Debating LGBT Workplace Protections in the Bible Belt: Social Identities in Legislative and Media Discourse

ABSTRACT

This article reports a case study of the legislative and media discourse surrounding the addition of sexual orientation and gender identity language to the employment nondiscrimination ordinance of a city in the heart of the Bible Belt. The purpose of the study is to uncover how different identities were constructed and contested at city council meetings and in the news media on the way to passing legal protection for LGBT city employees in a region that is often characterized by anti-gay prejudice. This debate over the nondiscrimination ordinance centered on the question of whether LGBT identities are equivalent to identity categories based on race, gender, or religious belief, and it was shaped by various intergroup communication dynamics, specifically between members of the LGBT minority and the straight majority, between LGBT and Christian identities, and between “true” and “false” Christian identities.     

Staying in the Hood: Black Lesbian and Transgender Women and Identity Management in North Philadelphia

ABSTRACT

The concept Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell regarding Black LGBT sexuality in Black communities has been an acceptable form of identity management for Black LGBT people. In other words, Black LGBT people are accepted as long as they are not vocal about their sexuality. However, this is changing with the issue of gay marriage, which is creating a space where Black LGBT people are more open about their gender identity and sexuality in heterosexual Black spaces. This new form of openness allows Black LGBT people to “stay in” their communities, as opposed to coming out. In this article I examine how Black LGBT women in North Philadelphia stay in their communities: being politically active regarding LGBT issues, disengaging from LGBT issues, passing, and educating straight Black people about issues affecting the Black LGBT community. I conclude with implications of staying in and intersectionality among Black heterosexual and LGBT women fighting for social change.     

Queering Poetics: The Impact of Poetry on LGBT+ Identity in Singaporean Adolescents

ABSTRACT

This qualitative study explores identity formation in LGBT+ Singaporean adolescents, and how reading, writing, and listening to poetry shapes Singaporean adolescents’ social identities as queer people. Analyzing in-depth interviews with nine LGBT+ Singaporean adolescents, four themes were found: (1) LGBT+ Singaporean adolescents interested in poetry believe that reading, writing, and/or listening to poetry has been an integral part of constructing their queer identities; (2) the poems that have impacted LGBT+ Singaporean adolescents’ queer identities the most have been informed by queer sociocultural values; (3) poetry provides validation to LGBT+ Singaporean adolescents that their identities are real and that others before them have experienced the same challenges they are going through; and (4) poetry serves as a third space for LGBT+ Singaporean adolescents to safely construct their growing queer identities. Implications for teachers, counselors, and adult supporters of queer Singaporean adolescents are discussed, and recommendations for future research are provided.     

Strange Bedfellows: Anachronisms,Identity Politics,and the Queer Case of Trans*

This article explores trans identities, as articulated within a few historical texts. From early literary depictions of gender difference, to medicalized conceptions of transsexualism, to a proliferation of trans and queer identities represented by an ever-expanding “alphabet soup” of identity labels, our understandings of identities, sexualities, and queer community-building continue to change. I use the notion of “kind-making,” as elaborated on in the work of Ian Hacking, to illustrate that some queer and trans identifications are affiliative, whereas others are contrastive or oppositional in nature, and these structural differences have important implications with respect to understanding identity and sexuality, and also trans inclusion within LGBT communities and activist efforts.     

Considering the Role of Nativity in the Health and Psychological Wellbeing of Black LGBT Adults

ABSTRACT

Recent scholars have underscored how the experiences of LGBT people of color cannot be fully understood by considering only the independent contributions of race and sexual orientation. Framed by an intersectional lens, the current study seeks to address this gap in understanding by considering the role of nativity on the health and wellbeing of Black sexual minority adults; we also examined the moderating effects of family support and racial community climate on this relationship. Using national data from the Social Justice Sexuality Project (N = 2,166), we discovered that foreign-born Black LGBT adults had similar levels of psychological wellbeing and physical health as their native counterparts; family support and racial community climate did not moderate this relationship. Our findings did, however, substantiate the importance of family and community support for all Black LGBT adults, regardless of immigration status. Implications of this finding, in addition to directions for future intersectional work on racial minority LGBT people, are discussed.     

