Family & Community Students & Families Student Support, Career & Education
Nutrition, Health and Safety

Gay/Straight Alliances: A Student Guide
Non-Fiction Bibliography

Go to Information specifically on: Suicide - Violence

While we wanted to make you aware of these groups and publications, the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education does not necessarily endorse this listing of resources, and we encourage you to make choices based on what would be appropriate for you.

Adair, Nancy and Adair, C., Word is Out, New York: Delta Publication Co., 1978. A collection of autobiographical portraits and interviews drawn from a representative cross-section of the lesbian and gay community. A film version by the same title is also available New Yorker Films, 16 West 61st St., NY, NY 10001)

Alyson Publications, Young, Gay, and Proud, Boston: Alyson Publications, 1985. An essential manual for young people who think they may be lesbian or gay with suggestions for discovering sexual identity, talking to parents, coming out in school, and meeting other gay, lesbian, and bisexual people.

Balka, Christie, and Rose, Andy, eds., Twice Blessed: On Being Lesbian, Gay, and Jewish, Boston: Beacon Press, 1989. This anthology details the lives of lesbian and gay people who are maintaining ties with their Jewish traditions.

Beam, Joseph, ed., In the Life: A Black Gay Anthology, Boston: Alyson Publications, 1986. Twenty-nine black authors explore what it means to be black and gay in the U.S.

Blumenfeld, Warren J. and Raymond, Diane, Looking at Gay and Lesbian Life, Boston: Beacon Press, 1988. A book that brings together in one volume an encyclopedic wealth of well-researched, up-to-date information about every major aspect of gay, lesbian, and bisexual life.

Blumenfeld, Warren J., ed., Homophobia: How We All Pay the Price, Boston: Beacon Press, 1992. An anthology highlighting the theory that homophobia not only oppresses lesbians, gay males, and bisexuals, but also hurts heterosexuals in some very important ways.

Borhek, Mary, Coming Out to Parents: A Two-Way Survival Guide for Lesbians and Gay Men and Their Parents, New York: Pilgrim, 1983. This book explores basic issues of the coming out experience.

Campaign to End Homophobia, "I Think I Might Be Gay...Now What Do I Do?" by Kevin Cranston and Cooper Thompson, and "I Think I Might Be a Lesbian...Now What Do I Do?"; by members of OUTRIGHT, et al. Two brochures for young people who are questioning their sexuality. Copies may be obtained by writing the Campaign to End Homophobia, P.O. Box 819, Cambridge, MA 02139.

Cohen, Susan and Daniel, When Someone You Know Is Gay, New York: Dell Publishing, 1989. This book answers some basic questions for people with gay and lesbian friends and family members.

Fairchild, Betty, and Hayward, Nancy, Now That You Know: What Every Parent Should Know about Homosexuality, Orlando, Florida: Harcourt, Brace, Javanovich, 1989. A guide for the estmated 20-40 million parents in the U.S. who have a gay or lesbian son or daughter.

Fricke, Aaron, Reflection of a Rock Lobster: A Story about Growing Up Gay, Boston: Alyson Publication, 1981. The fascinating true story of a young man who, after growing up gay in a small Rhode Island town, won the right through the courts to attend his senior prom with a male date.

Friends of Project 10, Project 10 Handbook: Addressing Lesbian and Gay Issues in Our Schools, 7850 Melrose Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90046, 1993. A Resource Directory for teachers, guidance counselors, parents, and school-based adolescent care providers.

Gonsiorek, John C., ed., A Guide to Psychotherapy with Gay and Lesbian Clients, Binghamton, New York: Harrington Park Press, 1982. For counselors and others in the human service profession working with lesbian, gay, and bisexual clients.

Governor's Commission on Gay and Lesbian Youth, Making Schools Safe for Gay and Lesbian Youth: Breaking the Silence in Schools and in Families, and Making Colleges and Universities Safe for Gay and Lesbian Students, State House, Room 111, Boston, MA 02133. Two reports and recommendations for change from the Massachusetts Governor's Commission on Gay and Lesbian Youth.

Harbeck, Karen, ed., Coming Out of the Classroom Closet: Gay and Lesbian Students, Teachers, and Curricula, Binghamton, NY: Harrington Park Press, 1992. A collection of essays geared for individuals concerned with improving the climate for lesbians and gay males in schools.

