Perfect Enemies: The Religious Right, the Gay Movement, and the Politics of the 1990s

In Perfect Enemies, Chris Bull and John Gallagher trace the origins and growth of both groups from the seminal year 1969, when the Stonewall Riots ushered in the modern gay rights movement and when Pat Robertson and Jerry Falwell embarked on direct political action to bring strict biblical interpretation to bear on public policy. The skillful grassroots organizational efforts of both movements, based on a mutual demonization of each side by the other, resulted in growing political clout that developed under the radar of mainsteam political commentators--and exploded upon the scene in a series of bitter and, to most Americans, bewildering political conflicts.

Bull and Gallagher offer the first comprehensive account of the rhetoric and strategies--often remarkably alike--of both sides, and of how the mutual passion of these perfect enemies is influencing electoral politics from the state houses to the White House.

Journalists Chris Bull and John Gallagher argue in their new book, Perfect Enemies, that the national social politics of the 1990s are being increasingly defined by the conflict between the conservative religious right and the gay rights movement. This challenging thesis examines in meticulous detail the legal battles the Christian Coalition has waged against gay rights laws across the country. The authors' analysis of the gays-in-the-military fight is on target as they dissect the mistakes made by both gay leadership and the Federal government. Endlessly provocative and highly charged, Bull and Gallagher convincingly hammer home their point that the fight about gay rights effects everyone, not just the gay community.