the elemental issues occasioned by sodomy statutes (nature, public versus private, freedom, humanity, etc.) and by the work that has already been done on the regulation of sexual behavior in the ancient world (e.g. Cantarella, Cohen, Dalla, Fantham, Gardner, Halperin, McGinn, Richlin, Williams, Winkler, etc.), we are looking for papers that both address the importance of the regulation of sex in ancient societies and build on prior scholarship. What was at stake in the regulation of sex? What made such regulation seem right and necessary? What developments occurred over time and what conclusions should we draw from these developments? In the case of legislation, what effect did the laws have in legal and/or non-legal contexts?

 

In this panel, authors consider the legal situations or laws of which we have knowledge, the rationales for the regulation of sexual behavior and/or the results of this regulation in contexts not specifically legal, from various perspectives.

 

PANELISTSí ABSTRACTS

 

Edward E. COHEN                              

 ìAthenian Prostitution: ëFreeí Love and Market Moralityî

 

Although modern Western values traditionally have denigrated prostitution as morally degenerate and humanly exploitative, at Athens prostitution was lawful and pervasive.  Because Athenians were concerned not with the inherent morality of occupations, but with the extent of a workerís freedom from another personís control or supervision --- in Greek terms, the relative degree to which a working individual appeared to be eleutheros or doulos (-Í) --- Athenian laws and values focused on the structure of work relationships, and not on the actual nature of the labor undertaken.  In a society characterized  by widespread dependence on the demeaning labor of victimized slaves, a prostitute often enjoyed esteem as a practitioner of ìan occupation appropriate for a free personî (eleutherios tekhnÍ), a trade involving service for limited periods of time pursuant to individually-negotiated arrangements.  But popular morality demanded that the sex worker (like any other worker) had to avoid falling under the control or supervision of another person.

Prostitutes accordingly went to great lengths to avoid the appearance of performing ìbrothel-labor appropriate to a slaveî (hÍ tÙn pornÙn ergasia: Dem. 59.113).  Written contracts governing sexual services by both men and women were therefore so commonplace that the phrase ìprostitution under contractî (syngraphÍ) became idiomatic in local discourse.  Other indicia of a labor relationship compatible with the work ethics of free Athenians included control over oneís physical and familial surroundings (the antithesis of servile confinement in a brothel), the freedom to choose the clients with whom one associates (the antithesis of compulsory sexual submission to any would-be purchaser), the provision of reciprocated largess to oneís lovers, the appearance of leisurely dedication to cultural and social activities, and the pursuit of work not only as an economic necessity but also as a mechanism of self-definition.

 

Kathy L. GACA

ìEros and Political Reform in Greek Philosophy and Early Christianityî

I show how sexual morality in post-classical western culture is constituted in fascinating and hitherto unappreciated ways from Greek philosophical and early Christian plans to reform ancient Greek sexual mores and civic order. In particular, I resolve a pivotal question about the reshaping of sexual morality since the second century CE: Whether Christian sexual restrictions that eventually gained social prevalence differ from, or are continuous with, the Platonic, Stoic, and Pythagorean sexual reforms that patristic writers adapted in their own proposals for Christian sexual and social change. Though numerous scholars, Foucault included, favor the continuity theory, it proves misguided on numerous counts to regard Greek ethics in any form as the basis of patristic sexual austerity. Ascetic patristic writers, such as Clement of Alexandria and Tatian, transform all that they borrow from Greek ethics and political philosophy to launch innovative programs against ìsexual fornication.î Their driving motivation—to suppress sexual arousal and activity as forces of religiously alienating worship—is antithetical to Greek cultural mores, popular and philosophical alike. The main impetus for these anti-fornication reforms comes from the religious sexual rules and reinforcing poetics of the Greek Bible as reworked by Philo of Alexandria and the apostle Paul. In these radical new guises, the Septuagintís sexually grounded social mandate to worship the Lord alone leads to a revolutionary Christian program to eliminate Gentile religious sexual mores altogether, only for early Christians to find this impossible to carry out without going to extremes of sexual renunciation. Neither the Septuagint nor Greek philosophy envision or endorse this program, though major ingredients of the Greek biblical and philosophical sexual reforms do go into its formation. Nonetheless the Christian anti-fornication rules that emerge in the patristic period are new sexual norms that take up station like gargoyles around the church as Christís bride, in order to guard ëherí religious virginity of pure monotheism. Libertine Christian patristic writers, such as Epiphanes, tried to use Platonic and Stoic arguments to prevent these rules from gaining church authority, but they failed and were declared heretical for their efforts.

 

Anise K. STRONG                         

ìRoman Incest Laws and Absent Taboos in Roman Egyptî

 

    The prevalence of brother-sister marriages in Roman Egypt in the first three centuries CE has long been established; Keith Hopkins estimates convincingly that 15-20 percent of couples in Lower and Middle Egypt during this period were sibling-marriages. The general Roman societal taboo and strong legal tradition against close-kin marriages, even those between first cousins, is also well known. Nevertheless, the intersection of these two social phenomena has not been sufficiently analyzed. The apparent increase in incestuous marriages in Roman Egypt during the early phase of its incorporation into the Roman Empire coincides closely with the promulgation of restrictive marriage and morality laws among the Romans themselves, the lex Iulii de adulteriis being only one example. Yet this era of Roman prudishness and interference into the private familial structures of Roman citizens escaped the quiet villages of the Egyptian Delta, where families proudly announced marriages that the Roman elite would have viewed as not only indecent but illegal.

    Were the Romans merely practicing a form of cultural relativism in allowing these incestuous marriages to occur? Ignorance cannot be claimed; our primary evidence of such relationships comes from Roman census records, and outrage at Egyptian social customs is frequently expressed in the works of Roman writers like Juvenal. Nor can we argue that Roman laws and social taboos only pertained to Roman citizens; the Romans were enthusiastic in their extermination of the Druidic religion, purportedly on the grounds of despising human sacrifice. Cases of incest were prosecuted in Roman Egypt, such as a father-daughter incident brought before the Roman Prefect in 95 CE, as noted by Brent Shaw.

    I seek to explore why the Romans chose to allow or perhaps even sanction incestuous marriages among Egyptian provincials, despite their own strict laws against such relationships. I focus particularly on the portrayal of Egypt in Roman propaganda and Egyptís relationship with its neighbors. Did the Romans permit incestuous marriages out of fear of upsetting the tenuous power structure in Egypt, or to socially distance Egyptians from the surrounding provinces to prevent a new Egyptian empire? I also examine the empire-wide ban on incestuous marriages as a result of the 212 CE citizenship decree and the implications of the equation of citizenship with social congruity. The paper concludes with a brief assessment of the impact of Christianity on this societal taboo as reflected in later imperial proclamations on the subject of incest.

