The struggle to remove the stigma of sickness surrounding same sex love has a long history In 1973 the American Psychiatric Association removed homosexuality from its diagnostic classification of mental illness but the groundwork for this pivotal decision was laid decades earlier In this new study Henry L Minton looks back at the struggle of the American gay and lesbian activists who chose scientific research as a path for advancing homosexual rights He traces the history of gay and lesbian emancipatory research from its early beginnings in the late nineteenth century to its role in challenging the illness model in the 1970s By examining archival sources and unpublished manuscripts Minton reveals the substantial accomplishments made by key researchers and relates their life stories He also considers the contributions of mainstream sexologists such as Alfred C Kinsey and Evelyn Hooker who supported the cause of homosexual rights through the advancement of scientific knowledge By uncovering this hidden chapter in the story of gay liberation Departing from Deviance makes an important contribution to both the history of science and the history of sexuality