A review by bookobsessedmommy
The Deviant's War: The Homosexual vs. the United States of America by Eric Cervini

challenging dark informative slow-paced

5.0

Reading this made me realize just how little I actually know about Q+ history, especially on the legal front. I remember when DADT was repealed and when same sex marriage was legalized, but you don't feel the full weight of those changes without the context of just how long and hard people had been fighting. In my mind Stonewall is the beginning, but the riot was the tipping point after decades of oppression. The idea that people could commit themselves to each other for 50+ years but not be considered married, or they could get purple hearts but be dishonorably discharged simply because they were attracted to the same sex is wild to me now. The logic (or lack there of) used to fire people who were just doing their jobs and trying to live their lives, or the fact that there was a morals division of the police (EXCUSE ME?!?!) boggles the mind. The audiobook reads like an episode on A&E or the History channel, which gives a more human element instead of a textbook rundown of cases and organizations. There are still a ton of acronyms, but they get mixed in with full names enough for me to remember what's what for the most part. It does sometimes get tricky to keep everyone straight😉 besides Dr. Frank Kameny, but that didn't take away from the overall narrative. I'll be looking for more books like this one about Lesbian and Trans history.