The Lavender Scare

In The Lavender Scare, David K. Johnson tells the frightening story of how, during the Cold War, homosexuals were considered as dangerous a threat to national security as Communists. Charges that the Roosevelt and Truman administrations were havens for homosexuals proved a potent political weapon, sparking a "Lavender Scare" more vehement and long-lasting than Joseph McCarthy's Red Scare. Drawing on declassified documents, years of research in the records of the National Archives and the FBI, and interviews with former civil servants, Johnson recreates the vibrant gay subculture that flourished in midcentury Washington and takes us inside the security interrogation rooms where anti-homosexual purges ruined the lives and careers of thousands of Americans.

This enlarged edition of Johnson's classic work of history--the winner of numerous awards and the basis for an acclaimed documentary broadcast on PBS--features a new epilogue, bringing the still-relevant story into the twenty-first century.

David K. Johnson is an associate professor in the department of history at the University of South Florida.

• Publisher: University of Chicago Press
• Publish Date: March 22, 2023
• Pages: 322
• Dimensions: 6.2 X 8.6 X 1.1 inches | 1.0 pounds
• Language: English
• Type: Paperback
• EAN/UPC: 9780226825724
• BISAC Categories: United States - 20th Century, LGBT Studies - Gay Studies
• Discrimination & Race Relations, American Government - General, Public Affairs & Administration, Modern - 20th Century - Cold War, LGBTQ+ Labor