Clayton Delery-EdwardsKirja-arvosteluja

This concise, well-written, and meticulously researched volume focuses on a little-known but significant event in the queer history of the US.

Delery-Edwards carefully reconstructs the narrative of the fire that consumed the Up Stairs Lounge, a small but popular gay bar in New Orleans in the early 1970s. He tells the story of the owners, employees, and patrons who frequented the bar and succeeds in humanizing a tragedy that was in danger of becoming an historical footnote.

Furthermore, Delery-Edwards examines the facts with fresh eyes and questions the surviving records of the arson. Although the case remains officially unsolved, Delery-Edwards makes a strong argument for the guilt of the most likely suspect. Perhaps most importantly, he situates this awful tragedy within the cultural and political context of its time, offering astute and persuasive analysis of the local response to the fire and the seeming official indifference to the massive loss of life. He even manages to find some hope in the aftermath of the fire, showing how it served to galvanize the LGBTQ community in New Orleans.

This book should find a place on the reading list of anyone interested in the queer history of America.