Lesbian and Gay Marriage: Private Commitments, Public Ceremonies

The 24 same-sex couples in this book reveal the qualities that inspire people to create lifetime partnerships. Marriage is more than a relationship sanctioned by law; it is the centerpiece of American social structure and is at the core of the traditional definition of family. This book offers a unique perspective on the controversial subject. In the days before marriage was legalized in any state in the United States, half of the same-sex couples featured in this book married in traditional wedding ceremonies, facing challenges within their religious communities and families. In one story, a Quaker couple that asked their Meeting for consensus on their wedding request was not granted it. The other half of same-sex couples featured in this book have chosen not to marry, believing the construct of marriage not to be useful to them for any reasons besides the legal protections marriage bestows. These intimately described committed partnerships are between three and thirty-eight years long at the time of publication. The couples are from throughout the United States and represent diverse racial and class backgrounds. They include such prominent lesbian rights activists as Phyllis Lyon and Del Martin, who married in 2008, when California became the second state to legally recognize same-sex marriage, fifty-five years into Lyon and Martin's committed partnership and two months before Martin's death, at 87 years old. For the married couples, each narrative addresses the affects of the marriage on their relationship and reactions of family and friends to their public commitment. All couples address the everyday issues of their relationships, revealing the commonalities among us all -- married or unmarried. Also included are personal observations by same-sex wedding ceremony officiators representing a variety of religions, including a Catholic priest, a female rabbi and a Wiccan high priestess.

Lesbian And Gay Marriage: Private Commitments, Public Ceremonies

Politics & Social Sciences

Sherman, Suzanne

Social Sciences

Temple University Press

Girlhood in America showcases American culture through a rare perspective, with over fifty short personal stories by women and girls detailing events from life under age 13 in every decade of 100 years. Chapter by chapter, in first-person narratives women and girls from around the country showcase ten decades give an unprecedented look at American culture and women’s culture. From life-altering inventions like the Model T Florence’s father buys from a door-to-door car salesman in 1911 to the visit a girl makes at 12 to Woodstock in 1969, the book is a revealing look inside what’s universal and what defines a decade. Racism repeats itself, families take new shape, as young girls help create American culture in the 21st century. This is history in motion—entertaining, eye-opening, educational—a true story of America told in the truest of voices. Pop culture highlights open every decade/chapter, with the entry of the yo-yo and so much more. Have fun time-traveling!

Girlhood in America: Personal Stories 1910 - 2010

Biographies & Memoirs

Community & Culture

SZS Publishing

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Books by Sherman, Suzanne