Reagan, Politics, and the Gay Community

James Kirchick joins Ron Steslow to discuss his book Secret City: The Hidden History of Gay Washington

(01:55) Why he wrote the book

(06:43) The interwoven political history and gay history in Washington

(14:33) The melting pot of the gay community and why it was seen as a  threat

(19:55) The trope that whatever is bad must be gay

(31:51) The Lavender Scare 

(35:53) The tension between the gay  loyal foot soldiers of Ronald Reagan and courting the religious right 

(49:00) What was challenging about writing the book 

You should read Secret City: The Hidden History of Gay Washington: http://bit.ly/3wgiORk

Follow James Kirchick and Ron on Twitter:

https://twitter.com/jkirchick

https://twitter.com/RonSteslow

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