The Truth That Never Hurts: Writings on Race, Gender, and Freedom (Lesbian & Gay Studies)

The Truth That Never Hurts: Writings on Race, Gender, and Freedom (Lesbian & Gay Studies)
by Barbara Smith

The Truth That Never Hurts: Writings on Race, Gender, and Freedom (Lesbian & Gay Studies)
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Book Summary Information

Author: Barbara Smith
Edition: Hardcover
Audio: English (Original Language); English (Unknown); English (Published)
Published: 1998-11
ISBN: 081352573X
Number of pages: 217
Publisher: Rutgers University Press

Book Reviews of The Truth That Never Hurts: Writings on Race, Gender, and Freedom (Lesbian & Gay Studies)

Book Review: Thoughtful introduction to radical political action
Summary: 3 Stars

In this anthology of essays from her political career, Smith challenges America and the social science fields to recognize the multi-layered experience of queer women of color whose histories have been marginalized and erased in every single way imaginable. Better yet, she emphasizes that this struggle (through whatever means) is by nature hard, long and certainly not glamorus.

The best political organizing is not done for material or financial gratification, it is done for the betterment of all segments in the same society.

But it simmultaneously attacks it's own strong points through oversimplification of the facts regarding queer organizing in the late 20th and early 21st century.I feel that she is too quick to dismiss the contributions of groups such as HRC to the public policy table in favor of a romanticized version of policy making where radicals are the only ones doing any type of work to stop prejudice.

The HRC has attained and sustained numerous criticisms from people who believe the group's policies are a form of "sanitized" politics: because the group tends to court the more moderate politicians, it constructs a narrow context of gay rights suggesting that GLBT Americans are no different from their straight counterparts and can fit into the existing structures of society, only if they are allowed to.

In the fall of 2001, I worked on a local campaign that sought to halt passage of a ballot initiative prohibiting the Houston City council from even considering the offering of domestic partner benefits to GLBT municipal employees. The group I was with was a multicultural coalition of activists whose strategizing embraced the very radicalism Smith claims will bring true change.

Furthermore, HRC sent their representatives down to follow the agenda that we had already confirmed-although I realize much of the strategies and tactics differed from what they would have done in a similar situation without an existing radical coalition.

Even though I am personally more in line with Smith's idelogy, I also recognize that moderate civil rights groups provide a stepping stone for people new to political organizing---those who remain content with the level of analysis will stay with the organization, whereas the more politically assertive will look for other organizations who can fulfill their needs and address their issues in an appropriate manner as they begin to make deeper connections between their lot in life and the very structure of society itself.

Summary of The Truth That Never Hurts: Writings on Race, Gender, and Freedom (Lesbian & Gay Studies)

This work brings together more than two decades of literary criticism and political thought about gender, race, sexuality, power and social change. As one of the first writers in the United States to claim black feminism for black women in the early 1970s, Barbara Smith's work has been groundbreaking in defining a black women's literary tradition; in examining the sexual politics of the lives of black and other women of colour; in representing the lives of black lesbians and gay men; and in making connections between race, class, sexuality and gender. Smith's essay "Toward a Black Feminist Criticism", is often cited as a major catalyst in opening the field of black women's literature. This essay also presented the first serious discussion of black lesbian writing. Essays about racism in the women's movement, black and Jewish relations, and homophobia in the black community have ignited dialogue about topics that few other writers address. The collection also brings together topical political commentaries that examine the 1968 Chicago convention demonstrations; attacks on the NEA; the Anita Hill-Clarence Thomas Senate hearings; and police brutality against Rodney King and Abner Louima. It also includes a never before published personal essay on racial violence, the day-to-day life of Kitchen Table Press and the bonds between black women that make it possible to survive. Smith's writing offers a rare combination of intellectual challenge and an accessible personal voice. Her commitment to telling the truth about difficult, even volatile issues, makes a unique contribution to American literature and social thought.

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