 

Marsha B. McCOY                             

ìSex and Social Order in the Late Roman Republicî

 

     Ciceroís scathing attack on Clodia in his speech defending M. Caelius Rufus in the spring of 56 BCE has usually been seen as the result of the complex political situation of the time and Ciceroís desire for revenge on her brother Clodius for his role in Ciceroís exile in 58 BCE. But the unusual virulence of Ciceroís public attack on the private behavior of an elite Roman woman, in particular his accusation that Clodia was a meretrix, a prostitute, finds no parallel in other criminal trials of the period. In this paper I argue that Cicero in his defense of Caelius was building on his prosecution of Verres 14 years before to turn the law courts into an arena for critiquing and shaping sexual and social behavior as part of his more general efforts to reform Roman civil society in order to prevent its collapse.     

     Gruen has argued that the prosecution of Verres in 70 BCE had minimal impact on the passage a month after the trial of the lex Aurelia iudicaria, which restored partial control of the courts to the equites a month after the trial. I use Gruenís view to argue that Ciceroís excessive rhetoric about Verresí misbehavior, particularly with regard to his (mis)use of meretrices, was not due to immediate political considerations of the lex Aurelia iudiciaria. It was rather due to Ciceroís view that the law courts were the appropriate arena for an elite jury to pass judgment on the social and sexual behavior of one of its own. In the same way I argue that Ciceroís virulent attack on Clodia in his defense of Caelius is attributable to more than immediate political and personal considerations. Cicero is expanding dramatically the argument he laid out in the prosecution of Verres. A member of the elite herself has actually become a meretrix, and what should be private behavior has been made egregiously public, with Clodia so blurring and distorting the lines of social and sexual order that a complete social inversion has taken place.           

     Ciceroís efforts to save the Roman republic centered on appeals to concordia ordinum and his attempts to establish consensus among the senatorial and equestrian elites as a means of restoring Roman social and political order. In the trials of Verres and then more explicitly Caelius, Cicero is aiming his attacks at elite individuals who are using or becoming meretrices in a dangerous inversion of sexual and social order, one that threatens the entire community. The law courts were the arena Cicero chose as the most appropriate civic setting in which to demand, from the senatorial elite and then from the senatorial and equestrian elite, the repudiation and expulsion of Verres and Clodia from civil society. By emphasizing more than had ever been done before the (mis)placement of meretrices in the Roman social order, Cicero achieved a small but significant portion of his program to restore republican civil society. 

 

Eleanor OKELL                                  

ìThe Clever Speakerís a Buggerî

 

     The paper considers comedyís association of political success founded on rhetorical ability with deviant sexual practices in the light of Athenian legislation disenfranchising male citizen prostitutes: the ëscrutiny of oratorsí law of Aristophanesí Knights (876 f.) and Frogs (678 ff.).

     The role of homosexual insult in comedy has been discussed by Sommerstein and Carey, and Fisher has investigated its place in Aeschinesí politically motivated Against Timarchos. Yet, the underlying association of clever speaking, sexual deviancy and disenfranchisement is largely unexplored. I will build on the fact that most comic targets charged with sexual deviancy are politically active citizens by considering the qualities needed for political success and the ëgenderí of both qualities and insults.

     Primarily, successful politicians were clever/persuasive speakers, often through study with sophists. Study involved a financial transaction and implicit agreement with the sophistís ethics. The sophist-trained speaker, although paying the price (implying the active role in the relationship), allows his mind to be invaded (making him passive). It is not surprising, therefore, that comic and satyric characters recognisable as trainee-sophists often resemble a sodomised sexual partner and that being buggered assures political leadership (Knights 1242 ff.). That most sophists whose training enabled citizens to increase their influence on/in the political life of the city were metics exacerbates the problem perceived by Old Comedy: that in paying for training the citizen ësells outí.

     The same issue of ëselling outí underlies the legislation whereby a citizen who is a male-prostitute is liable to be disenfranchised. The implication is that if a citizen can sell his body, his mind must also be on sale to the highest bidder, thus his loyalty to the polis is suspect.

     The correspondence between the clever speaker ëselling outí to acquire rhetorical ability and the, usually effeminate, male-prostitute is apparent in their comic portrayal – both are sexual deviants who receive payment. The sophist-trained speaker uses verbal skill, which is perceived as feminine, to persuade the demos. If successful, comedians charge him with being either previously sodomised or a sodomiser of the listening demos (Clouds 1083ff.). He can also be accused of: draft-dodging, embezzlement and getting rich through the courts (including sykophancy). Two of these require rhetorical ability and draft-dodgers are described as androgunoi – ëmen-womení. Thus, all his perceived actions as a citizen are seen as feminised, through the involvement of persuasive speech and duplicity. Furthermore, clever speech is rewarded with votes, securing offices with access to money or court payouts. The citizen who uses a feminine skill on the demos is rewarded like a prostitute. Thereby, the comic association between clever-speakers, disadvantaging their city for personal monetary benefit, and male-prostitutes is made in the same terms, reflecting the same fears. The same fears underlie both comic scape-goating of prominent politicians as effete and contemporary legislation disenfranchising male-citizen prostitutes.

 

TAMARA CHIN WINS 2002 JOHN J. WINKLER MEMORIAL PRIZE

 

by Kirk Ormand, John J. Winkler Memorial Trust Advisory Board Member (Oberlin College)

 

The winner of this yearís John J. Winkler Memorial Prize is Tamara Chin. Ms. Chin is a graduate student in Comparative Literature at the University of California, Berkeley. She is now the only person to have won the prize twice, having won it in 1997 as an undergraduate. The title of Ms. Chinís essay is

 ìCompulsory Heterotextuality:  Sappho (31) meets Shijing [Book of Songs] (1).î

 

Tamara Chin begins her comparative essay with the intriguing question:  how is it that Sappho, who lived in a part of the world known by her contemporaries as ìAsiaî becomes a ìWesternî poet, while the opening song of the Shijing, originally associated with the south, becomes an emblem for the ìEastî? 

 

Chinís analysis takes two mutually supporting directions.  First, she traces the history of translation of Sappho 31 and Shijing 1, and demonstrates that the difficulty of rendering foreign gender-marked terms has tended to regularize the erotic relationships in the poems.  Sapphoís poem, Chin argues, is subjected in the 17^th century to a heterosexualization of desire, then  in the 18^th and 19^th to a desexulization, and finally is controlled in the 20^th by pathologizing Sappho herself as a homosexual.  The Shijing, similarly, requires an English translator to choose a gender for the unmarked ìIî of the narrator.  Most interpretations of the poem have agreed on ìthe essential configuration of male desire for the female.î Chin points out, however, that the influential commentator Zheng Xuan (2^nd century C.E.) configures the desire as that of a female in search of a (female) consort for her husband; while not embracing either interpretation as definitive, Chin demonstrates the impossibility of allowing for the evident ambiguity of the poem when translating it into a language with gendered pronouns.

