Now & Then

Don’t Say Gay: A Queer History

State lawmakers have proposed almost 250 anti-LGBTQ laws in 2022 alone. Why are we seeing such a virulent political backlash to sexual identity? And what can the current vitriol tell us about the entwinement of sexual orientation and politics in American history? 

Heather and Joanne discuss the history of categorizing sexual preference, from the relative fluidity of early American sexual choices, to the rise of “Boston Marriages” and New York’s gay culture, to the McCarthy-led 1950s Lavender Scare. 

Join CAFE Insider to listen to “Backstage,” where Heather and Joanne chat each week about the anecdotes and ideas that formed the episode. Head to: cafe.com/history

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For references &amp; supplemental materials, head to: cafe.com/now-and-then/dont-say-gay-a-queer-history

Now &amp; Then is presented by CAFE and the Vox Media Podcast Network.
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How can the past help inform today’s most pressing challenges? Every Wednesday, award-winning historians Heather Cox Richardson and Joanne Freeman use their encyclopedic knowledge of US history to bring the past to life. Together, they make sense of the week in news by discussing the people, ideas, and events that got us here today. Now and Then is produced by CAFE and the Vox Media Podcast Network.