Canadian War on Queers: National Security As Sexual Regulation

In much the same way as the U.S. government has persecuted gay men and lesbians, Canadian authorities spent half a century spying on and harassing citizens whose only crime was having the "wrong" sexual orientation. In this book, Kinsman (Sociology, Laurentian University) and Gentile (Women's and Gender Studies, Carleton University) argue that the real reason for violating the civil rights and freedoms of thousands of gay and lesbian Canadians was not to protect "national security." Instead, the anti-gay witch hunts were aimed at regulating sexual practices and at convincing Canadians that "deviants" were a threat to society. Describing a period with obvious comparisons to the contemporary "war on terrorism" and attacks on anti-corporate activists, this book will greatly interest students and researchers of lesbian and gay history, Canadian history, and national security studies. (Distributed by UTP Distribution.) Annotation c2010 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Gary Kinsman is the author of The Regulation of Desire and an editor of Sociology for Changing the World. He is a professor in the Sociology Department at Laurentian University, Sudbury. Patrizia Gentile is assistant professor in the Pauline Jewett Institute of Women's and Gender Studies at Carleton University.