Joe Openshaw, Author of “Those Others; Navigating the Riddle of Homosexuality in 1965”, comes to Stonewall Live! Thursday August 4, 9PM EST
The year is 1965. Eighteen year old Michael, a recent high school graduate, is sent to Washington DC from rural Tennessee to find direction for his life.
He finds direction, but as he tells the Senator, “I have been pulled in a direction that I knew nothing about, and it is not where I want to go. I can’t.”
Between January 31 and February 4, 1965 a series of articles regarding homosexuality was published in The Washington Post. The articles dealt with homosexuality from many aspects, including the social, medical, psychiatric, employment, legal and religious aspects. Most likely this was the first publication in the mainstream media that presented homosexuality in what at the time could be a fair and balanced way.
Michael is forced to deal with issues regarding his sexuality, and he uses the information in the newspaper articles to further his understanding. But the misinformation of the times also leads to confusion.
Those Others is part novel and part history. It’s a window into mid-century LGBT life. The book by Joe Openshaw follows Michael, a young, all-American male from Tennessee, who is unable to get a college athletic scholarship or join the military due to his asthma. He goes to work for a family friend, now a Senator himself closeted who introduces Michael to the articles.
Join me on Thursday, August 4 9PM as Dr. Joe Openshaw comes to Stonewall Live! for an interesting interview you won’t want to miss. www.blogtalkradio.com/stonewalllive