Hein, Karen, AIDS: Trading Fears for Facts, A Guide for Teens, Mount Vernon, New York: Consumers Union of the U.S., 1989. An accessible and accurate resource for teens to separate myth from fact on the issue of AIDS.

Hemphill, Essex, ed., Brother to Brother: New Writings by Black Gay Men, Boston: Alyson Publications, 1991. The second collection, after In the Life, reflecting the special and illuminating experiences of black gay men.

Herdt, Gilbert, ed., Gay and Lesbian Youth, New York: Harrington Park Press, 1989. A collection of scholarly studies from around the world on adolescent homosexuality.

Herdt, Gilbert, & Boxer, Andrew, Children of Horizons: How Gay and Lesbian Teens are Leading a New Way Out of the Closet, Boston: Beacon Press, 1993. The authors follow youth at Horizons, a lesbian and gay social service agency in Chicago, along a path from loneliness and secrecy to active participation in public gay and lesbian culture.

Heron, Ann, ed., One Teenager in 10: Testimony by Gay and Lesbian Youth (1983), and Two Teenagers in 20: Testimony by Gay and Lesbian Youth, (1994) Boston: Alyson Publications Personal testimonies of gay and lesbian youth covering their special sexual awakenings, their struggles to come to terms with their feelings, and their courage coming out to family, friends, and society.

Hutchins, Loraine, and Kaahumanu, Lani, eds., Bi Any Other Name: Bisexual People Speak Out, Boston: Alyson Publications, 1991. This anthology covers the wide spectrum of bisexual experience, from the personal to the political.

Jennings, Kevin, ed., Becoming Visible: A Reader in Gay & Lesbian History for High School and College Students, Boston: Alyson Publications, 1991. This book brings together key readings from a number of important sources in the field of gay and lesbian history.

Jennings, Kevin, ed., One Teacher in Ten: Gay & Lesbian Educators Tell Their Stories, Boston: Alyson Publications, 1994. Stories of the grade school experience told from the point of view of gay and lesbian teachers.

Lipkin, Arthur, A Staff Development Manual for Anti-Homophobia Education in the Secondary Schools, Gay and Lesbian High School Curriculum Project, Harvard Graduate School of Education, 1992. A manual for conducting staff-development workshops around issues of homophobia and gay and lesbian adolescent development.

Marcus, Eric, Is It a Choice?: Answers to 300 of the Most Frequently Asked Questions about Gays and Lesbians, San Francisco, Harper, 1993. Background reading covering basic questions of the gay, lesbian, and bisexual experience.

McAllister, Wirth, and Wirth, Beyond Acceptance: Parents of Lesbian and Gay Children Talk about Their Experiences, Prentice-Hall, 1986. Parents of lesbians and gays talk about their experiences from the initial shock, through all the stages of pain and grief, to increased closeness.

Moraga, Cherrie, and Anzaldua, Gloria, eds., This Bridge Called My Back: Writings by Radical Women of Color, New York: Kitchen Table Women of Color Press, 1981. Prose, poetry, narrative and analysis by African, Asian, Native American & Latina women.

Penelope, Julia, and Wolfe, Susan J., eds., The Original Coming Out Stories, Freedom, California: The Crossing Press, 1989. Poetic and personal narrative accounts of the "coming out" experience.

Rafkin, Louise, ed., Different Daughters: A Book by Mothers of Lesbians, San Francisco: Cleis Press, 1987.

Rafkin, Louise, ed., Different Mothers: Sons and Daughters of Lesbians Talk about Their Lives, San Francisco: Cleis Press, 1990.

Singer, Bennett, ed., Growing Up Gay, Growing Up Lesbian: A Literary Anthology, New York: New Press, 1993. Stories and essays about growing up gay and lesbian and the coming out experience.

Unks, Gerald, ed., The Gay Teen: Educational Theory and Practice, New York: Routledge, 1995. Originally published as a double issue of The High School Journal, this collection explores the realities of gay, lesbian, and bisexual adolescents in school and society.

Suicide:

Hoff, Lee Ann, People in Crisis, 3rd ed., Redwood City, CA: Addison-Wesley, 1989.

Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, Youth Risk Behavior Survey, 75 Pleasant Street, Malden, MA, 02148-4906, (781) 338-3000.

Rotheram-Borus, Mary Jane; Bradley, Jon; & Obolensky, Nina, eds. Planning to Live: Evaluating and Treating Suicidal Teens in Community Settings, Tulsa, OK: University of Oklahoma Press, 1990.