Some Spatial Politics of Queer-Feminist Research: Personal Reflections From the Field

ABSTRACT

This article addresses methodological issues emerging from research conducted with Trans in the Center, an LGBT activist group in Tel Aviv, Israel. It addresses some complex issues related to the politics and ethics of applying queer and feminist methodology to qualitative research in a trans, queer, and feminist community space. The focus is on two issues: the researcher’s positionality vis-à-vis the participants and selecting the appropriate methodology in relation to the characteristics of the group under study. Such issues demonstrate how queer and feminist principles are articulated and interwoven in geographical-spatial research in two different dimensions: in the research practice and methodology and in the practices and the spaces created by the activity of the researched group itself. I conclude with insights arising from the attempt to apply feminist and queer paradigms in both theory and research, and I call for their integration into geographical research.     

el barrio de La Chueca of Madrid,Spain: An Emerging Epicenter of the Global LGBT Civil Rights Movement

The purpose of this article is to examine and deconstruct the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) barrio (community) of Chueca in Madrid, Spain, from political and sociological perspectives. First, we develop a critical framework for understanding the historical, political, social, cultural, and economic changes that took place in Spain after Franco's death in relation to LGBT issues. Ethnographic research was conducted from May to July 2007 in the Spanish cities of Madrid, Barcelona, and Ibiza, and focused primarily on the community of Chueca. A social constructionist perspective was used to examine sociocultural issues in this ethnosexual community through an in-depth study of the dynamics of this barrio. The theoretical framework of intersectionality and the constitutive relations among social identities is exemplified in Chueca. Hence, individuals in Chueca and their intersectionality perspective reveal that their identities influence and shape their beliefs about gender and symbols. We describe how Chueca reflects recent progressive changes in LGBT-related laws and statutes drafted by the federal government and how these have influenced the high level of societal acceptance toward intimate same-sex relationships in Spain. Additionally, we exemplify and present Chueca as an enclave that has been affected by the globalization of the private market, “gay” identity, and enterprise, having a direct effect on cultural norms and social behaviors. Last, we examine the current state of the Chueca community relative to other developing LGBT Latino/a communities in the United States.     

Call Me Kuchu

This paper examines Call Me Kuchu, a 2012 documentary that profiles a group of activists in Uganda as they respond to the introduction of anti-homosexuality legislation in the Ugandan Parliament, the exposure of members of the LGBT community in the Ugandan publication Rolling Stone, and the death of activist David Kato. Utilizing queer theory, transnational feminism, and critical media studies, the authors provide a close reading of the film's formal elements in relation to the geopolitical context in which the film circulates. They argue for a more reflexive filmmaking praxis as well as significant contextualization of the issues of LGBT identity and human rights claims in relation to post-colonial politics. Ultimately, they offer suggestions for employing transnational filmmaking praxis and engaging with the film as a dynamic artifact of transnational and post-colonial contexts.     

Same-Sex Marriage and the Assimilationist Dilemma: A Research Agenda on Marriage Equality and the Future of LGBTQ Activism,Politics, Communities,and Identities

ABSTRACT

This special issue of the Journal of Homosexuality, examines the impact of the marriage equality movement and the resulting landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision, Obergefell v. Hodges (2015) that legalized same-sex marriage in the U.S., on lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) activism, politics, communities, and identities. The articles in this issue examine the complicated ways in which the discourse used in same-sex marriage court cases is related to heteronormative discursive frames; the lived reality of married same-sex couples and the complex ways in which they think about marriage and heteronormativity; the ways that heteronormativity is racialized, which affects how African Americans perceive the impact of same-sex marriage on their lives; how same-sex marriage has influenced public opinion and the likelihood of anti-gay backlash; and the impact of same-sex marriage on family law. In this article, I draw on the empirical research from these articles to develop a theoretical framework that expands a multi-institutional (MIP) approach to understanding social movements and legal change. I build on and develop three conceptual tools: the assimilationist dilemma, discursive integration and cooptation, and truth regime. I conclude by laying out an agenda for future research on the impact of same-sex marriage on LGBTQ movements, politics, identities, and communities.     

