Regulating Homosexuality in Soviet Russia, 1956-91: A Different History

This book challenges the view that sex and homosexuality were unmentionable in the USSR and reveals that doctors, educators, jurists, and police officers discussed homosexuality from 1956 to 1991. These discussions had practical implications, such as doctors designing and offering medical treatments for homosexuality and procedures and medications being used in prisons.

Format: Hardback
Length: 264 pages
Publication date: 25 May 2021
Publisher: Manchester University Press

This groundbreaking book challenges the pervasive notion that sex and homosexuality were taboo in the Soviet Union during the Khrushchev and Brezhnev eras (1956-82). This perspective has remained largely unexplored. By utilizing previously undiscovered sources, Alexander fills this critical gap.

The book unveils that from 1956 to 1991, doctors, educators, jurists, and police officers engaged in discussions about homosexuality. At the core of these discussions were pressing questions that directly impacted the lives of homosexual individuals in the USSR. Was homosexuality a crime, a disease, or a normal variant of human sexuality? Should lesbianism be criminalized? Could sex education prevent homosexuality? What role did the Gulag and prisons play in homosexuality across the USSR? These discussions often had practical implications, as doctors designed and offered medical treatments for homosexuality in hospitals, and procedures and medications were also used in prisons.

This book holds significant relevance to United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 5, which aims to achieve gender equality. By shedding light on the historical discussions surrounding homosexuality in the Soviet Union, this book contributes to a deeper understanding of the complexities and challenges faced by LGBTQ+ individuals in societies across the globe. It serves as a valuable resource for scholars, researchers, and activists working towards promoting equality and inclusivity for all genders and sexual orientations.

Weight: 442g
Dimension: 145 x 224 x 22 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781526155764