Why Europe Is Lesbian and Gay Friendly (and Why America Never Will Be) , livre ebook

State University of New York Press - Angelia R. Wilson

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121 pages

English

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Why Europe Is Lesbian and Gay Friendly (and Why America Never Will Be) examines the differences in politics, policy, and culture in leading Western democracies and offers an explanation as to why lesbian and gay citizens in Europe reap more benefits of equality. This analysis of the political economy of care calls attention to the ways in which care is negotiated by various investors (the state, families, individuals, and the faith-based voluntary sector) and the power dynamics of this negotiation.

Historically, Christian churches have been leading primary investors in care, providing a direct safety net for children and the elderly. Despite European secularization, the involvement of the Christian church elites in both the provision of service and the setting of the values frame for welfare cannot be underestimated. The historical involvement of Christian churches is unique in each country, but one common factor is the normative interpretation of "the family." The role of Christian values—from left-leaning social justice, Reformed Protestant individualism, or social conservatism—in relation to the political economy of care gives a distinctive flavor to questions about under what circumstances policymakers are compelled, or not, to expand policies to include lesbian and gay citizens.
Acknowledgments

1. Why Europe is Lesbian and Gay Friendly

2. Commitment to Care

3. Christian Values and Welfare

4. A Care Crunch

5. Caring Citizenship

6. Why America Never Will Be

Notes
References
Index

Sujets

Gay Studies

Central

National

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Publié par	State University of New York Press
Date de parution	09 juillet 2013
Nombre de lectures	0
EAN13	9781438447292
Langue	English

Informations légales : prix de location à la page 0,1648€. Cette information est donnée uniquement à titre indicatif conformément à la législation en vigueur.

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Praise for Why Europe Is Lesbian and Gay Friendly (and Why America Never Will Be)
“The good news: Wilson's innovative argument is persuasive—‘gay and lesbian friendly’ policies have to be understood in the context of the political economy of care. In this way, she creatively adds to such usual suspects, as religiosity, in comparing state policies about sexual inclusion. The bad news: for all the news about gay marriage, the USA still does not come out well.”
—Joan C. Tronto, coeditor of Women Transforming Politics: An Alternative Reader
“Angelia R. Wilson's comparative study of policies affecting the well-being of lesbian and gay citizens in Europe and the United States is thoroughly grounded in the literature of political science. On the question of why European social policy is more supportive and inclusive of lesbians and gay men than is true of the United States, she marshals primarily qualitative evidence which is analyzed from several theoretical angles to reach her conclusion. The perspectives developed in this work will contribute to shaping the course of future debates over the question of how best to advance the rights and well-being of all citizens.”
—Charles W. Gossett, California State University, Sacramento

SUNY series in Queer Politics and Cultures

Cynthia Burack and Jyl J. Josephson, editors

Why Europe Is Lesbian and Gay Friendly (and Why America Never Will Be)
Angelia R. Wilson

Published by State University of New York Press, Albany
© 2013 State University of New York
All rights reserved
Printed in the United States of America
No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission. No part of this book may be stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means including electronic, electrostatic, magnetic tape, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise without the prior permission in writing of the publisher.
For information, contact State University of New York Press, Albany, NY www.sunypress.edu
Production by Eileen Nizer Marketing by Kate McDonnell
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Wilson, Angelia R.
Why Europe is lesbian and gay friendly (and why America never will be) / Angelia R. Wilson.
p. cm. — (SUNY series in queer politics and cultures)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-1-4384-4727-8 (hbk. : alk. paper)
1. Gays—Europe—Social conditions. 2. Gays—United States—Social conditions. 3. Gay rights—Europe. 4. Gay rights—United States. 5. Europe—Social policy. 6. United States—Social policy. I. Title.
HQ76.3.E8W55 2013
323.3'264094—dc23
2012027401
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

As I write this dedication I can hear our children, Joe and Grace, playing in the rare British summer sunshine. My partner, Sarah, has just brought me a plate of food and a beer. In these still moments I know that without the sound of their laughter, without her nourishing care, these words would not have found their way to print, and I would not have found my way.
Acknowledgments
I would like to thank students and colleagues at Ohio State University, Denison University, University of Kent, University of Glasgow, and the Gender and Sexuality Section of the Council for European Studies all of whom kindly extended invitations to speak and provided insightful comments that improved this manuscript. Additionally, a trans-Atlantic community of scholars has engaged helpfully with academic points and supportively encouraged me on the path to completion: Ryan Combs, Paul Djupe, Robert Eaglestone, David Farrell, Charles Gossett, Kelly Kollman, David Patternotte, Nicola Phillips, Diane Richardson, Ken Sherrill, Tony Smith, and Matthew Waites. My local friends have listened, poured liters/gallons of coffee and, importantly, looked after our kids at crucial junctures: Gill Stock, Ruth Hoult, and all the other great Urmston moms; Alayna Waldrum, Betsy Beaulieu and, of course, “The Boys.” Finally, I want to thank Beth Bouloukos and the SUNY production team for guiding this manuscript so smoothly to publication. Leading the way for SUNY were the Series Editors, Cynthia Burack and Jyl Josephson both of whom gave me sound, pointed, and wonderfully supportive advice—as well as great friendship.
Chapter 1

