Tuesday is the day for new books, so I thought I would flag some of the ones that I am eagerly anticipating.1
1/21/25: Shame-Sex Attraction: Survivorβs Stories of Conversion Therapy
When Meta announced last week that they would cease fact-checking in the United States and make their Hateful Conduct policies much more lax, they carved out allowances for attacks on LGBTQ people. GLAAD highlighted several examples of what is now allowed, but I want to focus on this one:
Allowances for attacks on LGBTQ people, women, and immigrants: Specifically, Meta now states: βPeople sometimes use sex- or gender-exclusive language when discussing access to spaces often limited by sex or gender, such as access to bathrooms, specific schools, specific military, law enforcement, or teaching roles, and health or support groups. Other times, they call for exclusion or use insulting language in the context of discussing political or religious topics, such as when discussing transgender rights, immigration, or homosexuality. Finally, sometimes people curse at a gender in the context of a romantic break-up. Our policies are designed to allow room for these types of speech.β
People raised in non-affirming homes who were sent to conversion therapyβa discredited and traumatic practice of trying to βtreatβ queerness that anyone who spent time in evangelical circles is familiar withβknow the damage that comes with being told their religion finds their sexuality unacceptable.
People have been sharing their stories of survival, recovery, and reclaimed joy for years now. But they must keep being told. I am glad that Lucas F.W. Wilson has compiled these stories. They will become a lifeline to the people who need them.
This type of work is so important itβs why for the past three years Iβve donated 25% of net proceeds from paid subscriptions each year to the Religious Exemption Accountability Project & White Homework. When you support my work here, you also support their work. You can read more about why I do this in this post from 2021:
If you find that work valuable, consider signing up for a paid subscription:
2/18/25: Money, Lies, and God: Inside the Movement to Destroy American Democracy
Katherine Stewartβs The Power Worshippers was an incredibly insightful book when it released in 2020, and I was privileged to feature Stewart in my limited-run series Powers & Principalities. (She also graciously provided a blurb for my own book.) I have an advance copy of this book, and I am eager to see how it will inform the public of these massive, influentialβand yet somehow still underestimated and poorly understoodβnetworks of influence and power.
The reporting in this book will help interested readers understand how we reached this political moment.
Let me know what books you might be anticipating in the comments.
This post will contain affiliate links to my Bookshop.org page.
Thanks for these recs! Another one I'm curious about is Aaron Scott's "Bring Back Your People: Ten Ways Regular Folks Can Put a Dent in White Christian Nationalism"