Queer Girls and Intergenerational Lesbian Sexuality in the 1970s. Issue 1 (1st March 2020)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Littauer, Amanda H.
• Is Part Of: Historical reflections. Volume 46:Issue 1(2020)
• Page Start: 95
• Page End: 108
• Publication Date: 2020-03-01
• Subjects: 1970s -- intergenerational sex -- lesbians -- lesbian feminism -- lesbian teenagers -- lesbian youth -- LGBTQ history -- queer girls; History -- Periodicals; 905
• DOI: 10.3167/hrrh.2020.460107
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1939-2419

Abstract

Abstract: Drawing on letters and writings by teenage girls and oral history interviews, this article aims to open a scholarly conversation about the existence and significance of intergenerational sexual relationships between minor girls and adult women in the years leading up to and encompassing the lesbian feminist movement of the 1970s. Lesbian history and culture say very little about sexual connections between youth and adults, sweeping them under the rug in gender-inflected ways that differ from the suppression of speech in gay male history and culture about intergenerational sex between boys and men. Nonetheless, my research suggests that, despite lesbian feminists' caution and even negativity toward teen girls, erotic and sexual relationships with adult women provided girls access to support, pleasure, mentorship, and community.