reviews Gay Liberation in the
righties by Jamie Goug:
and Mike Macnai published by Pluto Press 1985, £4.95. GAY liberation in the eighties?
nowadays talk about "Gay rights". The word "Liberation" seems somehow to belong to the late sixties and
Isn't it a bit unrealistic to talk about "liberation" just now? After all, gay people are under attack on all sides: gay bookshops raided and massive
called AIDS, West Africa and Haiti, found its way into the gay community on the West Coast, U.S.A., and has been largely contained within the gay community ever since for obvious social reasons.
This welcome book goes boldly ontheoretical questions, provide a programme for change.
Chapter one describes the position of gay people in British society in the
Chapter two tries to analyse the origins of the oppression of gay heterosexuality nor homosexuality ara "natural", biologically determin-
phenomena. biological reason for every sex act to produce children, any more than for every act of creativity to produce
This chapter also shows how the existence of specific groups of gay people - and their oppression - is the product society, because of the tension in that society between its character as class society in which the family system is perpetuated; and which sed social the mankeeasingly organised market relationships. The describes the development of a consumerist attitude to sex, and an increasing focus on sex, coupled with the growing crisis of the family.
Chapter three explains the incompatability of the family system with socialism (though the prevalence of Stalinist ideology has made this view seem "extreme"). It argues that movement towards socialism will result in the withering away of the family and with it the comparatively
Gay Liberation in the 80's heterosexual homosexual forms of obsessive sexual behaviour. The abolition of the family is not in question: it is a question of setting free our multiplicity of sexual capacity and removing the obstacles (laws,
policies, rangements, etc.) which contine us at the moment.
four responds to the criticism that "It isn't like that in the 'socialist' countries", by explaining countries. This chapter contains certain weaknesses of view. The authors allude in passing to Trotsky, touch on the fragility of the bureaucratic regimes as against class
briefly mention the advantages economic planning, however inefficient and corrupt, as against comparable capitalist countries... without ever characterising the workers' states. This enables them to slaim for Witha as meing quadeative ly better than Russia, etc., and to lump together Cuba and though these regimes were exactiy The final chande tries to develop a liberation using the method of the transitional programme. This is an in-
ackle all the ways in which gay pec ple are oppressed - though, as the acknowledge, there must be grave weaknesses perspective for lesbian liberation drawn up by two olemicize against reformism in rela on to the police or the press. The attack "lifestylism" advocate alliance movement lone with and workers' Socialist Viewpoint, No. 4, March 1985. Page 21
Paradoxically, I found this conclu sion somewhat negative. Of course changing workmates' consciousness is important, but the book doesn't
Othe authors don't explain how change is likely to take place, it almost seems as if the task ahead is to convert all the Sun-readers we work with, one by one. There is no explanation of the dialectical nature of change, of leaps of consciousness in a revolutionary situation; and above all, most seriously, there is no mention of the need to build a revolutionary party, of the role and importance of the party and its relationship with the working class. touch on the fact that it is alliances with the left that have won gains in the union, but don't take this to its logical conclusion.
Constraints of space imposed by condensed it is packed with ery condensed. It is packed with usetu starting points and food for thought. It fills an important vacuum in current ideas on the left, not just in Britain, but worldwide. What is needed now is a corresponding work on lesbian liberation.
Finally, why is this book important for those in the labour movement and on the left who don't see themselves understand the link between attacks on the working class and attacks on
sexual expression. them it is clear that tensions betwen gay and straight are an important aspect of divide and rule. Lesbians and gays have understood this in giving their support to the miners. Ye the left has been slower to understano it, greeting anti-gay hysteria and persecution with a deafening em barassed silence. Nearly every one of he demands in chapter tive of Ga
iberation in the Eighties is a de mand for the liberation of all of us.
Gay Liberation in the 8O's