Queer Cities, Queer Cultures: Europe since 1945 - Hardcover

"Despite different approaches, each contributor provides an informative narrative that identifies key factors in a city's queer history: e.g., the memorialization of Nazi persecution of gays in Berlin, the fallout of the 'sexual revolution' and Amsterdam's reputation as a tolerant 'gay capital, ' the mixing of Western secular and Muslim cultures in Istanbul, and life in Madrid as it moved from dictatorship to democracy ... A strong collection and a good introduction to contemporary European queer history. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Upper-division undergraduates and above." --B. Lowe, Florida Atlantic University, CHOICE Despite different approaches, each contributor provides an informative narrative that identifies key factors in a city's queer history: e.g., the memorialization of Nazi persecution of gays in Berlin, the fallout of the 'sexual revolution' and Amsterdam's reputation as a tolerant 'gay capital, ' the mixing of Western secular and Muslim cultures in Istanbul, and life in Madrid as it moved from dictatorship to democracy ... A strong collection and a good introduction to contemporary European queer history. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Upper-division undergraduates and above. B. Lowe, Florida Atlantic University, CHOICE"

Through a series of urban case studies, this book examines the articulation of particular subcultures and forms of expression with the broader stories we tell about postwar Europe and particular watershed moments. It considers queer life in the selected cities in relation to the advent and end of Cold War polarization, and considers the degree to which the iconic events of 1945, 1968, and 1989 influenced the social and sexual climate of the ensuing decades. It raises questions about the form and structure of the 1960s sexual revolution, and forces us to think about how we define sexual liberalization and where, how and on whose terms it occurs. The book also explores the role of America in shaping particular forms of subculture; the significance of changes in legal codes; modes of queer consumption and displays of community; the difficult fit of queer (as opposed to gay and lesbian) politics in liberal democracies; the challenge of AIDS; and the arrival of the internet.