The Antigay Agenda: Orthodox Vision and the Christian Right

Gay rights are a volatile political issue in the United States today. For some, gay rights are the culmination of a fiercely waged campaign for full citizenship. For others, notably the Christian Right, the extension of rights to lesbians and gay men symbolizes the moral excesses of a culture out of control. For both proponents and opponents, gay rights is an issue that is not only close to hearts, but also reflective of the individual and collective soul.

The Antigay Agenda is a shrewd, lucid analysis of the mobilization of the Christian Right against homosexuality. Didi Herman probes the values, beliefs, and rhetoric of the chief opponents of gay rights - the organizations of the Christian Right. Tracing the emergence of their antigay agenda, Herman explores how and why the Christian Right made antigay activity a top priority, and how it both extends and departs from their past politics.

Combining the insights of sociology, legal studies, political science, history, and literary criticism, Herman examines the Christian Right's representations of male homosexuality and lesbianism. She exposes the movement's ambivalence toward rights discourse on homosexuality, gender, and race. Finally, Herman reveals how the Christian Right balances its antistate rhetoric with its ambitions for religious rule by examining Colorado's statewide repeal of local gay rights legislation through Amendment 2.

Herman agrees that the Christian Right demonizes homosexuals, just as it has Jews and communists. But she does not stereotype its members as simply bigots and fundamentalists. Instead, she draws on extensive research, including interviews with leading conservative Christians, to depict a rational political movement torn apart by tensions and contradictions.