Gay Print Culture

“In this remarkable and provocative book, Juan Carlos Mezo González reveals an intricate tapestry of archival material, interviews, and visual culture to show the ideas, people, and placement of queer activism as a borderland of desire. An exceptional analytical and archival undertaking, Gay Print Culture is a testament to the importance of visual media as a tool for liberation activists.” - Patrizia Gentile, author of Queen of the Maple Leaf: Beauty Contests and Settler Femininity

“Way before the internet, periodicals were key to the spreading of important information and the building of identities for many gay communities across the Western Hemisphere. Mezo González’s outstanding analysis of these publications from the 1970s and 1980s shows the central role they played in gay liberation movements. This highly accessible book is a must-read for anyone interested in social movements and gay rights.” - Jordi Diez, Professor of Political Science, University of Guelph

"Zines and images helped normalize and politicize queerness while also forming communities. At first, this happened covertly through underground networks, but slowly, gay print culture influenced the mainstream. This book spans the 1970s–90s, sandwiched between the dawn of the gay liberation movement and that of the internet. The result is a powerful story of how aesthetics and politics can co-conspire." - Emily Watlington, Art in America

"The book’s particular contribution is its attention to visual culture: how images circulated in community newsletters, commercial magazines, and erotic publications, and how that circulation shaped political consciousness across borders." - Gay 45