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Co-edited by Two Spirits Advisory Board member Wesley Thomas, Two-Spirit
People: Native American Gender Identity, Sexuality, and
Spirituality is a landmark scholarly investigation of “third
gender” expression in American Indian societies. It
examines cultural rules, ideologies, and expected behaviors
for individuals within a range of gender identity possibilities,
and includes the voices of contemporary Native American two-spirit
people and scholars to form a sensitive picture of the past,
while illuminating forward-looking ways of seeing the complexities
of gender, sexuality, and spirituality. (University of Illinois
Press)
Gender diversity is one of the most common and least understood
features of native North America. Such roles have been documented
in over 150 tribes throughout the continent, and the result
is a strikingly different view of native North America before
the arrival of Europeans. In Changing Ones, Two
Spirits Advisory Board member Will Roscoe carefully
reconstructs the place of these roles in traditional tribal
cultures and traces their history up to the present, in a
fascinating and comprehensive exploration of an overlooked
dimension of native North America. Changing Ones challenges
many assumptions, old and new, about the nature of human
sexual and gender diversity. (St. Martin’s
Press)
Two Spirits Advisory Board member Lori Girshick's
new book, Transgender Voices: Beyond Women and
Men, brings together the voices of 150 sex-and
gender-diverse people who speak with absolute courage and candor
about their lives. By showing us a variety of perspectives,
Girshick demonstrates that there is nothing inherently binary
about gender—and that the way each
of us experiences our own gender is, in fact, normal and
natural. The book speaks with wisdom and compassion about
subjects that can illuminate our shared understanding of
men, women, and those who liberate gender from oversimplification
and into something more nuanced, flexible, and humane. (University
Press of New England)
What can straight people do to support gay rights? Ian Ayres
and Jennifer Brown--law professors, activists, husband and
wife--propose practical strategies for helping straight men
and women advocate for and with the gay community. Straightforward suggests
that to make real progress at the central flashpoints of
controversy straight as well as gay people need to speak
up and act for equality. The book tells stories about real
people and the difficult decisions they have faced at home,
in church, at work, in school, and in politics. Straightforward
engagingly shows
how to change the way America thinks about--and participates
in--the gay rights movement. (Princeton University Press)
Homosexuality has been politicized. But when the issue hits
home, whether it involves a family member, colleague, or
neighbor who's gay, all that controversy fades in the face
of a real person who wants and deserves basic human
rights and freedoms. With essays by Candace Gingrich, Margaret
Cho, Judy Shepard, Rebecca Walker, and leaders of organizations
including the ACLU, Amnesty International USA, GLAAD, Human
Rights Campaign, and PFLAG, 50 Ways to Support
Lesbian and Gay Equality is
a compendium of informative, joyful, and poignant personal
stories, each promoting understanding while suggesting simple
actions. From defining terminology to exploring family issues,
the book deftly navigates workplace, family, cultural, and
human rights issues. A timely and much-needed guide, 50
Ways is full of positive solutions to
everyday incidents of homophobia and heterosexism, offering
guidance on issues from the personal to the political. Essays
include, "Get
Beyond Stereotypes," "Learn the Facts about Lesbian
and Gay Families," "Cherish the Diversity of the
Human Family," "Stop Hate Before It Kills," and "Keep
the Faith," among others. (Inner Ocean Publishing)
The Full Spectrum: A New Generation of Writing About
Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, Questioning, and Other
Identities is an anthology of original essays, poems, and true stories
written by young adults in their teens and early 20s. The
book chronicles emerging sexuality and identity in insightful
ways, with an emphasis on giving voice to authentic identity.
Co-editors David Levithan and Billy Merrell have selected
a comprehensive and complex group of real-life stories about
coming out, falling in and out of love, mistaken identities,
families and friends, misplaced affection, confronting homophobia,
and more. While many of the stories share feelings of isolation,
others delve into empowerment, awareness, and involvement
in the GLBTQ community. These personal stories are an invaluable
collection for gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and questioning
youth. As coeditor Levithan notes in his introduction, "One
way to effect change is to share truths. To tell our stories." (Knopf)
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