The New Sex Wars

Revisits the sex wars of the 1970s and ¿80s and examines their influence on how we think about sexual harm in the #MeToo era
#MeToo¿s stunning explosion on social media in October 2017 radically changed¿and amplified¿conversations about sexual violence as it revealed how widespread the issue is and toppled prominent celebrities and politicians. But, as the movement spread, a conflict emerged among feminist supporters and detractors about how punishment should be doled out and how justice should be served.
The New Sex Wars reveals that these clashes are nothing new. Delving into the contentious debates from the ¿70s and ¿80s, Brenda Cossman traces the striking echoes in the feminist divisions of this earlier period. In exploring the history of past conflicts¿the resistance to finding common ground, the media¿s pleasure in portraying the debates as polarized cat fights, the simplification of viewpoints as pro- and anti-sex¿she shows how they have come to shape