Exploring crimes against gays from 1999 to 2011, David McConnell shows how some think they're cleaning up society. Other killings feel preordained - not a matter of the victim's lifestyle so much as a twisted display of dominance. Society wants to think these stories are simple cases of sexual conflict. They aren't. Together, the cases form a secret American history of rage and desire. McConnell cuts through clich© and politics to turn these cases into enduring literature. In each story, victims, murderers, friends and relatives come breathtakingly alive.
About the book
Exploring crimes against gays from 1999 to 2011, David McConnell shows how some think they're cleaning up society. Other killings feel preordained - not a matter of the victim's lifestyle so much as a twisted display of dominance. Society wants to think these stories are simple cases of sexual conflict. They aren't. Together, the cases form a secret American history of rage and desire. McConnell cuts through clich© and politics to turn these cases into enduring literature. In each story, victims, murderers, friends and relatives come breathtakingly alive.