Asian Girls are Prettier: Gendered Presentations as Stigma Management among Gay Asian Men

Despite the well‐documented cases of racism toward gay Asian men in the gay community, there is currently little research on how gay Asian men manage racial stigma. In this article, I examine the racial stigma management strategies of gay Asian men. I examine the nature of gay racial stigma toward gay Asian men and find that they use gendered presentations to counter the stereotype that they are more feminine than gay white men. While some gay Asian men engender a hypermasculine presentation, others use a hyperfeminine presentation to trade a more‐stigmatized status for one that is less stigmatizing. More important, these men actively embrace stereotypes to successfully make these transitions. This article demonstrates that stigmatized groups can manage stigma by highlighting their spoiled identities rather than attempting to minimize them.     

Economic Rights,Economic Myths,and Economic Realities

Summary

Although the myth is that gay and lesbian people, especially gay men, are affluent and are faring well in the workplace, research shows that they in fact experience wage discrimination and lack many other fundamental rights related to employment. This article reviews the literature addressing gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgend-ered people as workers, showing the ways in which their economic rights are still compromised in the United States today. The social work profession must understand these realities and seek ways to address them.     

Identity and Ideas: A Roundtable on Identity Politics

This roundtable discussion examines the issue of identity politics and how identity influences and is influenced by gay/queer politics and theory. The participants discuss how identity politics affects political organizing and activism, how different identity communities can build coalitions, how the language related to identity is evolving, and how sexual attractions and practices interact with identity. The discussants look at how the influx into the gay and lesbian movement of new groups that challenge traditional identity boundaries—e.g., bisexuals and transgendered people—is affecting the movement. Finally, the discussants examine how “idea-based” politics may supplant identity-based politics as a new inclusive paradigm.     

Pinkwashed

Claims regarding “gay rights” have acquired a prominent role in debates over Israel's occupation of Palestine. This often takes the form of “pinkwashing,” a term denoting the use of gay rights discourse to justify the imposition of colonial rule. This article analyzes the pornographic film Men of Israel to explore how pinkwashing reflects colonialism's depoliticizing and exclusionary logics. Men of Israel shows how pinkwashing is far more than a justificatory practice. It also legitimates, reproduces and appropriates colonial narratives to justify an alliance between supporters of gay rights and the “pro-gay” Israeli state. It simultaneously excludes a racial category of people called “Palestinians,” which includes gay Palestinians, from the rights accorded to gay men in Israel. In an era of “gay rights as human rights,” such deployments of “gay rights” highlight the necessity of directing critical scrutiny to the alliances and exclusions implicated by a particular articulation of rights.     

Support for gay and lesbian rights among social work students in Greece

This study explores social work students’ level of support for gay and lesbian rights. Respondents were all the students (N?=?460) attending classes in a Social Work Department in Greece. While students were generally supportive of gay and lesbian rights, a significant percentage believed that social workers should support gay and lesbian rights only when lesbians and gay men do not offend or upset others and their rights do not contradict the prevalent religion and societal values. Religiosity was an important correlate of students’ level of support for gay and lesbian rights. Findings are discussed in relation with social work education.     

Chapter 6: Gay Latinos and AIDS:

AIDS education, prevention strategies, and support services for gay and bisexual Latinos have traditionally been inadequate, even though surveillance data demonstrate that the risk of contracting AIDS is two and one-half times greater for gay or bisexual Latino men than for their white counterparts. Language, culture, disproportionate poverty, and different definitions of gay or bisexual identity in Latino communities must be considered when addressing AIDS issues among Latino groups in the United States. It should not be assumed that outreach, education and prevention programs which may be appropriate for whites or African Americans will be appropriate for Latinos. This article offers a theoretical framework for developing a culturally-sensitive AIDS prevention program for gay and bisexual Latino men.     

Saints or Sinners: Sociobiological Theories of Male Homosexuality

In response to Christian conservative political action, some gay rights advocates have embraced a biological argument. The argument maintains that because homosexuality may have a biological basis, homosexuals should be protected from discrimination. This essay questions the efficacy of this argumentative strategy. The essay demonstrates that biological theories about male homosexuality may not facilitate the efforts of gay rights advocates. In fact, the sociobiological theories analyzed in this essay represent male homosexuality as a state of effeminate pathology. Furthermore, because these sociobiological theories are underdetermined, they are particularly vulnerable to political manipulation. For these reasons, sexual minorities should be cautious about embracing biological arguments in order to secure greater social and political freedoms.     