 

The second and more complex strand of Chinís argument interrogates the cultural assumptions that underlie the interpretive strategies used to read these two poems.  Sapphoís poem has been primarily read in the context of the Western structure of mimesis, a mode that has been declared foreign to the ìeasternî body of Chinese literature.  The book of Shijing is generally read in the discursive strategy of xing, in which a primary image generates a particular mood, thereby reflecting the narratorís response to the stimulus of the surrounding world.  As Chin shows, however, Sappho 31 has been read (especially by Winkler) in a way that corresponds more closely to xing than to mimesis; and the Shijing demonstrates elements of mimesis in the narratorís exclamations of  present frustration.  In brief, then, Chin establishes a basis for meaningful comparison between two poems traditionally thought of as fundamentally different in origin and technique, and in the process disrupts the line between ìeasternî and ìwesternî interpretive strategies.

 

Ms. Chinís essay was determined to be the best from a record number of entries by a panel of judges consisting of David Braaten, Lillian Doherty, Karen Bassi, John Kirby, and Denise McCoskey.  The judges join David Halperin and me in offering Ms. Chin our warmest congratulations.

 

ABOUT THE WINKLER PRIZE

 

The John J. Winkler Memorial Trust invites all undergraduate and graduate students in North America (plus those currently unenrolled who have not as yet received a doctorate and who have never held a regular academic appointment) to enter the ninth competition for the John J. Winkler memorial prize. This year the Prize will be a cash award of $1250.

 

The Prize is intended to honor the memory of John J. (ìJackî) Winkler, a classical scholar, teacher, and political activist for radical causes both within and outside the academy, who died of AIDS in 1990 at the age of 46. Jack believed that the profession as a whole discourages young scholars from exploring neglected or disreputable topics, and from applying unconventional or innovative methods to their scholarship. He wished to be remembered by means of an annual Prize that would encourage such efforts. In accordance with his wishes, the John J. Winkler Memorial trust awards a cash prize each year to the author of the best undergraduate or graduate essay in any risky or marginal field of classical studies. Topics include (but are not limited to) those that Jack himself explored: the ancient novel, the sex/gender systems of antiquity, the social meanings of Greek drama, and ancient Mediterranean culture and society. Approaches include (but are not limited to) those that Jackís own work exemplified: feminism, anthropology, narratology, semiotics, cultural studies, ethnic studies, and lesbian/gay studies.

 

The Prize is intended to encourage new work rather than to recognize scholarship that has already proven itself in more traditional venues. Essays submitted for the prize should not, therefore, be previously published or accepted for publication.

 

The winner of the 2003 Prize will be selected from among the contestants by a jury of five: David Braaten, Shelia Murnaghan (U. of Pennsylvania), Danielle Allen (U. of Chicago), John Rundin (U of Texas, San Antonio), and Craig Williams (City University of New York). The Trust reserves the right not to confer the Prize in any year in which the essays submitted to the competition are judged insufficiently prizeworthy.

 

The deadline for submissions is March 1, 2003. Essays should not exceed the length of 40 pages, including notes and bibliography, but excluding illustrations or figures. Electronic submission is preferred, in any version of MS Word or plain text format. Please include a letter or email with your essay in which you provide the following information: your college/university, your department or program of study, whether you are a graduate or undergraduate, your email and regular mail addresses, and the title of your work. Contestants may send their essays and address any inquiries to: Kirk Ormand, Dept. of Classics, Oberlin College, Oberlin, OH 44074; kirk.ormand@oberlin.edu.

 

The John J. Winkler Memorial Trust was established as an independent, charitable foundation on June 1, 1990. Its purpose is to honor Jack Winklerís memory and to promote both his scholarly and his political ideals. Inquiries about the Prize, tax-deductible gifts to the Trust, and general correspondence may be addressed to: Kirk Ormand, John. J. Winkler Memorial Trust, Dept. of Classics, Oberlin College, Oberlin, OH 44074.

 

NEW M.A. PROGRAM IN ìGENDER, SEXUALITY AND CULTUREî LAUNCHED IN U.K.

 

Dr David Alderson (Dept of English) and I are launching a new MA in September of 2003 on ìGender, Sexuality and Cultureî at the University of Manchester in Britain.

 

Information will appear soon at: http://orgs.man.ac.uk/ws

 

The new MA will be a year-long programme, with two core modules (Gender, Sexuality and Culture I and II), several options from a range of disciplines in both the Social Sciences and Arts.  Students will produce an MA dissertation at yearís end.

 

David and I are also involved in establishing the UKís first Centre for Sexuality Studies.

We would appreciate it if you would start to alert students about our new MA programme, and invite anyone interested to contact me directly for information about how to apply.

 

Manchester is an excellent place for students interested in queer theory, the history of sexuality, and contemporary gay/lesbian/bi/trans cultures.

 

Please get in touch if you would like more information.  I would also appreciate any other leads you might have about how to get the word out about our new MA in North America.

 

Cordially,

Laura Doan

Director, Womenís Studies Centre

Roscoe Building

University of Manchester

Brunswick Street

Manchester M13 9PL

 

T: (44) 0161-275-0320

E: doan1@btinternet.com

W: http://orgs.man.ac.uk/ws

 

MOSSE PRIZE 2002 AWARDED TO JAMES DAVIDSON

 

Forwarded by Terrence Lockyer <phmid@Cybertrade.co.za> to the Lambda List, from Histsex (discussion list for historians of sexuality), and passed on by Gert Hekma <hekma@pscw.uva.nl>.

 

The Mosse Prize for the best essay in gay and lesbian history for the years 2000-1 has been awarded to James Davidson of Warwick University for his essay ìDover, Foucault and Greek Homosexuality. Penetration and the Truth of Sexî published in Past & Present 170 (Febr. 2001), pp. 3-51. The jury consisted of Henning Bech of Copenhagen, Lesley Hall of London, Harry Oosterhuis of Maastricht (chair) and Marion de Ras of Frankfurt. At the First Mosse Lecture by Hafid Bouazza on Sept. 18 of this year, Marion de Ras gave the following laudatio to James Davidson:

 

ìLadies and Gentlemen, dear guests, dear James,

 

It gives me great pleasure to present Mr. James Davidson with the George Mosse Prize for his outstanding academic contribution to the field of gay and lesbian studies. His wide-ranging and comprehensive article entitled Dover, Foucault and Greek Homosexuality: Penetration and the Truth of Sex, is original, innovative and thorough, profound and yet delightfully provocative. For Davidson critiques Kenneth Dover, but above challenges the great Foucault, using an impressive range of early and contemporary sources. A daring mission, he completes in a brilliant and sophistic way, arguing that penetration was discursively placed at the centre of Greek sexuality by Kenneth Dover and Michel Foucault, constructed as an active/passive distinction and as such understood as the crux of male same sex eroticism. Linking penetration to power and politics the authors encouraged a discourse of sexualization of Greek male same sex eroticism. A discourse that recent scholarship has picked up and enfolded further. Idea and image of Platonic love was lost. Though Davidson wouldnít want to return to an exclusively platonic explanation of homosexual sex. Why this construction took place you can read in his article. Various complex arguments are given of which a most interesting and challenging one is homophobia. Interesting of course because you know that Foucault himself was homosexual. Dear audience, please applaud James Davidson.î

 

James Davidson is Reader at the University of Warwick. In 1997 he published a book (with publisher Collins and Harper) entitled Courtesans and Fishcakes.

