Reclaiming Queer: Activist and Academic Rhetorics of Resistance

In the 1980s and 1990s, queer activism and queer theory in the US emerged as a response to the AIDS crisis. Reclaiming Queer examines the rhetorical linkage between these two movements, arguing that queerness is the condition from which rhetorical agency emerges. The book explores the early texts that inaugurated the field of queer theory, activist and academic practices, and builds a theory of rhetorical agency that posits queerness as the very condition from which agency emerges.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 224 pages
Publication date: 15 April 2024
Publisher: The University of Alabama Press

The late 1980s and early 1990s were a pivotal period for queer activism and queer theory in the United States. LGBT communities, facing the devastating indifference and homophobia of the AIDS crisis, often responded with angry, militant forms of activism aimed at promoting acceptance, tolerance, and forging identity and strength from victimization. This shift in ideology and practice was reflected in academic circles by the emergence of the new field of "queer theory." Queer theorists, while mobilizing in the streets, were also producing a similar foment in the halls and publications of academia, questioning regulatory categories of gender and sexuality and attempting to illuminate the heteronormative foundations of Western thought.

The narrative of queer theory's development often describes it as arising from or being inspired by queer activism. In her book, Reclaiming Queer, Erin J. Rand examines both queer activist and academic practices during this period, taking as her primary object the rhetorical linkage of queer theory in the academy with street-level queer activism. Through this strategic conjuncture of activism and academia, Rand grapples with the specific conditions for and constraints on rhetorical agency in each context.

She examines the early texts that inaugurated the field of queer theory, such as Queer Nations infamous "Queers Read This" manifesto, Larry Kramer's polemic speeches and editorials, and the Lesbian Avengers' humorous pamphlets. Rand also explores the ways in which queer activists and academics worked together to create a more inclusive and intersectional understanding of gender and sexuality.

One notable aspect of Rand's analysis is her attention to the ways in which queer activism and academic practices were shaped by the political and social context of the time. The AIDS crisis, for example, brought attention to the urgent need for queer and gender-nonconforming communities to assert their rights and visibility. At the same time, academic institutions were becoming more inclusive and diverse, with the emergence of queer studies departments and the increasing recognition of the importance of intersectionality in research and theory.

Reclaiming Queer is a valuable contribution to the field of queer studies, offering a nuanced and comprehensive analysis of the rhetorical linkage between queer theory and street-level queer activism in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Rand's book provides a rich and detailed account of the ways in which these two movements worked together to shape the broader queer rights movement and to challenge the dominant narratives of gender and sexuality.

Weight: 358g
Dimension: 228 x 153 x 20 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780817361631