Maturing Gay Men

Abstract

Two time-limited groups were offered for gay men age 40 and over. From pre-group interviews a list of interest areas was constructed. Interpersonal relations with other gay men emerged as the primary concern. In an effort to describe and organize the concerns group members expressed about their relationships, a model based on the work of Bell and Weinberg and the ethnographic work of Evelyn Hooker was developed. The model is a typology consisting of three dominant sociosexual interactive fields: the Sexual Market Field, the Primary Relationship Field and the Social Network     

Uncertainty and the lives of persons with AIDS

This article uses interview data to explore how 23 gay and bisexual men who had AIDS were affected by and managed uncertainty. Before diagnosis these individuals had to find ways to cope with uncertainty about their risk of contracting AIDS and about their initial symptoms. After diagnosis they had to find answers to their questions about why they contracted this disease, whether they would be able to function in the short run, whether their illness would kill them, and whether they would be allowed to live and (if death was unavoidable) to die with dignity. The data suggest that persons with AIDS respond to the uncertainties of their illness by attempting to assert as much control as possible over their lives, through such divergent strategies as seeking and avoiding knowledge about their illness.     

Special Interest Groups in Alcohol Anonymous:

Millions of alcoholics around the world find their recovery in “working the program” of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA). Most AA members find belonging to an AA group and attending meetings to be very important parts of working the program. Many recovering alcoholics, however, find that “special interest groups” are highly desirable in their recovery. This is the case of many gay men who see gay groups as critical in their achieving and maintaining sobriety. In this article, we will explore the special interest groups in terms of their definitions, types, and history. We will than take one group, gay men, and see why they have formed special interest AA groups, the positives of such groups, and the limitations of such groups. Clinical implication will then be provided.     

Jewish Gay Men's Accounts of Negotiating Cultural,Religious, and Sexual Identity

Abstract

Research on the construction of lesbian and gay identity has represented this process as carrying considerable potential for in-trapsychic and interpersonal stress and conflict. This process may be rendered even more psychologically challenging for those whose identities feature salient components that are not easily reconciled with a lesbian or gay identity. An example of this is the simultaneous holding of Jewish and gay identities. This paper reports findings from a qualitative study of 21 Jewish gay men in Britain. Participants were interviewed about the development of their gay identity, the relationship between their gay identity and their Jewish identity, the psychological and social implications of holding these identities, and strategies for managing any difficulties associated with this. Data were subjected to interpretative phenomenological analysis. All but one of the men reported experiences of identity conflict, arising mainly from the perceived incompatibility of Jewish and gay identities. This was said to have impacted negatively upon their psychological well-being. Those who had received negative reactions to the disclosure of sexual identity within Jewish contexts often attributed this to an anti-gay stance within Judaism and a concern with ensuring the continuation of the Jewish people. Various strategies were said to have been used to manage identity threat, including compartmentalizing Jewish and gay identity and revising the content or salience of Jewish identity. Recommendations are offered for psychological interventions which could help Jewish gay men manage identity conflict.     

Gay marriages and communities of sexual orientation

This article focuses on gay male couples as they exist within friendship networks of other gay men. By comparing homosexual men who are part of a gay community with those who are less integrated into a gay community, we attempt to show that the sexual liaisons of the former are more “marriage-like.” Gays committed to a community of other homosexual men were found to live more often with their lovers, be more sexually faithful to their lovers, and to have more emotionally intimate relationships. Also, they were found more likely to associate with other gay couples. Commitment to a gay community was not found to be associated with length of a liaison, and it seemed that when respondents defined emotional intimacy in terms of sexual exclusiveness there may have been a tendency for disruption of relationships. The gay community validates the sexual liaisons of gay men in the same way that the heterosexual world validates the pairings of heterosexuals and transforms their subinstitutional sexual liaisons into the institution of marriage.     

A Study of Attitudes Towards Gays and Lesbians in the State of Utah,U.S.A.

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine Utahans' attitudes towards gay and lesbian people and their civil rights. Utah politics are dominated by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (the Mormons) and the Republican Party, with membership typically shared by the two. However, Mormon sociocultural values are also distinctively pro-family and companionate. We wondered to what extent caring, warmth, and inclusiveness toward family members mitigated against the doctrinaire injunction to reject homosexuality and, if necessary, to reject family members who were homosexual.

We found that proponents of gay and lesbian civil rights were likely to be personally familiar with gays and lesbians, to have empathetic attitudes about gay and lesbian youth and being out, and to possess a commitment to legal rights for gay and lesbian individuals and families. Opponents of gay and lesbian civil rights were driven by moralistic imperatives about sexuality and the roots of sexual behavior, made a sharp distinction between what they perceived as social privileges and legally mandated rights and were not likely to have had much direct contact with gay and lesbian people. Our results suggest that Utahans indeed appear to be torn, or at best ambivalent, about the religious mandate to condemn homosexuality while at the same time prizing family ties and relationships above other values. For the same reasons, political actions directed at obtaining specific legal rights for gays and lesbians appear to have more support than expected, especially in the realms of partner benefits, employment discrimination, health benefits, and private freedoms. Legal marriage, however, is soundly rejected as a possibility, especially in view of the belief that marriage is sacred and exclusively for heterosexuals.     

