One book he references is the published diary of Jeb Alexander, a gay man who lived and wrote about his closeted life living here in 20s through 1960s. I ordered it from Amazon, I can't wait to read it and see firsthand what it was like to be here and queer in the early part of the last century.
Loughery's book provides ample insight into that - and he documents the lives of gay men who dealt with being a fairy (no one called themselves "gay" back then) in a society that didn't talk about or acknowledge, at least openly, sex of any kind.
I was particularly moved by the story of Paul Phillips, the son of a Midwestern black lawyer.
"When rumors about [Paul] being 'that way' reached Mr. Phillips, he...informed Paul that his was an 'unnatural condition' and that they would have to see what could be done about it."
The Phillips family took Paul on a road trip to the Mayo clinic. The Doctors examined the boy and returned with a verdict...yep, he's gay. And they couldn't cure him.
"After taking a while to get used to the idea, Paul's father came to a judicious conclusion. If his son suffered from an illness that couldn't be cured by the best doctors in the country, then he'd lead his life as he had to - but lead it with caution and dignity. 'Find yourself a friend you can trust,' Mr. Phillips said, 'and bring him home.' Hanging out on the streets or fooling around on country roads was dangerous 'because you never know who's going to step up behind you...What you do in your own room is your business.'"The prevailing views of the time didn't stop Paul's family from looking at their son as "sick," but I was moved by their compassionate and loving response to it nonetheless. Far more loving and enlightened than today's Catholic Church or Republican Party.
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