Customer Reviews

That's Revolting! Queer Strategies for Resisting Assimilation

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(0)
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1 star:		(0)

 

 

The word "radical" does not mean "extreme" but rather "going to the root." That is, being radical is about going to the root of the problem, the root of our patriarchal a.k.a. dominator society, finding solutions for overthrowing it, and living as much as possible outside of the dominant system. During the same-sex marriage debate, I kept reflecting on how marriage was invented for the purpose of enslaving women. I kept signing petitions in favor of gay marriage while feeling apprehensive and wondering why lesbians, especially, would want to participate in such a patriarchal establishment.

Reading the anthology That's Revolting was a great relief, because it proves that many people see things the same way I do, from a radical point of view rather than a liberal point of view. That's Revolting is for those who want a nonviolent revolution, not a white picket fence and a house in suburbia. It is for those who question the American dream rather than gobble up capitalism, respectability, or the nuclear family lifestyle. It is for those who wish to overthrown marriage and the military, not participate in them. This diverse anthology is social criticism, inspiration, words of reassurance that radical activism continues, and a call to action.

This is the book I had always dreamed they would use in my queer classes at school!!! Activism, cultural analysis and personal narratives help push what has been understood as "gay and lesbian studies" from the now "safe" grounds of identity to the terrain of revolution. From racism in queer organizing to hilarious direct action That's Revolting is a radical a re-thinking of all that we through we knew about social change, gender, class and race.

Nowhere have I seen such an amazing range of essays about the complexities of queer lives. The book is fiery, exciting, and full of wisdom. I especially liked "Gay Art Guerrillas," where Sarah Schulman and Jim Hubbard detail the rise and fall of downtown New York in the eighties with lively anecdotes and cutting wit. "Calling All Restroom Revolutionaries" offers a step-by-step plan for making public bathrooms gender neutral and accessible, and offers a stunning critique of identity politics in the process. And the opening essay, "Dr. Laura, Sit on My Face," I've read over and over again, even once to a friend over the telephone. I live outside of the major gay destination cities, so this book was a welcome breath of fresh air -- Queer Eye for the Straight GIRL isn't exactly speaking to me, if you know what I mean. I recommend this book to anyone with a brain.

I gave the book 5 stars because it arrived sooner than she thought it would. She was pleased with it, and said it would be useful for her. Since it is not something that I would have purchased for myself, I can only list what she told me.