Research on Gay and Lesbian Parenting

SUMMARY

Gay and lesbian parenting is a fertile research field with many important new developments in content and methodology over the last decade. Gay and lesbian parenting occurs in a wide diversity of famly constellations, yet the cultural context of lesbian and gay parenting is a neglected topic. The relative depth of knowledge of lesbian parenting is contrasted with the lack of research on gay male parenting across different routes to parenthood. Gay and lesbian parenting researchers have employed a wide variety of methodological designs in their investigations, and the field has benefited from the employment of quantitative and qualitative techniques to investigate developmental outcomes for children and increase understanding of the variety of experiences of gay and lesbian parenthood. This review highlights significant developments in the field and suggests new directions.     

From Organizational Sexuality to Queer Organizations: Research on Homosexuality and the Workplace

Organization scholars historically ignored the crucial importance of sexuality in the workplace. But in the last 20 years, scholars influenced by the ‘sexuality in organizations’ perspective have documented the ways that the management and deployment of workers’ sexuality are key elements in organizational life. While most of these studies have documented persistent privileging of heterosexuality in work organizations, a recent trend is to investigate a new organizational form: the gay‐friendly workplace. We review legal and policy changes in US workplaces that have made them more accepting of gay and lesbian employees. Then we examine ethnographic studies of gay‐friendly organizations. Although they are certainly an advance over previous homophobic workplaces, the literature suggests that they may reproduce inequalities of race, class, and gender. Few studies have investigated ‘queer organizations’, which we identify as a rich area for future scholarship.     

The Queer(y)ing of Australian Public Culture Discourse: Activism, Rights Discourse, and Survival Strategies

This essay examines the contemporary context of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) activism in Australia situating the theoretical and practical concerns in the ambit of survival strategies and rights discourse. Drawing on media, interviews, and a specific piece of proposed legislation, the essay surveys and analyses the effects of LGBT strategies of survival that are demonstrated in public culture discourse. The socio-cultural and political terrain of late twentieth and early twenty-first century Australia bears witness to a public culture discourse that is deeply ambivalent about its LGBT dimensions.     

Older Lesbian and Gay People:

Using a theoretical model of lesbian and gay identity formation, this paper examines the complex relationships between families and older gay and lesbian adults as a way to better understand the extensive variations individuals have in their relationships with themselves, presentation of self, relationships with others and their behaviors. Three potential styles of lesbian and gay identity formation are described in order to highlight the structures and dynamics involved in issues for gay and lesbian elders and their families. It is argued that by challenging heterosexism and by minimizing homophobia, older lesbian and gay people experience a successful aging process. While individuals w R o are lesbian and gay have great potential to age with a sense of power, ride and fulfillment, so do the families from which they came an those they have created.     

Experiences of the Orthodox Community Among Orthodox Jewish Gay Men

Sense of community includes elements such as sense of belonging, mutual interdependence, trust, shared goals and values, and shared history. It is associated with benefits for both the members and the community and is believed to be stronger in religious minority groups. This qualitative study describes the experiences of the Jewish Orthodox community among Orthodox Jewish gay men. In-depth interviews were conducted with 22 men about their experiences of being gay in their Orthodox communities. A content analysis revealed four themes: community as a home, community as a comprehensive provider, community as a strict behavior regulator, and community as punitive toward gay men. Findings suggest that Orthodox Jewish gay men have mixed feelings about their community; being satisfied with a community that provides for all their needs, but also living in constant fear of the negative consequences they and their families may endure if their homosexuality will be revealed. Recommendations for social work practice are provided.     

Sexual identity development among gay, lesbian, and bisexual youths: consistency and change over time

A longitudinal report of 156 gay, lesbian, and bisexual youths examined changes in sexual identity over time. Fifty-seven percent of the youths remained consistently self-identified as gay/lesbian, 18% transited from bisexual to gay/lesbian, and 15% consistently identified as bisexual over time. Although youths who consistently identified as gay/lesbian did not differ from other youths on time since experiencing sexual developmental milestones, they reported current sexual orientation and sexual behaviors that were more same-sex centered and they scored higher on aspects of the identity integration process (e.g., more certain, comfortable, and accepting of their same-sex sexuality, more involved in gay-related social activities, more possessing of positive attitudes toward homosexuality, and more comfortable with others knowing about their sexuality) than youths who transited to a gay/lesbian identity and youths who consistently identified as bisexual. Contrary to the hypothesis that females are more sexually fluid than males, female youths were less likely to change identities than male youths. The finding that youths who transited to a gay/lesbian identity differed from consistently gay/lesbian youths suggests that identity integration continues after the adoption of a gay/lesbian sexual identity.     

Coming Out to Tell Our Stories: Using Queer Theory to Understand the Career Experiences of Gay Men in Public Relations

Despite the increasing focus on understanding the diversity of public relations, academics and practitioners have largely ignored gay men. Grounded in queer theory, this qualitative study examines the experiences of gay men working in public relations. We used in-depth interviews and focus groups to allow participants to discuss their careers openly. Practitioners indicated that they enjoyed working in public relations, although they pointed out areas of dissatisfaction and suggested ways to improve the working environment for gay men. These include an increased awareness of personal lives and the gay community, reduction of stereotypes, and adopting diversity-friendly policies.