A Gift of Age: Old Lesbian Life Stories - Softcover

Eversmeyer, Arden; Purcell, Margaret

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9780982366967: A Gift of Age: Old Lesbian Life Stories

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0982366965 ISBN 13: 9780982366967

Publisher: Old Lesbian Oral Herstory Project, 2014

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It's hard to imagine today what it was like for a woman to live in a time when she had never heard the word lesbian, when there were no lesbian organizations, and when she had to be careful what she wore to the bar because a woman could be arrested simply for wearing pants or the wrong shoes. These are just some of the experiences shared in A Gift of Age: Old Lesbian Life Stories. After a decade of amassing interviews of women born early in the 1900s, The Old Lesbian Oral Herstory Project (www.olohp.org) has released its first book. A Gift of Age is a retelling of the stories of 22 lesbians, each offering a valuable glimpse into what it was like to be a lesbian during a unique and challenging period in American history. "I often say that I fall just a little bit in love with each old lesbian I interview," says Arden Eversmeyer, director of the Old Lesbian Oral Herstory Project, "and I think you will too." Stories in A Gift of Age will make you think. Life as a lesbian today isn't always easy. There is still work to be done. But leading a lesbian life through the mid 20th century was often isolating. Telling about taking an all-lesbian cruise once she had reached her 60s, Lois, whose story is in the book, said, "I don’t know how somebody could live to be as old as I am and be gay my whole life and I never knew that there was a place for women to go. It was the first normal time in my life I felt what it was like to be normal. I feel like everybody else gets to feel every day in their life. And I’ve never really felt that because you always feel like something is wrong." Life was easier for some but rarely did anyone risk losing her family and job by coming out beyond her immediate circle of friends. Extreme caution, and often fear, was the norm in the lives of the women of this era. A Gift of Age is co-authored by Arden Eversmeyer and Margaret Purcell. Arden, a 81 year old lesbian and Houston resident, is the founder and director of the Old Lesbian Oral Herstory Project, an effort that collects and preserves the life stories of lesbians 70 and older. Margaret is a writer who has been working closely with the OLOHP for the past decade and serves on its board.

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About the Author:

Arden Eversmeyer, a 81 year old lesbian and Houston resident, is the founder and director of the Old Lesbian Oral Herstory Project, an effort that collects and preserves the life stories of lesbians 70 and older. In addition to her work on the OLOHP, Arden was integral to the development of Old Lesbians Organizing for Change, a national organization devoted to improving the lives of lesbians 60 and older. She also founded LOAF, Lesbians Over Age Fifty, a social group in the Houston area that recently celebrated its 25th anniversary.

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