Reading Out Loud

by Natalie Hope McDonald

books Marc Stein, author of the newest local lavender tome, City of Sisterly and Brotherly Loves: Lesbian and Gay Philadelphia, 1945-1972 (Temple University Press), is making six pit stops in the region, including an Oct. 10 appearance at OutFest. Stein"s book debunks notions that New York and San Francisco were the only cities that nurtured mid-20th century gay activism. By showing how the city is linked to its gay past, Stein provides a much-needed study about local culture at large.

"Readers might be most surprised to find that Philadelphia had well-developed gay and lesbian communities in the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s," says Stein. His chronicle picks up before Stonewall, the monumental gay uprising in New York City, and traces political ties to City Hall, popular nightlife spots and neighborhoods.

He addresses the fact that gays were commonly used as pawns by politicians and organized crime and treated with cruelty by medical doctors, even while they worked toward social and sexual reform. "Gays and lesbians played major roles in the history of the city in the careers of politicians like Frank Rizzo and Arlen Specter," he says, as well as in the development of Penn and Temple and urban projects from the Walt Whitman Bridge to the downtown renaissance.

The book also provides insights into more contemporary issues affecting the gay community, like same-sex marriage and AIDS. "We repeat conversations that have been going on for decades," says Stein. "History doesn"t supply all the answers, but it gives us the language to begin asking good questions and participate in intelligent conversations."

Marc Stein signs, Fri., Oct. 8, 7:30 p.m., Giovanni's Room, 345 S. 12th St.; Sat., Oct. 9, 11 a.m.-1 p.m., Collingswood Book Festival, Haddon Ave., Collingswood, N.J.; Sun., Oct. 10, 1-7 p.m., OutFest, 12th and Locust sts.; Mon., Oct. 11, 6 p.m., Borders, 1 S. Broad St., 215-568-7400; Tue., Oct. 12, 3 p.m., Temple University, Gladfelter Hall 914a; Wed., Oct. 13, 7:30 p.m., Barnes & Noble, 720 W. Lancaster Ave., Bryn Mawr.