书摘
Covering: The Hidden Assault on Our Civil Rights, [by] Kenji Yoshino
Preface
Everyone covers. To cover is to tone down a disfavored identity to fit into the mainstream. In our increasingly diverse society, all of us are outside the mainstream in some way. Nonetheless, being deemed mainstream is still often a necessity of social life. For this reason, every reader of this book has covered, whether consciously or not, and sometimes at significant personal cost.
......
In a supposedly enlightened age, the persistence of the covering demand presents a puzzle. Today, race, national origin, sex, religion, and disability are all protected by federal civil rights laws. An increasing number of states and localities include sexual orientation in civil rights laws as well. Albeit with varying degrees of conviction, Americans have come to a consensus that people should not be penalized for being different along these dimensions. That consensus, however, does not protect individuals against demands that they mute those differences. We need an explanation for why the civil rights revolution has stalled on covering. Covering has enjoyed such a robust and stubborn life because it is a form of assimilation.
*这本书是之前朋友推荐的，中文版是《掩饰：同性恋的双重生活及其他》，清华大学出版社，我一直没有找到，感觉只能看英文原版了。