Why Europe Is Lesbian and Gay Friendly
A s a Texan lesbian academic living and working in the United Kingdom for more than 20 years, I am often asked by other Americans why European countries are so much more accepting of their lesbian and gay citizens. Of course, European scholars also direct the other version of this question at me: Why are Americans so against the extension of rights to lesbian and gay citizens? This book is an attempt to provide an answer to the first of these questions. In doing so, the last chapter sketches an answer to the second.
Some answers to this question can be found in relevant literature, and I discuss these briefly here. Although each of these is an acceptable and accurate narrative, my concern here is with a narrative that appears to be missing from that literature and one that has significant potential in framing a Euro-American comparative discussion. Specifically, the narrative in this book explores how a consideration of the political economies of care can bring to light nuances in such a comparative analysis.
A quick survey of contemporary literature offers up four key possible answers to the question posed. The first, most expertly captured in Jeffrey Weeks' book entitled The World We Have Won , 1 maintains that from the moment of the Stonewall Riots in New York in 1969 the “gay” movement has made a significant impact on the cultures, politics, and policies of the Western world. Familiar new social movement literature outlines the importance of key political moments where activists took to the streets demanding change. Likewise, historians and ethnographers compile moving accounts of activists organizing as a community in order to protect individuals from harm, and provide basic care, as the discovery of HIV/AIDS led to homophobic backlash, marginalization and, in some cases, the denial of medical care and welfare. Over time, activists gained experience in engaging with the institutions of the state and became more professionalized in securing voluntary sector/nonprofit financing, 2 in provision of care and services as well as in the art of political lobbying and rational, elite persuasion. For example, Ricardo Llamas and Fefa Vila note the development of a “homocracy” from two fundamental aspects of Spanish activism: “an establishment of social centers” and “provision of social services around AIDS prevention and information hot lines.” 3 It is clear that the “gay movement” matured and, now more inclusive of a range of non-heterosexual identities, has become a more sophisticated political actor in most Western democracies.
With such political professionalism developing in Western democracies, there began to emerge a few moments—brief and sporadic at first—in political discourse in which a few leading politicians or local policymakers would take a political risk by calling into question the traditional notions of equality, justice, or rights—brave attempts to reframe the debate and raise the opportunity for a redefinition that was more inclusive of lesbian and gay citizens. As these moments increased, a second narrative emerged mapping these as indicators of an ideological shift. A few European countries were able to set the bar for good practice in nondiscrimination and inclusivity to which others could aspire. Reflecting on these moments, Kees Waaldijk employs a policy developmental model that outlines how this shift might take place over time within any one country and how this might lead to increased policy sharing. 4 Others, Kelly Kollman and David Paternotte for example, map the reframing of human rights to include same-sex relationships as a global phenomenon. 5 This narrative suggesting an ideological shift does have its challengers. The history of modern political theory attests to the difficulty of agreeing on even the most basic values of liberal democracy. Within the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) academic community—just as within all philosophical discourse—the reaction to shifting values is often: “Whose justice? Which equality?” 6 Backlash to inclusivity in the Social Chapter, for example, continues to mark the European debate where social conservatives from the political right feel threatened by attempts to expand the umbrella of justice or rights to include non-heterosexual citizens. Arguably, for each of these ideological shifts there is a counter-argument against new definitions of justice or equality. This opposition has been significant in each European country—those that are now more “friendly” and those, such as Poland, that continue to be substantially less or unfriendly.
A third explanation points directly to the construction of the European Union (EU) as unique political terrain for introducing social change. To be sure, the construction of the EU did present windows of opportunity in which inclusive policies could be framed as economically beneficial. Developing social policy interventions was justified if the laws of member states were distorting competition or damaging the creation of economic union, for example, by inhibiting the free movement of labor. 7 Social changes, however, were limited to the lowest common denominator of what was politically