Abstract: This book is about placing sexual orientation politics within feminist theorizing. It is also about defining the central political issues confronting lesbian and gay men. It brings the study of lesbians from the margins of feminist theory to the centre by critiquing the analytic frameworks employed within feminist theory that render invisible the difference of lesbians from heterosexual women. The basic features of lesbian and gay subordination are also addressed by exploring the differences between heterosexual dominance and gender and race relations. Throughout the book, the aim is to re-centre lesbian and gay politics away from concern with sexual regulations and towards concern with the displacement of gays and lesbians from the public sphere of visible citizenship and from the private sphere of romance, marriage, and family.

Keywords: feminism, feminist theory, gay men, lesbians, sexual orientation, sexual politics, subordination