Tales of the Lavender Menace: A Memoir Of Liberation

by Karla Jay, Hillary Huber (Reader)

Karla Jay's memoir of an age whose tumultuous social and political movements fundamentally reshaped American culture takes listeners from her early days in the 1968 Columbia University student riots to her post-college involvement in New York radical women's groups and the New York Gay Liberation Front to Southern California in the early '70s, where she continued in the battle for gay civil rights. We see her helping to organize the takeover of The Ladies Home Journal and “ogle-ins” - where women staked out Wall Street and whistled at the men. We follow her in the fast lane of the sexual freedom movement as she liberates sun worshippers from their bathing suits.

Genres: LGBT, Nonfiction, Feminism, Memoir, History, Queer, Lesbian

Audio CD

First published January 1, 1999

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Karla Jay is a professor of English and the director of the Women's and Gender Studies program at Pace University. A pioneer in the field of lesbian and gay studies, she is widely published. Jay was born Karla Jayne Berlin in Brooklyn, New York, to a conservative Jewish family. She attended the Berkeley Institute, a private girls' school in Brooklyn now called the Berkeley Carroll School. Later she attended Barnard College, where she majored in French, and graduated in 1968 after having taken part in the student demonstrations at Columbia University. While she shared many of the goals of the radical left-wing of the late 1960s, Jay was uncomfortable with the male-supremacist behavior of many of the movement’s leaders. In 1969, she became a member of Redstockings. At around the same time she began using the name Karla Jay to reflect her feminist principles.

Reviews

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fascinating and easy to read memoir about the early years of the radical feminist and gay liberation movements. I would recommend this to anyone interested in radical feminism, queer history, feminist history, or just a good memoir.

[Christina · Rating 4 out of 5]

For pride month this year, I really wanted to read a lesbian memoir from the early Gay Liberation movement with as little transphobia in it as possible--and this was exactly what I was looking for! I'm happy I ended up finding a narration with a good-humored author who was in the midst of a lot of action during and around the Stonewall era of Gay Liberation. I found it interesting (and also kind of reassuring) that queer people in the late 60s and early 70s era of activism were no monolith, and that back then (much like today) there was a lot of in-fighting within the community. I enjoyed reading about the revolutionary hopes of some queer people back then, how they were intersectional in their activism and hoping to change the world, not assimilate to it.

My only critique is that I feel as though it cuts off quite suddenly--I know it ends around the time the author, Karla Jay, falls of out radical politics and instead begins writing and teaching women's studies. However, I would really like knowing her views on the queer politics of the 80s and early 90s and how her personal life, politics and identity as a lesbian has changed since the 70s. She briefly touches upon this in the epilogue, but I feel as though it could have gone further and longer. Perhaps I can look into some of her other work to see if she has anything focused on the later years of the gay rights movement. And, I'd especially be interested to see how she views the modern queer movement! It's a bit more radical than in the late 90s and early 2000s.

Overall, great memoir. I zipped through it really quickly and was quite engaged. It was a really good and informative pride month read!

[Tilda🌟 · Rating 3 out of 5]

very very interesting but also a little dated. Less intersectional than I expected...perhaps I was a little naive. I also winced once or twice at jay’s description of some of her old lovers/friends…

but I also learnt so much! and it’s been a really interesting perspective to add to my research project on lesbian activism :-) yooop

[Amelia Diehl · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really appreciate the power of memoir as a more accessible way to learn about history; but Jay's writing style could feel stilted - it was hard to tell if her sarcasm was really her voice or a way to dispel the awkward honesty of first-person accounts. For a queer woman who has largely taken my relative privilege and freedom to claim that identity for granted, I learned a lot from this book. Jay seems to cover only a small swath of years - mid '60s to mid '70s or so - but ends each chapter with a more contemporary look back, a "where-are-they-now" tidbit, which was a smart narrative device. Jay shares about her family life, but most of the narrative is about her radical awakening in NYC, perspective gained in LA, and critiques of the movements at the time; she names names and writes dialogue; there are even some surprisingly graphic sex scenes. In Jay's accounts, the government's oppression of the LGTBQ community almost took a backseat with all the movement in-fighting going on (but FBI infiltrators do make a big scene - and organizing gay dances was indeed radical at the time); Jay gives us the nitty gritty of tensions between straight feminists and lesbians, and gay men and lesbians; while she mentions the leadership of trans folks and sex workers and people of color, the memoir is unfortunately very whitewashed; unsurprisingly, a book published in '99 is peppered with outdated terms, but it was illuminating to take stock of historical tidbits, and note to oneself the places where feminist analysis and movements have grown since her time (obviously, this monument to second-wave-ish feminism should be taken with a grain of salt) - but also to see how much has NOT changed.

