The Summer of Love Wasn’t All Peace and Hippies
Articles in the underground press capture what's missing from our romanticized memory of that fateful season.
Discovering the “Gay Lifestyle” through 1970s Magazines
The gay men's magazines QQ and Ciao! were unabashedly liberated, but they still catered to an exclusive audience.
Community Cookbooks and the Women Who Wrote Them
Before "local" became a foodie obsession, small groups of women published collections of their own recipes. And still do!
The Idea of “Good Nutrition” Has Changed Over Time
But one thing has been constant: the tendency to call some foods better for you than others.
How LGBTQ+ Activists Got “Homosexuality” out of the DSM
The first DSM, created in 1952, established a hierarchy of sexual deviancies, vaulting heterosexual behavior to an idealized place in American culture.
How Women Fought for the Right to Be Bartenders
As Life magazine put it, “angry barmaids are tough opponents in any hassle.”
Playing Girls’ Basketball in 1930s Chinatown
Chinese American girls played an innovative style of basketball on the playgrounds of San Francisco, and dominated the court.
Policing Intersex Americans’ Sex and Gender
Assigning one sex to people with ambiguous genitalia has a long history in medicine and law.
How American Women First Learned Self-Defense
Jiu-jitsu, judo, boxing, and wrestling raised eyebrows. But physical strength and political empowerment went hand in hand.
Why Do Boy Scouts Shoot Rifles?
It wasn't a big focus at the beginning of the scouting movement. So what changed?