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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (Sept. 28, 1984)
RE The Homosexual ization of America THE PITFALLS OF TIMING D ennis Altm an, The Homosexualization o f America, Beacon, 1982. by Terry Miller D ennis Altm an is a victim o f bad tim ing. Here we have this very b rig h t well schooled, hum anitarian, politically conscious gay man w ho w rote a masterpiece o f gay liberation analysis, and the poor devil finished it ju st before the news o f AIDS and our realization o f V its incredible im plications. One wonders what he w ould have done with AIDS; he obvi ously did not know o f it w hile w riting; there’s no discussion o f AIDS or Kaposi’s Sarcoma in the otherwise thorough b o o k The Homosexualization o f America, pub lished by Beacon Press in 1982, and probably w ritten in 1980, is a com pletely accessible, lu g d , and enjoyable synthesis o f a variety o f gay questions. Altm an shares E dm und W hite’s contradiction as an upperclass socialist com m entator. The Homosexual ization is m ore polished and reads better than W hite’s States o f Desire, but Altm an has the advantage o f having published Homo sexual: Oppression and Liberation a decade earlier. He’s had ten years to address him se lf to gay liberation, a tim e in which to th in k critica lly about his earlier w o rk a pro cess he acknowledges. The Homosexualization o f America is a slick academ ic sized paperback 224 pages, COMING ATTRACTIONS O ctober 26 — Politics and more. Discussion of the candidates, and the issues, along with a Ju st O ut voters guide. It’s also our 1 year anniversary. We’ll recap the year, and plan for the future. Deadline October 15th J u s t O u t is going m onthly. Effective this issue J u s t O u t will publish the 4th Friday of each m onth. Subscribers w ill still receive 26 issues o f the paper, and advertisers w ho have signed con tracts w hich list specific dates will have th e ir contracts extended at the same special rate. N o t m uch else w ill change. J u s t O u t w ill still be distributed free, and w e'll still provide the sam e news, articles, and features as we have fo r the past year. The O u t A bou t Town section o f the paper w ill contain a m onth’s w orth o f events, and a m ore detailed theatre listin g w ill be incorporated into the fo rm a t November 23 - Winter style, and Holiday Gift Guide. Deadline November 12th. December 28 — Books, books and more books. Just O ut proclaims January “Curl Gp With a Good Book Month.” Deadline December 17th. January 25 — Cuisine Scene — The A to Z’s of the cuisine scene in Portland. Deadline January 14th. I E W divided in seven chapters, with a striking red cover and tasteful paper and typeface. Beacon classifies it as “ S ociology/G ay Studies.” It is a pop b o o k very readable in the tra d itio n o f I 'm OK You re OK w ithout being sim p listic in the least Anyone interested in th in kin g about gay liberation today and over the last decade would enjoy this book, w hether they’re new to such thinking, or a m aster at it Altm an begins with a chapter entitled, “ The Invention o f the New Homosexual,” in w hich he seems to be rather amazed that people with homosexual preference have com e to be considered a m inority group. He says this is easier in Am erica than in Europe or Latin America, where people are identified, and identify themselves, as m em bers o f a class o r ideological position. In America, A lt man argues, we are m uch m ore fam iliar with classification by interest “ The greatest single victory o f the gay m ovem ent over the past decade has been to shift the debate from behavior to identity,” thus forcing opponents to attack citizens’ rights rather than citizens’ behaviors. The next chapter bears the title, "H om o sexuals and Homosexuality; The Problem s o f Definition.” In this chapter, Altm an fleshes out som e o f his com m ents in the first chapter. He apparently holds m ost respect for a view o f hom osexuality as a polym orphous term de scribing a part o f all people. As such, he finds that the term “ hom osexual” is a sociological one, describing a chosen o r assigned identity rather than an orientation. This identification poses dangers as well as bringing benefits— while it allows us to