Set in interwar Germany The Intermediaries tells the forgotten story of the Institute for
Sexual Science the world's first center for homosexual and transgender rights. Headed by a gay
Jewish man Dr. Magnus Hirshfeld the institute aided in the first gender-affirming surgeries
and hormone replacements acting as a rebellious base of operations in the face of rising
prejudice nationalism and Nazi propaganda. Brandy Schillace introduces readers to Dora
Richter an institute patient whom we follow from early desperate years to gender-affirming
care and her right to live as a woman. She offers an example of queer resilience in the face of
punishing cultural constraints. The Intermediaries charts the interdependent relationships
between nascent sexual science queer civil rights and the fight against fascism. It tells
riveting stories of LGBTQ pioneers a surprising long-suppressed history and offers a
cautionary tale in the face of today's oppressive anti-trans legislation.
