Sexuality

Citation:

Gouliquer, Lynne, Carmen Poulin, and Jennifer Moore. 2018. "A Threat to Canadian National Security: A Lesbian Soldier's Story." Qualitative Research in Psychology 15 (2-3): 323-35.

Authors: Lynne Gouliquer, Carmen Poulin, Jennifer Moore

Abstract:

Before 1992, lesbians and gay soldiers were purged and discharged from the Canadian military for “reasons of homosexuality.” Those caught or suspected of homosexuality were subject to lengthy, humiliating, and degrading interrogations. This short story sheds light on this painful past. It is based on findings of a nationally funded pan-Canadian longitudinal study examining how Canadian military policies and practices influenced the lives of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender soldiers and their partners. In total, 126 people were interviewed. While in the military, countless soldiers were investigated, numerous interrogated, many lost their careers, some committed suicide and others survived. Personal details have been changed to ensure the anonymity of the people, but it is their voices that tell this story. An official state apology was delivered November 28, 2017. Due to an impending class action court case, an agreement for compensation was also reached. Compensation and memorials will be forthcoming to those who were affected by the LGBTQI2+ purge campaign. To this day, no evidence exists that these soldiers were “ever” a threat to national security.

Keywords: Canadian military, discharged soldiers, homosexuality, interrogations, justice, LGBT, national security, purge campaign

Topics: Combatants, Justice, LGBTQ, Military Forces & Armed Groups, Militaries, Security, Sexuality Regions: Americas, North America Countries: Canada

Year: 2018

Citation:

Livingston, Nicholas A., Danielle S. Berke, Mollie A. Ruben, Alexis R. Matza, and Jillian C. Shipherd. 2019. "Experiences of Trauma, Discrimination, Microaggressions, and Minority Stress among Trauma-Exposed LGBT Veterans: Unexpected Findings and Unresolved Service Gaps." Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy 11 (7): 695-703.

Authors: Nicholas A. Livingston, Danielle S. Berke, Mollie A. Ruben, Alexis R. Matza, Jillian C. Shipherd

Abstract:

Topics: Health, Mental Health, PTSD, Trauma, LGBTQ, Military Forces & Armed Groups, Militaries, Sexuality Regions: Americas, North America Countries: United States of America

Year: 2019

Citation:

Schuyler, Ashley, Cary Klemmer, Mary Rose Mamey, Sheree M. Schrager, Jeremy T. Goldbach, Ian W. Holloway, and Carl Andrew Castro. 2020. "Experiences of Sexual Harassment, Stalking, and Sexual Assault during Military Service among LGBT and Non‐LGBT Service Members." Journal of Traumatic Stress 33 (3): 257-66.

Authors: Ashley Schuyler, Cary Klemmer, Mary Rose Mamey, Sheree M. Schrager, Jeremy T. Goldbach, Ian W. Holloway, Carl Andrew Castro

Abstract:

Sexual victimization, including sexual harassment and assault, remains a persistent problem in the U.S. military. Service members identifying as lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender (LGBT) may face enhanced risk, but existing research is limited. We examined experiences of sexual harassment, stalking, and sexual assault victimization during service in a sample of LGBT and non‐LGBT active duty service members. Service members who identified as LGBT (n = 227 LGB, n = 56 transgender) or non‐LGBT (n = 276) were recruited using respondent‐driven sampling for an online survey. Logistic regression models examined the correlates of sexual and stalking victimization. Victimization was common among LGBT service members, including sexual harassment (80.7% LGB, 83.9% transgender), stalking (38.6% LGB, 30.4% transgender), and sexual assault (25.7% LGB, 30.4% transgender). In multivariable models, LGB identity remained a significant predictor of sexual harassment, OR = 4.14, 95% CI [2.21, 7.78]; stalking, OR = 1.98, 95% CI [1.27, 3.11]; and assault, OR = 2.07, 95% CI [1.25, 3.41]. A significant interaction between LGB identity and sex at birth, OR = 0.34, 95% CI [0.13, 0.88], suggests an elevated sexual harassment risk among male, but not female, LGB service members. Transgender identity predicted sexual harassment and assault at the bivariate level only. These findings suggest that LGBT service members remain at an elevated risk of sexual and/or stalking victimization. As the military works toward more integration and acceptance of LGBT service members, insight into victimization experiences can inform tailored research and intervention approaches aimed at prevention and care for victims.