 

CENTER FOR LESBIAN AND GAY STUDIES: RESEARCH CENTER IN NYC

 

The Center for Lesbian and Gay Studies (CLAGS) is the first and only university-based research center in the United States dedicated to the study of historical, cultural, and political issues of vital concern to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgendered individuals. By sponsoring public programs and conferences, offering fellowships to individual scholars, and functioning as an indispensable conduit of information, CLAGS serves as a national center for the promotion of scholarship that fosters social change. CLAGS makes its

home at the Graduate School and University Center of the City University of New York, 33 West 42nd Street, Room 404N, New York, NY 10036-8099.

 

CLAGSís efforts to promote an academy where homophobia, sexism, racism, and classism are studied and not enacted depend on the generosity of our members. The basic membership rate of $35 ($10 for students or individuals with limited income) includes advance notification of all public events and a subscription to our biannual newsletter. Members who donate $100 or more also receive free admission to all CLAGS conferences. To contribute at whatever level you can afford, please write us at the above address.

 

The history of the Center and more on its purposes and accomplishments can be found on the CLAGS website, http://web.gsuc.cuny.edu/clags

 

Report from the Second International LGBT Labor Conference

from the Pride At Work news page (http://www.prideatwork.org/news.html), a great resource with many helpful features, including an ìissuesî page that provides background on each issue covered, PAWís position on that issue, suggestions for action to take and resources to help you take action.  Pride At Work is an organization headed until recently by KipuKai Kualiíi, native Hawaiíian rights activist.  To receive Pride At Work Informational Bulletins and Pride At Work Action Alerts, send an e-mail with your contact information to paw@aflcio.org

Sydney, Australia—Pride at Work, AFL-CIO, joined approximately 250 delegates from around the globe, October 31 - November 2, for the 2nd International LGBT Labor Conference Workersí Out! held at the University of Sydney (in Australia!).  The Pride At Work group included PAW President Nancy Wohlforth and Executive Director Marta Ames, as well as a group of six LGBT activists and leaders also representing Service Employees International Union (SEIU).

Sharan Burrow, President of the Australian Council of Trade Unions, welcomed conference participants and then spoke passionately of the responsibility of labor unions to lead the struggle to defend LGBT workers.  She also condemned the US rush to war and its endorsement by Australian Prime Minister John Howard.  PAW President Wohlforth, a featured speaker at the opening plenary, emphasized the need to help build a broad social justice movement against war, racism, and privatization, while defending the rights of LGBT workers in the workplace and in the union.

Two days of workshops covered topics such as:

• the Lesbian and Gay industrial experience (collective bargaining) in Rwanda
• the global fight against HIV/AIDS
• trade unions and the challenge for a human rights based approach

Pride At Work delegates spoke on workshop topics including:

• lesbian and gay union organizing under the post 9/11 ìnational securityî state (Wallace)
• the labor movement and LGBT organizing in Canada and the US (Barbera)
• early coalition building in San Francisco – the gay movement and the trade union movement 1970 – 1990 (Wallace)
• the labor movement and transgender organizing in Canada and the US (Ames)

Throughout the weekend, conference delegates shared best practices on a wide variety of issues and formed networks for future collaboration.
 
The final session concluded with passage of a strong resolution to guide work until the next conference, to be held in 4 years in Montreal.  This resolution (available at www.prideatwork.org/pdffiles/WOResFinal.PDF) includes general aims, actions to be taken, and a commitment both to transgender/intersex equality and to the global fight against HIV/AIDS.  The conference also endorsed resolutions in support of the ILWU dockworkers and against military intervention in Iraq.  Within the ìActionsî portion, the conference committed both to the establishment of a web page for on-going debate and information sharing (which will be available to all interested parties), as well to forming a working committee to maintain momentum until the Montreal Conference.

Workers Out! ended on a celebratory note for delegates who marched together in the Gay Games Opening Ceremony under the banner  ìGlobal Workersî and sang union songs, much to the astonishment of many onlookers!

High School Students Support ëCutest Coupleí (IL)

The following is an excerpt from an article printed in the Chicago Tribune (November 20, 2002).

By Dawn Turner Trice
Chicago Tribune

Chicago, IL—Fearing that two girls voted ìcutest coupleî would be denied the honor because of their sexual orientation, about 60 students at Crete-Monee High School walked out of class Tuesday in a show of support.

But administrators said they never intended to deprive the two seniors of their title, only to seek consent from their parents before allowing the information to appear in the yearbook.

ìStudents are under the impression that this is not going to happen,î said Sue Rossi, district spokeswoman. ìIt will happen. But because sex preference is such a private issue, prior to making it a permanent printed record--such as in the yearbook--parental permission was required.î

Once the parents decide, students will receive written notification from Roberta Berry, superintendent of District 201-U, officials said. In a statement Tuesday, Berry asked students to ìrespect the decision of the parents.î

The girls have been dating since the beginning of the school year, according to classmates at Crete-Monee, which has an enrollment of about 1,500. They did not participate in the midmorning walkout and could not be reached for comment Tuesday.

The statement by administrators mollified some students, but other observers remained skeptical.  ìI doubt if this couple were a boy and girl theyíd see a need to run it by the parents,î said Patricia Logue of Lambda Legal Defense and Education, which advocates for the civil rights of gay people.   Kevin McCarthy, a senior, voted for the girls because ìI think itís a good thing,î he said. ìThey can express themselves openly, and we donít have a problem with that.î

The walkout was hastily planned after the school board failed to address the issue at a meeting Monday, Rossi said.   Brandon Harvey, also a senior, missed four classes as a show of support and for what he perceived as foot-dragging by the administration.  ìBefore it was cute; now itís political,î he said.

