Description
Bodies of Evidence: The Practice of Queer Oral History is the first book to provide serious scholarly insight into the methodological practices that shape lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer oral histories. Each chapter pairs an oral history excerpt with an essay in which the oral historian addresses his or her methods and practices. With an afterword by John D'Emilio, this collection enables readers to examine the role memory, desire, sexuality, and gender play in documenting LGBTQ communities and cultures.The historical themes addressed include 1950s and '60s lesbian bar culture; social life after the Cuban revolution; the organization of transvestite social clubs in the U.S. midwest in the 1960s; Australian gay liberation activism in the 1970s; San Francisco electoral politics and the career of Harvey Milk; Asian American community organizing in pre-AIDS Los Angeles; lesbian feminist "sex war" cultural politics; 1980s and '90s Latina/o transgender community memory and activism in San Francisco; and the war in Iraq and Afghanistan.The methodological themes include questions of silence, sexual self-disclosure and voyeurism, the intimacy between researcher and narrator, and the social and political commitments negotiated through multiple oral history interviews. The book also examines the production of comparative racial and sexual identities and the relative strengths of same-sexuality, cross-sexuality, and cross-ideology interviewing.
Table of Contents
Introduction: Close Encounters: The Body and Knowledge in Queer Oral Historyby Horacio N. Roque Ramírez and Nan Alamilla BoydPart 1: SilenceChapter 1: Sex, 'Silence,' and Audiotape: Listening for Female Same-Sex Desire in Cubaby Carrie HamiltonOral history by Carrie Hamilton with "Laura," Havana, Cuba, 2005-2007 Chapter 2: Remembering Provincetown: Oral History and Narrativity at Land's Endby Karen KrahulikOral history by Karen Krahulik with Marguerite Beata Cook, Provincetown, Massachusetts, January 22, 1997Chapter 3: Queer Family Stories: Learning from Oral Histories with Lesbian Mothers and Gay Fathers from the Pre-Stonewall Eraby Daniel RiversOral history by Daniel Rivers with Vera Clarice Martin, Apache Junction, Arizona, September 2, 2006 Chapter 4: Spiraling Desire: Recovering the Lesbian Embodied Self in Oral History Narrativeby Jeff FriedmanOral history by Jeff Friedman with Terry Sendgraff, San Francisco, California, November 12 and 28, and December 6, 1990 Part 2: SexChapter 5: Talking About Sex: Cheryl Gonzales and Rikki Streicher Tell Their Storiesby Nan Alamilla BoydOral history by Nan Alamilla Boyd with Cheryl Gonzales, San Francisco, California, February 1, 1992; oral history by Nan Alamilla Boyd with Rikki Streicher, San Francisco, California, January 22, 1992 Chapter 6: Private Lives and Public History: On Excavating the Sexual Past in Queer Oral History Practiceby Jason RuizOral history by Jason Ruiz with Charles W. Paul Larsen, Columbia Heights, Minneapolis, Minnesota, October 16, 2004 Chapter 7: Gender, Desire, and Feminism: A Conversation between Dorothy Allison and Carmen Vázquezby Kelly AndersonOral history by Kelly Anderson with Dorothy Allison and Carmen Vázquez, San Francisco, California, November 19, 2007 Part 3: FriendshipChapter 8: Friendship, Institutions, Oral Historyby Michael David FranklinOral history interview by Michael David Franklin and Dorthe Troeften with Carol, Minneapolis, Minnesota, June 24, 2005 Chapter 9: Gay Teachers and Students, Oral History and Queer Kinshipby Daniel MarshallOral history by Daniel Marshall with Gary Jaynes and Graham Carbery, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, August 6, 2008 Chapter 10: Sharing Queer Authorities: Collaborating for Transgender Latina and Gay Latino Historical MeaningsHoracio N. Roque RamírezOral history by Horacio N. Roque Ramírez with Alberta Nevaeres (aka "Teresita la Campesina"), San Francisco, California, April 27, 1996 Part 4: PoliticsChapter 11: Dancing with Stella, Los Angeles Daughters of Bilitis PioneerMarcia M. GalloOral history by Marcia Gallo with Stella Rush, Los Angeles, California,March 15 and 19, May 2, May 21 and 22, November 17, 2002Chapter 12: "You Could Argue That They Control Power": Politics and Interviewing across Sexualitiesby Martin MeekerOral history by Martin Meeker with Quentin Kopp, San Mateo, California, April 16 and 17, 2007 Chapter 13: Don't Ask: Discussing Sexuality in the American Military and the Mediaby Steve EstesOral history by Steve Estes with Brian Hughes, Washington D.C., January 25, 2005Chapter 14: Thanks for the Memories: A Narrator Asks an Oral Historian for Validationby Eric C. WatOral history by Eric Wat with Ernest Wada, Los Angeles, California, December 4, 1997 Afterword: "If I Knew Then..."John D'EmilioContributorsIndex