Topics: Gender, Health, LGBTQ, Military Forces & Armed Groups, Militaries, Sexuality, Sexual Violence Regions: Americas, North America Countries: United States of America

Year: 2020

Citation:

Ziemer, Ulrike, ed. 2020. Women's Everyday Lives in War and Peace in the South Caucasus. Palgrave Macmillan.

Author: Ulrike Ziemer

Annotation:

Topics: Armed Conflict, Displacement & Migration, Feminisms, Gender, Women, Gender Roles, LGBTQ, Sexuality Regions: Asia, Central Asia, Europe, South Caucasus Countries: Georgia

Year: 2020

Citation:

Thylin, Theresia. 2020. "Violence, Toleration, or Inclusion? Exploring Variation in the Experiences of LGBT Combatants in Colombia." Sexualities 23 (3): 445-64.

Author: Theresia Thylin

Abstract:

While scholars have started to pay increased attention to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) persons serving in state security forces, little is known of the experiences of LGBT combatants operating in non-state armed groups in conflict settings. This article explores the experiences of LGBT persons from three different armed groups in Colombia. While LGBT combatants are often in a highly vulnerable position, this article reveals large differences between armed groups, as well as important exceptions within groups that contribute to LGBT combatants’ varied experiences. In conclusion, I argue that understanding these variations in LGBT combatants’ experiences has important policy and programme implications and provides opportunities for more inclusive peacebuilding processes in Colombia and beyond.

Keywords: armed conflict, Colombia, combatants, FARC, LGBT

Topics: Armed Conflict, Combatants, Gender, LGBTQ, Military Forces & Armed Groups, Non-State Armed Groups, Peacebuilding, Sexuality Regions: Americas, South America Countries: Colombia

Year: 2020

Citation:

Connell, Catherine. 2018. "“Different Than an Infantry Unit Down in Georgia”: Narratives of Queer Liberation in the Post-DADT Military." Sexualities 21 (5-6): 776-92.

Author: Catherine Connell

Abstract:

More than five years out from its implementation, we still know relatively little about how members of the US military and its ancillary institutions are responding to the repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell. Contrary to what one might expect given the long history of LGBTQ antipathy in the military, I found in interviews with Boston area Reserve Officer Training Core (ROTC) cadets unanimous approval for the repeal of DADT. When pressed to explain why there was so much homogeneity of favorable opinion regarding the repeal, interviewees repeatedly offered the same explanation: that Boston, in particular, is such a progressive place that even more conservative institutions like the ROTC are spared anti-gay sentiment. They imagined the Southern and/or rural soldier they will soon encounter when they enter the US military, one who represents the traditionally homophobic attitudes of the old military in contrast to their more enlightened selves. This ‘‘metronormative’’ narrative has been critiqued elsewhere as inadequate for understanding the relationship between sexuality and place; this article contributes to that critique by taking a new approach. Rather than deconstruct narratives of queer rurality, as the majority of metronormativity scholarship has done, I deconstruct these narratives of urban queer liberation. I find that such narratives mask the murkier realities of LGBTQ attitudes in urban contexts and allow residents like the ROTC cadets in this study to displace blame about anti-gay prejudice to a distant Other, outside of their own ranks.

Keywords: LGBTQ, metronormativity, military, rural, urban

Topics: Gender, LGBTQ, Military Forces & Armed Groups, Militaries, Sexuality Regions: Americas, North America Countries: United States of America

Year: 2018

Citation:

Walker, Shnecia Lenise. 2019. “The Art of Being Unseen: A Phenomenological Study Exploring Alienation as Told through the Lived Experiences of LGBTQ U.S. Military Service Members Who Served before and during the DADT Repeal.” EdD diss., Drexel University.

