Books like When We Were Outlaws by Jeanne Cordova

Jeanne Cordova’s memoir offers an intimate, compelling window into the life of a radical lesbian activist during the early struggle for gay rights, women’s liberation, and the New Left of the 1970s. While living with one woman and falling in love with another, Cordova channels her passion into revolutionary journalism, becoming an investigative reporter for the underground L.A. Free Press and chronicling movements such as the Weather Underground and the Symbionese Liberation Army. She also founded The Lesbian Tide, the pioneering newsmagazine that would become the voice of the national lesbian feminist movement. Across strike protests, music festivals, and covert meetings, Cordova captures the era’s energy with vivid detail and reflective insight, inviting both those who grew up in the era and new readers to relive a pivotal chapter in LGBTQ history. The memoir is introduced by historian Lillian Faderman and examines ethics, decision making, and strategy in social change.

First publish date: 2011