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On a September night in 1958, three New Orleans college students went looking for a gay man to assault. They chose Fernando Rios, who died from the beating he received. In perhaps the earliest example of the "gay panic" defense, the three defendants argued that they had no choice but to beat Rios because he had made an "improper advance." When the jury acquitted the three, the courtroom cheered. The author offers a detailed examination of the murder and the trial.
List of contents
Table of ContentsAcknowledgments
A Note on Language
Foreword by Robert L. Camina
Introduction
1.¿Pirates and Outlaws
2.¿"A drive against the deviates": The Gay Man in New Orleans, 1950-1960
3.¿A Frigid Climate of Hostility: The Killing of Fernando Rios
4.¿A Medical Freak with an Eggshell Cranium: The Trial That Made New Orleans Cheer
5.¿Nolle Prosequi: The Events Following the Trial
6.¿Reclaiming Masculinity: A Brief History of Hate Crimes and the Gay Panic Defense
7.¿Déjà Vu
Appendix: A Son Speaks For and About His Father
Chapter Notes
Works Cited
Index
About the author
Clayton Delery, a retired teacher from the Louisiana School for Math, Science, and the Arts previously published The Up Stairs Lounge Arson, which was named Book of the Year by the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities in 2015. He lives in New Orleans.