develop a positive image, it allows the society at large to control us by classifying us. The chapter constitutes a m ar velous review o f social scientific and histori cal views o f homosexuality, including the im pact on gender roles, and a discussion o f the roots o f hom oerotophobia, and Freud’s theory o f sublim ated hom osexuality as the basis o f male social organization. In chapter three, “ Sex and the Trium ph o f Consum er Capitalism,” Altm an examines the m odem bathhouse, or tubs if you prefer. Ini tially, he expected increased liberation and opening o f sexual choice to elim inate outlets such as the baths, but finds instead that street cruising is dropping o ff com pared to sex palace activity. He wonders aloud about som e o f the causes, bringing in the fem inist analysis o f pornography as com m erce in so m uch m eat A ltm an’s fourth chapter is “ The Movement and Its Enemies," but he m ight have more aptly left “ enemies” out o f the title, as he gives them little space. He reviews why gay libera tion is political, runs briefly through m odem gay m ovem ent history since Magnus Hirsh- field in pre-Nazi Germany, and finally applauds the fact that the m ovem ent is d i verse, with unresolved issues such as m a n / boy love; indeed, he is strongly critical o f those who see gay liberation as a m onolithic force. Finally, he contrasts tw o traditions in gay political organizing: on the one hand the radical-m inded confrontational street dem onstrators, and on the other the Upperclass, elitist, behind-the-scenes movers and shakers. Chapter five is an overview o f gay culture: its development, current state, form s, and leading thinkers. His final substantive chapter is “ Sexual Freedom and the End o f Romance,” which is not quite the reactionary work that it sounds. Altm an is a little ou t o f his elem ent here; he identifies him self as som e thing o f a tourist in prom iscuity. At the same tim e, he is not an a p o lo g ist In fa c t he argues that since hom osexual contact is entirely u n related to procreation, that it is “ p ro m iscu ous” by its very nature, and responsible fo r a visible challenge to, and a resultant change in Am erican sexual mores. He runs th ro u g h som e marvelous fem inist critiques on to p ics such as m an/boy love, to ile t sex, sado m asochism and pornography. O ne by one he walks through each issue, exam ining how it m ight be construed as political, and how it effects gay identity. The hom osexualization o f A m erica refers presum ably to the changes in society’s sex ual mores, as well as the grow ing status as he sees it, o f sex as a com m odity. Taken alone, his analyses are very astute. The bo ok is no t exclusively male; he attends to lesbian fem inist analyses, although, since he is a man, from a respectful distance. M uch has been w ritten about changing gay lifestyles since AIDS. O ne can only w on der what position A ltm an w ould have taken on AIDS related issues. Is p ro m iscu ity g o ing away? If so, what’s up fo r heterosexual m o ra l ity regarding sex as a procreative act? W hat w ill be the im pact on the polym orphous theory o f hom osexual desire? O n h o m o phobia? W ill Am erica continue its hom osex ualization? These are all questions w hich are absolutely central today and w hich the bo ok is o f no help in solving. N onetheless, as a basic treatm ent o f m odem gay liberation, The Homosexualization o f Am erica is indispensible. Terry Miller is a local actiuist, and is leading a course in several o f the issues mentioned above. Details are elsewhere in this issue. f K é ‘PfiofiTZZDU W/SHTR££ STRESSED OUT? r UNWIND AT HCTR The Massage Therapy Clinic ¿ 6 m ■ t r C L I r>»~rOTvl SASTStDB hf Mu haven't eaten at the Metro Cafe here are some specials youvt missed: Fettuccmi w/tomatoes, oh\zes & walnuts Ora rye G land Tork Loin 6 25 5.75 blade 'Bean Tost a da Salad 475 Steamed Mussets w /fettuum i, cream ' fytarraaon 6.50 Suprem e-cnicken breast w/hm e, mushrooms ts neshna wme 650 fresh Vouched Salmon vv/sherry, ym qtr, lem on tf m in t j i y 2524 se c u riWM- gift certificates for holidays, birthdays, etc. Tues., Wed., Thurs. 3-9 p.m. Fri., Sat. 9 a m . -3 p.m. Womyn & Men Welcome 249-8385 by appointment Ask for Lechla L. Lundy. L.M.T Just Out. September 28-October 26
