We Still Demand by Patrizia Gentile, Hardcover | Indigo Chapters

We Still Demand! recovers vibrant and unsung histories of sex and gender activism across Canada from the 1970s to the present. Departing from conventional accounts, this book demonstrates the varied nature of resistance and the productive power of remembering sex and gender struggles. In attending to the records and accounts that have slipped out of view, it also redraws the boundaries between activism and scholarship. The first part of the book remembers these struggles. Drawing on a rich history of activism often obscured in existing historical accounts, the contributors recall 1970s same-sex marriage activism; early queer union organizing; organizing against police repression; early trans organizing; the emergence of dyke marches; the organization of black queer space at Toronto Pride events; and the shift from a focus on liberation-oriented activism to rights-oriented activism. The second part of the book rethinks past and current struggles and, in so doing, challenges the current boundaries of sex and gender activism and scholarship. The authors address gender “passing" in historical research; lesbian s/m porn; sex-worker organizing; problems with organizing against “human trafficking"; queer immigration and refugee struggles; borders; and trans identity. By recovering the history of activism and outlining contemporary challenges, We Still Demand! provides a vital rewriting of the history of sex and gender activism in Canada that will enlighten current struggles and activate new forms of resistance. | We Still Demand by Patrizia Gentile, Hardcover | Indigo Chapters