Noting that gay high school students are often targeted for harassment, Logue found such solidarity refreshing. There are signs that a once-homophobic climate may be improving, she said.   ìWe do see more gay students getting support from peers and teachers--but havenít heard of a situation like this,î Logue said. ìThere are kids and teachers that extend all kinds of lifelines to gay students--but this is a whole other level. It really is rather heartwarming.î

For more information, visit www.chicagotribune.com

 

INTERVIEW: Student Body President Comes Out (IA)

By Jeremy Quittner

From The Advocate, December 10, 2002

Advocacy work has started early for Brad Clark, the openly gay 21-year-old student body president at Central College in Pella, Iowa. After he came out of the closet this fall, Clark was forced out of a leadership position with the InterVarsity Christian Fellowship—a nondenominational group with chapters on more than 500 campuses around the United States.

A private college affiliated with the Reformed Church of America, Central has a nondiscrimination policy regarding sexual orientation. InterVarsityís action against Clark sparked a debate among the schoolís 1,500 students concerning the enforcement of that policy. The debate only heated up when the student government voted overwhelmingly to continue its recognition of the Christian group. Now the schoolís diversity task force is taking up the issue.

The Advocate spoke with Clark about his experience with InterVarsity and about how his coming-out has caused the whole campus to consider the issue of antigay discrimination. 

Why did you decide to come out?
I came out to my friends last spring, and this fall I felt confident enough in myself that I could come out to the whole campus. 

What happened next?  I had a meeting with the college chaplain and a leader from InterVarsity, and I told them where I was in my faith, and I told them I was gay. Then I went through about three meetings with InterVarsity staff and the dean of students and discussed what [my being gay] meant to their organization. In the last meeting they asked if I would ìadvocate for and faithfully seek to practice that sexual relationships outside of the bonds of male-female heterosexual marriage are a sin.î If I could subscribe to that, then I could still be in my leadership position. If I couldnít, then I would be asked to leave. I said no. 

How did you feel about that?  I felt really hurt and extremely disappointed in the Christian community. I think this group is really fundamentalist. Their doctrine states that it is not just homosexual behavior that they believe is a sin but that homosexual orientation itself is a distortion. The message that conveys is very derogatory, hurtful, and discriminatory. For a group of lesbian and gay students to have another group of students call them a distortion—that canít be taken lightly. That is the breeding ground for the hate crimes we see happening to gays and lesbians. That is the breeding ground for ignorance.

Why did you join InterVarsity in the first place?  I am a Christian, and this really was the only Christian organization on campus. I wanted a place to worship and fulfill my spirit, and there was not really an alternative. It wasnít until this year that I knew they had a stance on homosexuality. 

What are peopleís reactions to you on campus now?  I still have a very close group of friends, but I feel the campus is becoming more split and people are taking one side or the other. A lot of people are talking about it. Recently the senate took on the issue, and they voted 22–12 to keep InterVarsity as a recognized student organization. I donít think the debate in the senate was very healthy—it was based on personal convictions about homosexuality. 

Do you think people on campus have a better understanding now of the discrimination some gay people face?
I think so. A lot of times on campuses like mine, lesbians and gays donít have a greater voice. I have been able to make people think and call into question an organizationís behavior. It has created a huge dialogue on our campus and in our community. Unfortunately, it has to come down to someone like me in a leadership position to make people talk about it. To me, we are talking about basic civil rights and human rights.

Are Gay High School Students Safe? (FL)
The following is an excerpt from an article printed in the St. Petersburg Times (October 29, 2002).

By Melanie Ave
St. Petersburg Times

Last week Middleton High School junior Antonio ìLoloeî Williams was sent home twice after he wore a skirt to school.  School officials said the boyís attire violated the dress code by creating a distraction for other students, even though they said teens are allowed to wear the opposite genderís clothing if it doesnít disrupt learning.  But the 17-year-old student, who said he is asexual, calls the schoolís stance discriminatory.

ìIím really disappointed in the school system,î said Williamsí mother, Carmela. ìTheyíre failing to let my child get an education all because of a dress code.î

The Middleton flap shows the dilemma that schools can face as they grapple with how best to serve gay students and those who deal with gender identity issues.  For the most part, it was not an issue in schools 10 or 20 years ago, when many gay students did not wear their sexual orientation on their
sleeves - and before legal concerns were raised.

ìWhen I first became an educator, it was ignored,î said Palm Harbor University High School assistant principal Harry Brown. ìIt didnít exist. It was taboo.î

Then came students who sued their schools and won, showing school districts they could be held legally responsible for failing to protect homosexual students from harassment.

School systems nationwide have shelled out millions for lawsuits.  Some school districts, like Pinellas County, provide specific protection for gay and lesbian students from student on-student harassment.

Hillsborough County added sexual orientation to its policy this year.  Yet gay advocacy groups say how much protection and support students receive varies widely from school to school.  As Tampa president of Parents, Family and Friends of Lesbians and Gays, Jane Boles, said schools are not doing enough for gay teenagers - students at a higher risk of dropping out and committing suicide, according to national studies.

Five years ago, Boles received a call from a Tampa student who wanted to start a club for gay teens at her school.  The girl, who wore a rainbow ribbon on her blouse as she gathered signatures supporting the clubís formation, was told by school officials that what she was doing was ìwrong and immoral,î Boles recalled, preferring not to name the school. ìThey likened the rainbow to the Nazi flag.î  It took two years, but finally the girl was allowed to organize a gay-straight alliance club at her high school just before she graduated. The club drew 75 students at its first meeting.

Boles said people would be shocked by the frequency that gay and lesbian slurs are used in schools.  ìAny teacher or administrator would not allow students to use a racial slur, but they frequently turn their back on gay and lesbian slurs,î Boles said.

David Caton, executive director of the Florida Family Association, agrees that schools have an obligation to provide a safe environment for all students.  But saying itís okay for boys to wear skirts to school is going too far, he said. ìThe focus should be on studying,î Caton said, ìnot focused on him and what heís wearing.î

Many schools have clubs and support groups for gay students. They include Tampa Bay Tech, Plant and Blake high schools in Hillsborough.  Senior Alison Scher, who is straight, started a club at Plant High School last year to improve tolerance of gay students among her classmates.

ìItís a big issue and more attention needs to be paid to it,î said Scher, whose best friend is gay. ìGuns in schools are a problem but the people theyíre aimed at is a bigger problem.î

Brown was an assistant principal at Largo High School in 1997 when several students told him they had been harassed and wanted to form a gay club.  Largo High became one of the first schools in the Tampa Bay area to create a gay-straight alliance, which drew criticism from Catonís group.

But Brown said the clubs increase awareness among students and teachers.  ìWeíre not promoting a lifestyle, weíre protecting our children,î Brown said. ìItís a safe schools issue.î

Parent Kathy Miller believes it comes down to more education - for administrators, teachers and students.   Miller, president of PFLAG in Pinellas County, took her son out of ninth grade because of harassment. At the time, he had not told his family or friends he was gay.