Building a Dignified Identity: An Ethnographic Case Study of LGBT Catholics

ABSTRACT

This ethnographic case study offers insight into religiously devout sexual minorities and the reasons behind their continued participation in an anti-gay religious institution, the Roman Catholic Church. I demonstrate how members of Dignity, an organization for gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) Catholics, strategically use their identity as gay Catholics to initiate action, to build community, and to destigmatize other religious sexual minorities. Members leverage this unique identity to push for change and equality within the Church. At the same time, this identity also allows members to see their continued participation in the anti-gay Roman Catholic Church as activism, a positive and affirming identity, thereby alleviating potential conflict and contradiction between their sexuality and their spirituality as Roman Catholics.     

Health Needs and Experiences of a LGBT Population in Georgia and South Carolina

ABSTRACT

The 2016 Municipal Equality Index rated Augusta, the largest city in the Central Savannah River Area (CSRA), as one of the least lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) friendly cities in America. To understand the context of our region in relation to LGBT wellness, we conducted the first LGBT health needs assessment of the CSRA, assessing physical and mental health status and health care needs and experiences in the community. Participants (N = 436) were recruited using venue and snowball sampling and completed an anonymous online survey. Overall, the health problems experienced (i.e., obesity, depression) were not uniformly experienced across sexual orientation and gender identity; some groups experienced significantly higher rates of these conditions than others. Similarly, transgender individuals in particular reported higher rates of negative experiences with health care providers. Regional and national dissemination of these findings is critical to reducing health disparities and improving wellness of our local LGBT community.     

Sexual Identity in the American Deep South: The Concordance and Discordance of Sexual Activity,Relationships, and Identities

This research explores the association between sexual identity and sexual behavior and how that association varies across gender and race in the American Deep South. Multinomial logistic regression analysis is used to determine the likelihood of each sexual identity given past sexual behavior, sexual relationships, and other social characteristics. The more traditional cultural climate of the South appears to suppress identification as a sexual minority. Sexual identification in the Deep South is primarily a product of sexual activity and sexual relationships, although attitudes toward and contact with the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community play a minor role. Although most participants' sexual behaviors and identities were in concordance, sexual discordance was highest for White women and lowest for White men. Discordance was also associated with traditional men's roles attitudes, negative homosexuality attitudes, and contact with the LGBT community. It is hoped that these results encourage scholarship that deconstructs the sexual behavior and identity of all groups, not just oppressed groups.     

Balancing acts: drag queens, gender and faith

While engaged in research on the same-sex marriage debate in mainline denominations, I interviewed 23 LGBT Christians, four of whom were drag queens. While it is not possible to generalize from such a small sample, the drag queens in this study insist on maintaining their identity as Christians despite the hegemonic discourse that renders faith and LGBT identities mutually exclusive. They developed innovative approaches to reconciling their gender and sexual identities with their spirituality. Their innovations are potentially liberating not just for them personally, but for LGBT people generally because they challenge Christianity's rigid dichotomies of gender and sexuality.     

Legal consciousness and LGBT research: the role of the law in the everyday lives of LGBT individuals

The law occupies a prominent place in the everyday lives of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) individuals, and the continuing regulation and policing of sexuality and gender weighs heavily on many people who identify as LGBT. Despite remarkable progress in the area of LGBT civil rights, LGBT individuals in the United States still lack formal equality and are denied many of the protections that are afforded other historically disadvantaged groups. These legal disabilities represent an ongoing source of minority stress and can produce a correspondingly high degree of legal consciousness within the LGBT community.     