[Taylor Emmaus · Rating 2 out of 5]

Far too overtly-sexual for my preference in a memoir. I had high expectations for this book, as Jay is a veteran gay rights activist. Yet, most of the book was her inner ramblings about her sexual fantasies, with interludes of historical information that felt impersonable to her own story. She criticized the movement and her opinion throughout felt misshapen by other people’s influences on her. It feels more like a journal entry, than a memoir. The writing and storytelling methods Jay uses falls flat. If you’re looking for an uplifting memoir about gay rights or interested in activist history, this is not the memoir for you.

[Adrian Collins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great account of that time in history that I often fantasize about. Karla Jay's memoir includes the perfect balance of documenting the political goings on of the women's liberation movement and the gay liberation movement as well as the lifestyle and sex life of a lesbian in the late 60s- early 70s. Highly recommend for lesbians who love history!

[Joanna · Rating 4 out of 5]

I know Karla and I was there for a lot of the demonstrations she describes. A great history.

[Anna · Rating 5 out of 5]

one of the rare glimpses inside BOTH the women's and gay liberation movements of the late 70s and how they clashed. fascinating firsthand account of the historic moments -- both good and bad.

[Alex Smartt · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked up this book because I wanted to learn more about queer history, but I was shocked to see just how much of this book still applies today. I had heard that radical feminism had been racist, queerphobic, and even misogynist from the very beginning, but reading about what it was like from someone who was there herself was eye opening. Karla and her friends' efforts to bring feminism and queerness together felt hopeful even while dealing with infighting from multiple groups.

Reading this really made me admire Karla Jay. She consistently went out of her way to question her own beliefs and fight for human rights even if it meant putting herself in uncomfortable and dangerous situations. Reading how the rad fem group warned her to fear trans women and then deciding that was a load of bull when becoming very good friends with Marsha P Johnson felt very rewarding. I was rooting for Karla through out the entire read. The parts where Karla discusses her horrid relationship with her mother, grieving the abuse she went through, and still learning to sympathize with her when examining her mother's experience through feminist theory was great. This book felt like a heart-felt conversation with a friend.

I will say, I was dissapointed that there was little to no mention of black women, other women of colour, bisexuals, or trans men (though the mentions of trans women were also very scarce). These communities were very white washed and cis-centric, so I imagine she just never met any at these groups. Still, it would have been nice for her to mention how these groups fit into the infightingm She mentions the lesbian separatist' opinion that bisexual women were fence sitters who didn't want to give up their privilege to become lesbians, but nothing after that. Regardless, it was still a good read.

[Octoberbear · Rating 3 out of 5]

“You can’t just assume everyone is gay because the sun goes down."

“Your daughter is on television, and she is queen.”

“Welcome, Brother Teresa, to the sisterhood of pain and oppression.”

"It might have been difficult for straight women to appreciate just how political a women’s dance was. In NY state, it was illegal for two pole pole of the same sex to dance together. Just by dancing, we were challenging a system that refused to let us be ourselves.”

“They asked us what we’re doing in a phone booth at that hour of the night. ‘Fixing it, we're from the phone company.” I replied nervously. I was so desperate that I ripped the receiver off it’s cable. ‘See it’s broken.'”

“Today we take the privilege of same sex dances for granted, but in that winter if 1970 we were aware that we had broken new ground. We were proud and amazed at our daring.”

“Since the word sexual harassment had not been coined yet, we were at a loss for words.”