ìWe need to teach tolerance,î she said. ìIf someone is different, itís okay.î

Human Rights Watch published a study last year that said as many as 2-million gay teenagers are bullied in U.S. schools to the point that they donít receive an adequate education.   Robert Loupo, a counselor with Miami-Dade County Schools, said schools have a legal as well as a moral responsibility to make sure kids feel safe.  ìIf our youth are not feeling safe or if theyíre being threatened or harassed, theyíre not going to learn,î said Loupo, who spoke to about 75 Hillsborough middle and high school guidance counselors last week. ìAnd our schools are about learning.î

Melanie Ave can be reached at Melanie@sptimes.com

 

UPDATE:  Anti-Gay Actions in Schools

 

The following is an article taken from the People for the American Way website (http://www.pfaw.org/pfaw/general/), an excellent source for news on many progressive issues.

 

ìFrom Hollywood, the media, the government, the public schoolsÖright into our churches, we are now seeing the rotten fruit and stench of the sin of homosexuality in our land.î
-- Stephen Bennett, Stephen Bennett Ministries

The Religious Right may have become more circumspect in its language when it comes to creationism and textbook censorship, but its anti-gay rhetoric is as strident as ever. Of course, this does not mean that the landscape for gay students remains the same as it was a decade ago. On the contrary, many public schools have made great strides towards becoming safer and more open places for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered youth, largely due to the strength and courage of such students and their friends and supportive family. But along with a stronger gay rights movement come new Religious Right strategies to counter every advance.

Over the years, the Religious Rightís anti-gay activity in schools has taken many forms - from challenging gay-themed books to barring all mention of sexual orientation to challenging the very right of lesbians and gays to be teachers. While it may not be as easy to stoke anti-gay bias or to threaten the jobs of gay teachers as it once was, the Right is nothing if not inventive. As with sexuality education and creationism, anti-gay groups have created their own ìalternativeî to objective and fair treatment of the issue.

Using ìEx-Gayî spokespeople     At the center of these efforts are the so-called ìex-gay ministries.î Like the creationists who now embrace ìintelligent design,î anti-gay groups push ìreparative therapyî and cast themselves as brave dissenters from a politically correct establishment. However, the real goal is the same as ever - rolling back civil rights protections for lesbians and gays.

Bennett, a self-proclaimed ìex-gayî quoted above, was just one of the anti-gay speakers at a Capitol Hill briefing hosted by the Culture and Family Institute of Concerned Women for America in July 2002. The speakers demonized gay-affirming policies of the National Education Association, Gay, Lesbian Straight Educators Network (GLSEN) and even the U.S. Department of Education. Karen Holgate from Capitol Resource Institute, a California-based group affiliated with Focus on the Family, said, ìHomosexual activists have hijacked our schools,î and others blasted tolerance and diversity training as a homosexual ìTrojan Horseî that undermines studentsí traditional beliefs. Other speakers included Linda Harvey from the Ohio-based Mission: America and abstinence proponent Dr. John Diggs, also an advisory board member of the Family Research Council. Another national campaign to push ìreparative therapyî in public schools was conducted by the National Association for Research and Therapy of Homosexuality (NARTH). In an effort to rebuke the affirming message of GLSEN and supportive psychiatric groups, NARTH mailed its ìHomosexual Advocacy Groups & Your Schoolî brochure to over 15,000 school districts. Dr. Joseph Nicolosi, president of NARTH, claimed that the brochure ìseeks to correct the misinformation that is being promoted by these homosexual advocacy groups that have an incredible influence on the public education system.î

Fighting anti-discrimination measures   As school officials, parents and students have acted to provide safe and affirming atmospheres for gay youth in our public schools, Religious Right groups have continued to challenge progress at every opportunity. The California-based Pacific Justice Institute, for example, has filed numerous lawsuits against school districts in that state over gay-friendly policies.

The Bay County, Florida, school board unanimously ìdenounced homosexualityî despite the fact that no specific issue was before the board. One board member called homosexuality ìa sinî and another said ìWe are morally, ethically and Christian based. We stand tall, we stand firm and we will not support any homosexual [issues].î According to news reports, the board action was the result of parents motivated by publicity about National Education Association guidelines on gay and lesbian issues. The local spokesperson for the teacherís association said, ìWeíre still not sure what [the parents] are after. It seems to me that they think there is some hidden gay agenda thatís going to corrupt America. We donít have a position because we donít know what the issue is.î

The Maryland state board of education and Fairfax County, Virginia, school district both faced right-wing challenges when they addressed anti-discrimination issues covering sexual orientation. The Culture and Family Institute, TakeBackMaryland.org, and Virginia Family Foundation all claimed that protecting gay youth from harassment and discrimination would undermine traditional values and free speech rights. Peter LaBarbera has resurrected his anti-gay Americans For Truth group (formerly Americans for Truth About Homosexuality) to alert Fairfax County residents to a proposed nondiscrimination policy and hold a ìpro-family rally featuring former homosexualsî outside the school board meeting. Neither the Maryland nor Fairfax County programs have been implemented and both await further review.

Focus on the Family, the West Virginia Family Foundation, and Mission: America have lined up to criticize the West Virginia Attorney Generalís office and participating public schools over a program to reduce bias-motivated harassment and violence. Similar ìDignity for All Studentsî legislation failed to pass in the Florida and New York general assemblies.

Play Cancelled      In Fall 2001, a high school production of Dark of the Moon was cancelled because of complaints over the playís subject matter and sexual content. The play was mere weeks from it first performance at Knappa High School in Oregon when some parents and community members raised objections to the playís portrayal of Christians, as well as to a scene that implied rape and the cremation of a stillborn baby. The play was produced on Broadway eight years before Arthur Millerís ìThe Crucibleî explored similar themes of intolerance and religion. Mark Acuna, pastor of the Knappa Assembly of God, urged that all future plays have content appropriate for a family audience and ìnot violate the dignity of race or religion.î

Book Removed     In April 2002, the Horry County Board of Education voted to remove The Drowning of Stephan Jones from the shelves of all eight school libraries in the South Carolina county. The vote came as a result of a complaint by Eugene Carroll Craig, a local barber and born-again Christian.

The book, about a gay man who is harassed and killed by a group of Arkansas teens, initially came to the school boardís attention after Craig made 1200 photocopies of passages of the book and passed them out at local businesses on Easter Sunday. Claiming that the book promoted the homosexual agenda, Craig sought to have it removed from district schools. He argued that the book had an ìanti-Christian, anti-social agendaî but a twelve-member panel of parents, teachers, librarians and principals voted to keep the book. Not all panel members agreed, with Reverend Ricky Donaldson claiming that he couldnít get past the first chapter of the book because it ìoffended my Christian beliefs.î

Craig appealed this decision to the school board which then determined, by a vote of 7-3, that the book, was ìeducationally unsuitable and [contained] unacceptable language.î It was therefore banned from all Horry County School libraries.

