Against Equality Queer Revolution Not Mere Inclusion

When “rights” go wrong.

• Does gay marriage support the right-wing goal of linking access to basic human rights like health care and economic security to an inherently conservative tradition?
• Will the ability of queers to fight in wars of imperialism help liberate and empower LGBT people around the world?
• Does hate-crime legislation affirm and strengthen historically anti-queer institutions like the police and prisons rather than dismantling them?

 The Against Equality collective asks some hard questions. These queer thinkers, writers, and artists are committed to undermining a stunted conception of “equality.” In this powerful book, they challenge mainstream gay and lesbian struggles for inclusion in elitist and inhumane institutions. More than a critique, Against Equality seeks to reinvigorate the queer political imagination with fantastic possibility!

 "In an era when so much of the lesbian and gay movement seems to echo the rhetoric of the mainstream Establishment, the work of Against Equality is an important provocation and corrective.... I hope this book is read widely, particularly by the people who will most disagree with it; in the tradition of the great political pamphleteers, this collection should spark debate around some of the key issues for our movement." —Dennis Altman, author of Homosexual: Oppression and Liberation

 "Against Equality  issues a radical call for social transformation. Against and beyond the "holy trinity" of pragmatic gay politics—marriage, militarism, and prison—the queer and trans voices archived in this collection offer a radical left critique of neoliberalism, capitalism, and state oppression. In a format accessible and enlivening, equally at home in the classroom and on the street, this book keeps our political imaginations alive. Prepare to be challenged, educated, and inspired." —Margot Weiss, author of Techniques of Pleasure

In Oakland, California on March 24, 2015 a fire destroyed the AK Press warehouse along with several other businesses. Please consider visiting the AK Press website to learn more about the fundraiser to help them and their neighbors.

• Does gay marriage support the right-wing goal of linking access to basic human rights like health care and economic security to an inherently conservative tradition?
• Will the ability of queers to fight in wars of imperialism help liberate and empower LGBT people around the world?
• Does hate-crime legislation affirm and strengthen historically anti-queer institutions like the police and prisons rather than dismantling them?

The Against Equality collective asks some hard questions. These queer thinkers, writers, and artists are committed to undermining a stunted conception of "equality." In this powerful book, they challenge mainstream gay and lesbian struggles for inclusion in elitist and inhumane institutions. More than a critique, Against Equality seeks to reinvigorate the queer political imagination with fantastic possibility

"In an era when so much of the lesbian and gay movement seems to echo the rhetoric of the mainstream Establishment, the work of Against Equality is an important provocation and corrective.... I hope this book is read widely, particularly by the people who will most disagree with it; in the tradition of the great political pamphleteers, this collection should spark debate around some of the key issues for our movement." --Dennis Altman, author of Homosexual: Oppression & Liberation

"Against Equality issues a radical call for social transformation. Against and beyond the "holy trinity" of pragmatic gay politics--marriage, militarism, and prison--the queer and trans voices archived in this collection offer a radical left critique of neoliberalism, capitalism, and state oppression. In a format accessible and enlivening, equally at home in the classroom and on the street, this book keeps our political imaginations alive. Prepare to be challenged, educated, and inspired." --Margot Weiss, author of Techniques of Pleasure

In Oakland, California on March 24, 2015 a fire destroyed the AK Press warehouse along with several other businesses. Please consider visiting the AK Press website to learn more about the fundraiser to help them and their neighbors.

Queerness is more than who you're sleeping with. It's a point of social contention, something that's different by definition, that's deeply subversive and proud of it!

Against Equality is an argument in support of those who dare to be different, a collection of essays that stand in stark contrast to an ever-growing LGBT mainstream working towards assimilation, and, arguably, cultural erasure. Never ones to shy away from a fight, the authors included in this timely collection address the trifecta of political rifts within the LGBT community: marriage, the military, and prisons.

"Equality" is a concept inextricably linked to positive social progress, but as the authors collected here suggest, it's a concept that often functions as a smoke screen to hide a world riddled with systemic injustice. Take marriage, for instance: is the right to marry whomever we want really a worthy goal for the queer community? What if this perceived "right" is actually a wrong? Against Equality suggests that seeking inclusion in a system that's based on institutional and economic exploitation is an unacceptable path forward.

How will the ability to fight in wars of imperialism help to liberate and empower LGBT people around the world? The striking down of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" only makes a larger population complicit in a system that treats queer bodies, both nationally and internationally, as less than human. With contributions from Kate Bornstein, Mattilda Bernstein Sycamore, John D'Emilio, and others, this book is designed to stir debate.