Lillian Faderman
Encyclopedia
Lillian Faderman is a scholar whose books on lesbian
relationships and romantic friendship
in history have earned critical praise and awards. Faderman is a professor of English at California State University
in Fresno
, California.
in Latvia
to the lower east side
of Manhattan
, hoping to marry well enough to pay for their sisters and brothers to join them in the United States
. The plan was unsuccessful; the rest of the family was killed during Hitler's extermination of European Jews, and Mary blamed herself for not sending enough money to rescue them. Her guilt contributed to a serious mental illness that would profoundly affect her daughter.
Mary and Rae, Faderman's mother and aunt, worked in the garment industry for very little money. Lillian was her mother's third pregnancy; her mother aborted the first two pregnancies at her father's request, but insisted on bearing and raising the third. Mary remarried when Lillian was a teenager and died in 1979, continuing to have a profound influence on her daughter’s life.
, where with her mother’s encouragement Lillian took acting classes. She began modeling as a teenager, discovered the gay bar scene and met her first girlfriend. Before she graduated from high school, she married a gay man much older than herself, a marriage which lasted less than a year and was mainly done at the insistence of her mother and aunt.
and later at UCLA. She is now a professor of English at California State University, Fresno
.
.
Lesbian
Lesbian is a term most widely used in the English language to describe sexual and romantic desire between females. The word may be used as a noun, to refer to women who identify themselves or who are characterized by others as having the primary attribute of female homosexuality, or as an...
relationships and romantic friendship
Romantic friendship
The term romantic friendship refers to both very close but non-sexual relationship and at times physical relationship between friends, often involving a degree of physical closeness beyond that which is common in modern Western societies, and may include for example holding hands, cuddling,...
in history have earned critical praise and awards. Faderman is a professor of English at California State University
California State University
The California State University is a public university system in the state of California. It is one of three public higher education systems in the state, the other two being the University of California system and the California Community College system. It is incorporated as The Trustees of the...
in Fresno
Fresno, California
Fresno is a city in central California, United States, the county seat of Fresno County. As of the 2010 census, the city's population was 510,365, making it the fifth largest city in California, the largest inland city in California, and the 34th largest in the nation...
, California.
Early life
Faderman was raised by her mother, Mary, and her aunt, Rae. In 1923, the two emigrated from a shtetlShtetl
A shtetl was typically a small town with a large Jewish population in Central and Eastern Europe until The Holocaust. Shtetls were mainly found in the areas which constituted the 19th century Pale of Settlement in the Russian Empire, the Congress Kingdom of Poland, Galicia and Romania...
in Latvia
Latvia
Latvia , officially the Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by Estonia , to the south by Lithuania , to the east by the Russian Federation , to the southeast by Belarus and shares maritime borders to the west with Sweden...
to the lower east side
Lower East Side, Manhattan
The Lower East Side, LES, is a neighborhood in the southeastern part of the New York City borough of Manhattan. It is roughly bounded by Allen Street, East Houston Street, Essex Street, Canal Street, Eldridge Street, East Broadway, and Grand Street....
of Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
, hoping to marry well enough to pay for their sisters and brothers to join them in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The plan was unsuccessful; the rest of the family was killed during Hitler's extermination of European Jews, and Mary blamed herself for not sending enough money to rescue them. Her guilt contributed to a serious mental illness that would profoundly affect her daughter.
Mary and Rae, Faderman's mother and aunt, worked in the garment industry for very little money. Lillian was her mother's third pregnancy; her mother aborted the first two pregnancies at her father's request, but insisted on bearing and raising the third. Mary remarried when Lillian was a teenager and died in 1979, continuing to have a profound influence on her daughter’s life.
Coming out
The family moved to Los AngelesLos Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, where with her mother’s encouragement Lillian took acting classes. She began modeling as a teenager, discovered the gay bar scene and met her first girlfriend. Before she graduated from high school, she married a gay man much older than herself, a marriage which lasted less than a year and was mainly done at the insistence of her mother and aunt.
Scholarship
Faderman studied first at The University of California, BerkeleyUniversity of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
and later at UCLA. She is now a professor of English at California State University, Fresno
California State University, Fresno
California State University, Fresno, often referred to as Fresno State University and synonymously known in athletics as Fresno State , is one of the leading campuses of the California State University system, located at the northeast edge of Fresno, California, USA.The campus sits at the foot of...
.
Private life
She lives with her partner of thirty-seven years (at as 2009), Phyllis. She has one son, Avrom, who earned a PhD from Stanford UniversityStanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
.
Awards
- Stonewall Book AwardStonewall Book AwardSponsored by the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Round Table of the American Library Association , the Stonewall Book Award is for LGBT books...
(1982) - Lambda Literary Editor's Choice Award (1992)
- Stonewall Book AwardStonewall Book AwardSponsored by the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Round Table of the American Library Association , the Stonewall Book Award is for LGBT books...
(1992) - Lambda Literary AwardLambda Literary AwardLambda Literary Awards are awarded yearly by the US-based Lambda Literary Foundation to published works which celebrate or explore LGBT themes. Categories include Humor, Romance and Biography. To qualify, a book must have been published in the United States in the year current to the award...
for Best Lesbian/Gay Anthology (2003) - Yale UniversityYale UniversityYale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
James Brudner PrizeBrudner PrizeThe James Robert Brudner Memorial Prize and Lecture at Yale University celebrates lifetime accomplishment and scholarly contributions in the field of lesbian and gay studies. It is bestowed annually by the Fund for Lesbian and Gay Studies at Yale...
for Exemplary Scholarship in Lesbian/Gay Studies (2001) - Paul MonettePaul MonettePaul Landry Monette was an American author, poet, and activist best remembered for his essays about gay relationships.-Biography:...
Award - Publishers Triangle Bill Whitehead Award
Works
- Gay L. A.: A History of Sexual Outlaws, Power Politics, And Lipstick Lesbians (2006)
- Naked in the Promised Land: A Memoir (2003)
- To Believe in Women: What Lesbians Have Done For America - A History (1999)
- I Begin My Life All Over : The Hmong and the American Immigrant Experience (1998)
- Chloe Plus Olivia: An Anthology of Lesbian Literature from the 17th Century to the Present (1994)
- Odd Girls and Twilight Lovers : A History of Lesbian Life in Twentieth-Century America (1991)
- Scotch Verdict : Miss Pirie and Miss Woods v. Dame Cumming Gordon (1983)
- Surpassing the Love of Men: Romantic Friendship and Love Between Women from the Renaissance to the Present (1981)