PABBIS     An organization was formed in late 2001 in Fairfax, Virginia with the purpose of challenging the use of ìbad booksî within the Fairfax County school system. Parents Against Bad Books in Schools (PABBIS) has created a web site that now lists hundreds of books the organization considers controversial and offers concerned parents advice and support. The list includes major works by acclaimed authors such as Toni Morrison, Alice Walker, Maya Angelou, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, William Styron, Judy Blume, and Robert Cormier, to name a few.

Parents Against Bad Books in Schools was started shortly after a student brought home a copy of Druids, by Morgan Llywelyn. PABBIS sought to remove this book because of what it claimed was ìgraphic descriptions of sexî and ìsex magic.î The group also sought the removal of Steven Pressfieldís Gates of Fire and Ken Follettís The Pillars of the Earth. The Fairfax County School Board removed Druids from middle school shelves and limited access to The Pillars of the Earth to grades 10 through 12. PABBIS has routinely complained about the board and accused board members of ìembracing all religions...except for the Christian Faith.î Furthermore, PABBIS alleges that ìmany of these books have anti-Christian themes and are blasphemous of Jesus the Lord.î

This report only provides a glimpse of the many Religious Right attempts to censor curricula or insert sectarian religion into public schools over the 2001-02 school year. Many other groups do extensive work on the issues explored in this report, including the American Library Association (ALA), the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the U.S. (SIECUS), the National Center for Science Education (NCSE) and the Gay Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN).

In many instances, the tactics of Religious Right groups are unchanged from previous years. Objections to popular and acclaimed books for children, like the Harry Potter series, are not so different from the complaints of a decade ago. Similarly, the same efforts that Religious Right activists have long been known for - mandating sectarian religious instruction and creationism for example - still persist today. But the landscape has changed in many ways, often reflecting a larger Religious Right victory.

In past reports, PFAWF has documented countless attempts to censor comprehensive sex education in public schools. Those efforts have largely been replaced by the quiet dominance of abstinence-only sex education curricula. In this case, the Religious Right may have lost local battles along the way, but they have won federal funding. In the case of science education and anti-gay activity, the Right is still drawing its battle plans. But this much is clear - the Religious Right remains more focused on public schools than ever.

U.K. ADS: Yahoo & Virgin Mobile Like Predatory Gays

by Michael Wilke

The following is an article published on PlanetOut.com (http://www.planetout.com/pno/splash.html); Mike Wilkeís Commercial Closet is a monthly column covering gay issues in advertising, marketing and media -- part of the nonprofit project tracking 85 years of gay images in advertising worldwide. Its 1000+ image archive is at www.CommercialCloset.org.

Gays have made much social progress in the United Kingdom over the last several years, but gay men are still shown as a predatory, buggering lot in new commercials from Yahoo and, of all brands, Virgin Mobile.

A TV spot for Yahoo shows a disheveled young man waking up as a voiceover says, ìYou canít trust late nights.î A bridegroom-to-be in a practical joke, the man is actually tied naked to a tree, as voiceover continues, ìYou canít trust your mates.î An older man, wearing a purple hat and scarf and walking a tiny dog, grins with interest at the manís derriere, and the groom nervously smiles, then turns in fear. The ad closes by saying, ìYou can only trust yourself. Rely on you. Visit Yahoo Personal Finance.î The scene recalls the 1977 movie ìThe Choirboys.î

The ad, created by Euro RSCG Wnek Gosper, London, was pulled following protests by high-profile members of the gay community, including openly gay talk host Graham Norton and other individuals, to the Independent Television Commission, a British regulatory group.   Yahoo UK spokeswoman Georgia Douglas says, ìThe advert was intended as a lighthearted insight into a stereotypical British stag night prank and was certainly not meant to cause offense. However, we take customer feedback very seriously.î Yahoo has since edited out the leering man and is airing the new version.

Virgin Mobile ad set in prison

The same week, a commercial for three-year-old cell phone brand Virgin Mobile began airing in which Haitian-American musician Wyclef Jean is arrested by a Southern U.S. sheriff and thrown into prison. As the inmates shower together, an enormous prisoner tells Jean to pick up a bar of soap on the floor -- a reference to prison rape.   Just a few weeks old, the ad has registered a few negative comments to the ITC -- something a Virgin Mobile spokesman jokingly refers to as ìpoor performance.î The spot, from Rainey Kelly Campbell Roalfe/Y&R, London, may come to the United States early next year.  Other ad references to predatory gay men and male rape have already made appearances this year in the U.S. for 7Up, Saturn and IKEA.

Virgin spokesman Steven Day dismisses the soap joke as just a ìnominal gay referenceî and isnít worried about gay backlash. ìWeíve used a fair amount of overt gay imagery. Weíre generally well received in the gay community and we donít treat minorities as minorities.î He says the ad was put through focus groups that included gay people ìto make sure the sensitivities were OK. And we had some gay people working on it too.î

 With its phone service introduced to the United States over the summer, Virgin Mobile is running yet another gay-themed commercial. This one, from Leagas Delaney, San Francisco, running on MTV, parodies 1950s-era instructional films and shows how not to react when someone gives you a phone. Two men hug and one grabs the otherís rear, then a shrill buzzer sounds and a red ìNo!î appears on screen.

Special preference for ads with gay jokes?

Virgin Mobile also recently carried a billboard ad in the United Kingdom featuring two soldiers holding hands, about the time England began allowing openly gay soldiers to serve.

ìWe would argue that the debate about homosexuality (in advertising) has moved on,î says Day at Virgin Mobile. In fact, he adds, ìWe agree with Yahoo that to not allow a homosexual reference for humor is giving it special preference. We think people are grown enough to see it as a joke and not as homophobic or racist.î

As the three Virgin Mobile ads indicate, the Virgin Group brand empire has a long history of leveraging gay themes in ads as well as seeking the gay market. Directed by brash British billionaire Richard Branson, Virgin Atlantic Airways was the first airline to target gays in the United States in 1994, and Virgin Cola brought the first same-sex kiss commercial to America in 1998.

Unlike Yahoo, Virgin is one of a handful of companies who might have enough standing with the gay community to get by with a questionable commercial that would otherwise offend. Yet while few could ever imagine ads making light of female rape, somehow male rape -- and the predatory gay man -- remains a subject that advertisers are willing to play for laughs.

UPDATE: U.S. GAYS IN THE MILITARY

2002-11-15

from PlanetOut.com

As the United States fights terrorism and inches toward war with Iraq, the armed forces continues to dismiss gay personnel -- despite an ever-increasing need for qualified recruits.