Transgender DeKalb: observations of an advocacy campaign

In September 2000, the Community Members Against Discrimination (CMAD), a grassroots LGBT organization in DeKalb, Illinois, convinced their city council to add protection against discrimination on the basis of gender identity and expression. Written as an autoethnography, this essay considers the events of the campaign in terms of queer theory and the study of public argument by isolating a set of episodes that bring the reader closer to the experiences of transgender citizens who act in a public culture. The author also explores his own responsibilities as a scholar of communication, an activist, and a member of the LGBT community.     

Disappearing Dykes? Post-Lesbian Discourse and Shifting Identities and Communities

ABSTRACT

Researchers and activists have argued that the term “lesbian” has been disappearing, in decline for decades, and have focused on tensions around gender and sexual identities as the source of its decline. I identify “post-lesbian discourse” as key concept in the changing landscape of LGBTQ terminology, and I highlight four concerns that emerge in this discourse: shifting lesbian politics, a too-inclusive community, a loss of lesbian spaces, and the meaning of embodied lesbian identity. Rather than focusing solely on gender and sexuality, my aim is to explore the development of post-lesbian discourse and its effects on lesbian identities and communities.     

Persecution Experiences and Mental Health of LGBT Asylum Seekers

Asylum seekers are a unique population, particularly those who have endured persecution for their sexual orientation or gender identity. Little data exist about the specific experiences and needs of asylum seekers persecuted due to lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender (LGBT) identity. Quantitative data were gathered regarding demographics, persecution histories, and mental health of 61 clients from a torture survivors program in New York City who reported persecution due to LGBT identity. Thirty-five clients persecuted due to their LGBT identity were matched by country of origin and sex with clients persecuted for other reasons to explore how persecution and symptoms may differ for LGBT clients. LGBT asylum seekers have a higher incidence of sexual violence, persecution occurring during childhood, persecution by family members, and suicidal ideation. Understanding the type of persecution experiences and how these influence mental health outcomes is an essential step toward designing and delivering effective treatments.     

Measuring Heterosexual LGBT Ally Development: A Rasch Analysis

An instrument was developed that measured heterosexual persons' level of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) ally identity. Using a Rasch analysis, 2 dimensions were observed: (a) internal and interpersonal and (b) activity. Persons with high levels of LGBT ally identities endorsed items about having LGBT knowledge, attitudes, and skills; having interpersonal experiences with LGBT communities; and including LGBT ally as part of their identities. The instrument met criteria for the content, substantive, structural, generalizability, and responsiveness validity. The instrument can be used to assist persons to develop their abilities to support and advocate for equality for LGBT communities.     

Unraveling Health Disparities Among Sexual and Gender Minorities: A Commentary on the Persistent Impact of Stigma

ABSTRACT

LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) populations experience disparities in health outcomes, both physical and mental, compared to their heterosexual and cisgender peers. This commentary confronts the view held by some researchers that the disparate rates of mental health problems reported among LGBT populations are the consequences of pursuing a particular life trajectory, rather than resulting from the corrosive and persistent impact of stigma. Suggesting that mental health disparities among LGBT populations arise internally, de novo, when individuals express non-heterosexual and non-conforming gender identities ignores the vast body of evidence documenting the destructive impact of socially mediated stigma and systemic discrimination on health outcomes for a number of minorities, including sexual and gender minorities. Furthermore, such thinking is antithetical to widely accepted standards of health and wellbeing because it implies that LGBT persons should adopt and live out identities that contradict or deny their innermost feelings of self.     

A Concept Analysis of Bear Identity

Members of the bear community, a gay male subculture, offer insight into the development and purveyance of a gay subculture. Using Walker and Avant’s concept analysis methodology, concept exploration and a subsequent concept analysis of the term bear identity, using existing literature, was conducted to obtain a better understanding of the meanings of the term bear identity. CINAHL, Psycinfo, Pubmed, Medline, LGBT Life, and ProQuest were employed to identify and examine the data surrounding the concept of bear identity. After conducting the literature review, an analysis of bear identity emerged that explores antecedents, attributes, and possible consequences related to bear identification. Lastly, implications for theory, research, and practice are discussed.