Argues that the achievement of equality for lesbian and gay citizens is part of the unfinished business of modern democracy and that respect for individual freedom requires recognition of a plurality of intimate association.

This book argues that the achievement of equality for lesbian and gay citizens is part of the unfinished business of modern democracy and draws on materials from law, philosophy, psychoanlaysis, history and literature, focusing especially on Plato, Thoreau, Freud, Rawls, Arendt and Foucault.