The irony was emphasized recently when the Army dismissed several Arabic linguists because they were gay. Considering the demand for experts on Middle Eastern languages, the military ìshot themselves in the foot,î according to Steve Ralls, spokesman for the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network (SLDN).

In addition, gay-related discharges spiked in 2001, despite the militaryís ìstop-lossî orders that bypassed many other types of discharges.

The Army refused to discharge an admitted bisexual captain, however, despite repeated requests to resign during a period of nearly two years. The case put the SLDN in an unusual place of insisting that the military adhere to its own ìdonít ask, donít tellî policy. In October, the captain was finally discharged.

C. Dixon Osburn, head of the SLDN, said the current climate of terrorist threats underscores the need for Congress to repeal the militaryís policy against gay and lesbian personnel ìfor the sake of national security.î

ìBigotry undermines readiness,î he said.

SOME BOOKS NOTED

forthcoming:  Cole, Sarah. Modernism, Male Friendship, and the First World War, Cambridge: Cambridge Univ. Press, 2003. [Publisherís blurb: Sarah Cole examines the rich literary and cultural history of masculine intimacy in the twentieth century. Cole approaches this complex and neglected topic from many perspectives - as a reflection of the exceptional social power wielded by the institutions that housed and structured male bonds; as a matter of closeted and thwarted homoerotics; as part of the story of the First World War.]

Herman, Gabriel.  Ritualised Friendship and the Greek City.  Cambridge: Cambridge Univ. Press, 2002.  Paperback ed.

White, Carolinne.  Christian Friendship in the Fourth Century. Cambridge: Cambridge Univ. Press, 2002. Paperback ed.

Pangle, Lorraine Smith.  Aristotle and the Philosophy of Friendship.  Cambridge: Cambridge Univ. Press, 2002. [Publisherís blurb:  This is the first book to offer a comprehensive account of the major philosophical works on friendship and its relationship to self-love. The book gives central place to Aristotleís searching examination of friendship in the Nicomachean Ethics. Lorraine Pangle argues that the difficulties surrounding this discussion are soon dispelled once one understands the purpose of the Ethics as both a source of practical guidance for life and a profound, theoretical investigation into human nature. The book also provides fresh interpretations of works on friendship by Plato, Cicero, Epicurus, Seneca, Montaigne and Bacon.]

Robinson, Annabel. The Life and Work of Jane Ellen Harrison. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2002.

Tylawsky, Elizabeth Ivory. Saturioís Inheritance. The Greek Ancestry of the Roman Comic Parasite. Artists and Issues in the Theatre, 9. New York: Peter Lang, 2002.

Temporini-Gr”fin Vitzthum, Hildegard (ed.), Die Kaiserinnen Roms von Livia bis Theodora. M¸nchen: C.H. Beck, 2002.

Bly, Mary, Queer Virgins and Virgin Queans on the Early Modern Stage. Oxford: Oxford Univ. Press, 2000.  [Publisherís blurb:  Queer Virgins and Virgin Queans looks at the early modern theatre through the lens of obscure and obscene puns--especially ëqueerí puns, those that carry homoerotic resonances and speak to homoerotic desires. In particular, it resurrects the operations of a small boysí company known as the first Whitefriars, which performed for about nine months in 1607-8.]

Bucholtz, Mary, A.C. Liang and Laurel A. Sutton, eds., Reinventing Identities:
The Gendered Self in Discourse.  Oxford: Oxford Univ. Press, 1999.

Livia, Anna, and Kira Hall, eds., Queerly Phrased: Language, Gender, and Sexuality. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1997.

Damousi, Joy. Depraved and Disorderly: Female Convicts, Sexuality and Gender in Colonial Australia.  Cambridge: Cambridge Univ. Press, 1997. [Publisherís blurb: Using startlingly original research, Joy Damousi considers such varied topics as headshaving as punishment in the prisons and the subversive nature of laughter and play, as well as analysing the language of pollution, purity and abandonment. She also dicusses the nature of sexual relationships, including evidence of lesbianism. The book shows how understanding about sexual and racial difference was crucial for both the maintenance and disturbance of colonial society, and became a focus for cultural anxiety.]

 

WEBSITES NOTED

 

People for the American Way: http://www.pfaw.org/pfaw/general/

 

Pride At Work: http://www.prideatwork.org/

 

Planet Out: http://www.planetout.com

 

Women in the Middle Ages—Writers, Musicians, Artists (incredibly rich page): http://www.uh.edu/engines/medievalwomen/wmawma.htm

 

The New York Times Lesson Plan  Archives, developed in partnership with Bank Street College of Education in NYC: http://www.nytimes.com/learning/teachers/lessons/archive.html (I would encourage folks to send in lesson plans on sexuality in the ancient Mediterranean for consideration for this site—see e.g. ìAn Ancient Odyssey: Exploring Ancient Greek Mythology and History through Geography,î http://www.nytimes.com/learning/teachers/lessons/20021023wednesday.html)

 

Michael Wilkeís Commercial Closet: http://www.CommercialCloset.org

 

Hooker Heroes (Prostitutes Who Changed the World)—includes lots of fun (if dubious) info on hetairai: http://wondersmith.com/heroes/index.htm

 

Lambda Classical Caucus

(Formerly Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Classical Caucus)

 

The purpose of the Caucus is twofold: scholarly and political.  Our scholarly purpose is to facilitate and promote research that reflects the personal and intellectual interests of Queer people of all stripes, and particularly research into gender constructions in the ancient Mediterranean.  Our political purpose is to focus upon and educate about the effects of homophobia in the profession, and actively assist Queer scholars in their struggles against stigmatization.  The LCC consists of members and a voluntary Steering Committee (or Advisory & Action Committee) with co-chairs, currently Kristina Milnor (Barnard College, NYC, kmilnor@barnard.edu) and Bryan Burns (Univ. of Southern California, Los Angeles, bburns@usc.edu).  Lambda holds annual meetings at the APA/AIA national meeting, which are open to all.  Members pay annual dues ($10 regular; $5 students); checks should be made out to ìLCCî and mailed to John Younger, Treasurer, at the Dept. of Classics, and the Program in Humanities and Western Civilization, 2110 Wescoe Hall, 1445 Jayhawk Blvd., University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS 66045-2139.  The Lambda e-mail discussion list is a forum for discussions concerning gender and sexualities in the classical world; it also conveys information on and elicits discussion of the business of the Lambda Classical Caucus. The list has anonymous posting and a confidential subscriber list.  To subscribe, send email to:  majordomo@runner.utsa.edu    In the body of your email, put this message:

subscribe lambdacc   No name is necessary.

 

http://www.people.ku.edu/~jyounger/LCC/