[Amanda K · Rating 4 out of 5]

Karla Jay’s memoir provides a portrait of a number of early political movements erupting in 1969 and 1970 for feminist, leftist/student, civil rights, gay liberation, and sexual liberation causes in New York and Los Angeles. She describes early tactics such as consciousness raising groups and dances that were designed to bring about social change through sharing stories and experiences. Yet she also is critical of the movements, detailing how some felt politics justified violence or how sexual freedom pushed the boundaries of consent. Most often, she describes how the ruptures and contradictions in radical groups often sidelined or silenced others (like women, LBT, and POCs). The portraits she provides of many activists and lovers can seem judgmental and even cruel at times, but the memoir serves as an essential glimpse into the radical politics of this era of American history.

[Colby Marut · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting and disheartening to read how similar in-fighting in radical movements was in the 1970s and now. There were so many parallels that I had to double check what decade she was speaking about.

Karla Jay is pretty honest in her epilogue how she isn't quite sure how she shed her radical lesbian identity of her younger years to her more academic middle class identity and it just has me thinking about what are the factors that keep people forging ahead in radicalism into their older years. Is it a nihilistic changing of heart that pulls people into a normative path? I don't frankly know.

[Meredith Nigh]

Virtually impossible to give a star rating for this one. I am definitely a fiction-only girly but when I saw this in the shelf during pride month I knew I had to get this one in. I am grateful that I did (not just because there happened to be a queer trivia night at the Bearded Tit that had a whole round on this same subject, winning my team second place!) because knowing our history is so important. Knowing the names and messy background of the original revolution is so key to approaching our future. Thanks Karla!

[JJ · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read it for class & enjoyed it. Very easy read, straight-forward writing, not sure if I'll ever reread it even though I now own a copy of it. Interesting perspective on different activist groups & the problems contained within each. Felt a balance between dreams of goals & the realistic difficulties of working with other people to make change happen.

[Finnoula · Rating 4 out of 5]

I truly love the history of the book but the content is quite dated. I feel like if they did an Edition with audio, that Karla should’ve written about the 20 year gap between the original publication and this recording. It was an okay book.

[Michaela Philip · Rating 5 out of 5]

Solid and entertaining memoire! Jay presents herself and others realistically and neutrally - she owns her shortcomings and successes and presents a neat view into a community and era that we have largely lost.

[Jim Dear · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating and engaging memoir.

[Whitney Cipolla · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting account of women’s liberation and the gay liberation movement from the perspective of a radical lesbian.

[Cai Nairn · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't remember this book well but read it while living with my very catholic grandmother and having very indecent dreams about the virgin mother.

[Abigail · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fast, easy, and mostly lighthearted read. A nice little glimpse into the day to day of lesbian life of the 70s.

[Alex! · Rating 3 out of 5]

interesting little snapshot, imo, even if kinda outdated in how it talks abt like. trans ppl

[mallory payne · Rating 3 out of 5]

read a LOT faster than Zami, and frankly the text actually read like a memoir. not to shit on Zami, Lorde is a wonderful writer, but i just think nonfiction is NOT the genre for me.

[Jo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really informative memoir about what it was like being part of both the gay and womens liberation movement in the 70s

There were parts where my heart dropped to my stomach

[Gail Kennon · Rating 3 out of 5]

i enjoyed her voice throughout but enjoyed the early history most.

[Aubrey Bryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Picked this up from a box of queer literature in Park Slope on a visit to Brooklyn before I moved here. It was a perfection introduction to the history I'm seeking to engage with. Flawed, human stories of flawed humans doing their best to make the world a better place. I know it's only one small slice of what's happened to get us where we are today & where we're going in terms of queer liberation, but Jay never acts as if she's doing anything more than just showing us her small slice of the experience.

[Becky · Rating 4 out of 5]

very interesting historically

[Jessica Stein · Rating 4 out of 5]

An important memoir of the gay liberation movement. Also very fun to read. A little mean in parts, but that just adds to the fun!

[l · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's worth reading but her understanding of racism/the issues specifically affecting woc & lesbian woc is very limited.

[Dani · Rating 5 out of 5]

I picked this up on a whim while looking for new books to donate to my local library. It was engaging and interesting to see a slice of the feminist movement most people don't talk about.