Remafedi, Gary, ed., Death by Denial: Studies of Suicide in Gay and Lesbian Teenagers, Boston: Alyson Publications, 1994.

Violence:

Blumenfeld, Warren J., ed., Homophobia: How We All Pay the Price, Boston: Beacon Press, 1992.

Comstock, Gary David, Violence against Lesbians and Gay Men, New York: Columbia University Press, 1991.

DeCecco, John, ed., Bashers, Baiters, and Bigots: Homophobia in American Society, New York: Harrington Park Press, 1985.

Herek, Gregory & Berrill, Kevin, Hate Crimes: Confronting Violence against Lesbians and Gay Men, New York: Sage, 1992.

Levin, Jack & McDevitt, Jack, Hate Crimes: The Rising Tide of Bigotry and Bloodshed, New York: Plenum, 1993.

Pharr, Suzanne, Homophobia: A Weapon of Sexism, Inverness, CA: Chardon, 1988.

Student Conflict Resolution Experts (SCORE), a program of the Massachusetts Attorney General's Office, Division on Civil Rights/Civil Liberties that provides grants for the development of school-based mediation programs using trained student mediators to resolve violent and potentially violent conflict among peers. One Ashburton Place, Boston, MA 02108-1698, (617) 727-2200.

Films/Videos

"Common Threads: Stories from the Quilt," (75 Minutes) Oscar-winning documentary about the real-life stories of five people with AIDS and the quilt memorializing people who have died from AIDS.

"Gay Youth: An Educational Video for The Nineties," Produced by Pam Walton, (40 minutes), Distributed by Bay Area Network of Gay & Lesbian Educators (BANGLE), c/o Wolfe Video, P.O. Box 64, New Almaden, CA 95042, (408) 268-6782. Documentary profiling the pain as well as the pride of gay and lesbian youth. Video comes with a study guide.

"Homoteens," by Joan Jubela, (56 minutes), Frameline Films, 346 9th Street, San Francisco, 94103, (415) 703-8654. Documentary profiling several gay and lesbian teens who tell their stories in their own words.

"Other Mothers," (50 minutes), Altshul Group Corp., 1560 Sherman Ave., Suite 100, Evanston, IL, 60201, 1-800-323-9084. Originally aired as a T.V. "After School Special," this movie shows the realities of a male high school student who has two lesbian moms.

"Out: Stories of Lesbian and Gay Youth," (79 minutes), National Film Board of Canada, P.O. Box 6100, Station A, Montreal, Quebec h3C 3h5, Canada, 1993. A comprehensive and often moving look at the many issues facing gay and lesbian youth.

"Pink Triangles: A Study of Prejudice against Lesbians and Gays," (34 minutes), Cambridge Documentary Films, P.O. Box 385, Cambridge, MA 02139, (617) 354-3677. An award-winning multicultural documentary film (also in video format) with accompanying study guide exploring the topic of homophobia.

"Queer Son," by Vickie Seitchik, (49 minutes), Frameline Films, 346 9th Street, San Francisco, 94103, (415) 703-8654. Vickie Seitchik's very personal documentary profiling her relationship with her gay son and other parents with their gay sons.

"Sexual Orientation: Reading Between the Labels" NEWIST, 1991 (28:30 minutes), IS 1110 University of Wisconsin, Greenbay, WI 54311, (414) 465-2599. Focuses on difficulties of gay and lesbian youth.

"Sticks, Stones, and Stereotypes: A Video-Curriculum Module about Namecalling," (30 minutes), Equity Institute, 6400 Hollis Street, Suite 15, Emeryville, California, 94608. A video with accompanying curriculum resource guide on the topic of namecalling with special emphasis on homophobia.

"The Times of Harvey Milk," Cinecom International Films, 1250 Broadway, New York, NY 10001. Documentary film profiling the life and times of slain gay San Francisco City Supervisor.

"Who's Afraid of Project 10?," Produced by Scott Greene, (23 minutes), Friends of Project 10, Inc., 7850 Melrose Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90046, (818) 577-4553. A film profiling Project 10, a school-based support program for gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender youth in Fairfax High School, Los Angeles.

Posters

Program for Gay, Lesbian, and Bisexual Concerns, Crampton House/SW, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA 01003, (413) 545-4824. Posters at $3.00 + postage and handling:

Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination, Poster and Booklet to the Student Anti-Discrimination Law, One Ashburton Place, Boston, MA 02108, (617) 727-3990.

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