"Lehring has done an excellent job in positioning his argument in the current post-September 11th cultural/political/legal context. His gritty case studies enliven the analytical points he makes. Officially Gay is a book that is interesting and valuable to several fields-law and society, gay and lesbian studies, gender studies, and public policy studies."-Cynthia Enloe, author of Maneuvers: The International Politics of ... Read moreMilitarizing Women's Lives "Officially Gay turns philosophies and policies into clear, provocative accounts of movement ideas and personal lives. Lehring taps thinkers like Arendt and Foucault to analyze military policy, medical research, Congressional testimony, news reporting, legal analysis, and more. This is a telling contribution from political theory to public policy and practical politics."-John Nelson, Professor in Political Science and the Project on Rhetoric of Inquiry at the University of Iowa "Lehring's examination of discharge cases is fascinating."-Choice "[It] makes a unique and important contribution to the growing body of literature concerning the debate on the US military's ban on homosexuality...the strength of his book lies in his demonstration of how sociopolitical attitudes and values are translated into laws and policy."-The Women's Review of Books "In this impassioned treatise, Lehring argues that military policies towards gays and lesbians have played a major role in the creation of what he terms an 'official' gay identity-namely, 'who and what lesbians and gay men are.' The opportunity to defend one's country is a hallmark of citizenship, explains Lehring; thus, an individual who is deemed unfit for military service based on his sexual orientation is, in many ways, stripped of some of his rights and privileges as an American."-Publishers Weekly "This book represents an important contribution to the disciplinary study of gay and lesbian politics... Lehring's compelling treatment of the military policy chapters (which form the core of the book) make this recommended reading for students of minority politics, public policy, and gender and sexuality studies."-Political Science Quarterly Show Less