Author: Shnecia Lenise Walker

Abstract:

For many years, mastering the art of being unseen been a practice for countless LGBTQ military personnel in order to avoid harassment, violence, and expulsion from the U.S. Armed Forces. Prior research on LGBTQ military personnel who served both before and after the repeal of DADT has documented their multifaceted experiences (Alford & Lee, 2016; Allsep, 2013; Gatson, 2015; Goldbach & Castro, 2016; Mondragon, 2013; Parco, Levy, & Spears, 2014; Quam, 2015; Spinks, 2015; Vaughn, 2014). While several studies identified the participants’ experiences of alienation, these studies were largely exploratory and did not investigate or interrogate alienation with any depth or rigor. Drawing on Seeman’s (1975) six variants of alienation, this dissertation explores the phenomenon of alienation as experienced by LGBTQ military personnel. Understanding their experiences of alienation may help to inform and improve military policies and procedures intended to ensure their full integration into the U.S. Armed Forces. This research study utilized a phenomenological approach to explore alienation as lived and experienced by five LGBTQ military personnel during both the enactment and repeal of DADT. Participants were recruited from private and closed military and veteran LGBTQ partnering support groups and organizations located online. Of the five participants, three identified as lesbian, one identified as gay and/or homosexual and the fifth participant identified as queer. Analysis of the data resulted in three themes: 1) experiences with coming out; 2) a climate of oppression; and 3) alienation. This research study includes four major findings: 1) three of the five participants identified themselves as being in the identity acceptance stage the first time that they disclosed their sexual orientation; 2) participants described military culture as oppressive to LGBTQ military personnel both before and after the repeal of DADT; 3) of Seeman’s six variants of alienation, cultural estrangement was the most prominent variant described by the participants; and 4) in addition to Seeman’s six variants of alienation, participants exhibited a resilient variant of alienation in the form of self-preservation. Findings from this study inform both practice and future research. In addition, the study identifies the need for further exploration of the lived experiences of transgender military persons.

Keywords: alienation, diversity, Don't Ask Don't Tell (DADT), isolation, LGBTQ, military

Topics: Gender, LGBTQ, Military Forces & Armed Groups, Militaries, Sexuality, Violence Regions: Americas, North America Countries: United States of America

Year: 2019

Citation:

Rushton, Ashleigh, Lesley Gray, Justin Canty, and Kevin Blanchard. 2019. "Beyond Binary: (Re)Defining “Gender” for 21st Century Disaster Risk Reduction Research, Policy, and Practice." International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 16 (20): 3984-98.

Authors: Ashleigh Rushton, Lesley Gray, Justin Canty, Kevin Blanchard

Abstract:

The dominant discourse of gender focuses on the binary of woman/man, despite the known additional risks for diverse sexualities and gender minorities in disasters. Given the small but growing body of literature concerning gender minorities in disasters, this paper sets out to explore the place of sex and gender minorities in disasters and to examine whether a binary definition needs to be extended. A five-stage rapid review was undertaken following Arksey and O’Malley’s method. Peer-reviewed journal articles in English language were sought that included disaster and gender terms in the title, abstract, and/or body of the article published between January 2015 and March 2019. The search included MEDLINE and Scopus databases. Relevant information from the studies were charted in Microsoft Excel, and results were summarized using a descriptive analytical method. In total, 729 records were identified; 248 that did not meet the inclusion criteria were excluded and 166 duplicates were removed. A total of 315 records were sourced and their full text was reviewed. Of those, only 12 journal articles included content relative to more than two genders. We also recognized that sex and gender terms were used interchangeably with no clear differentiation between the two. We recommend that disaster scholars and practitioners adopt correct terminology and expand their definition of gender beyond the binary; utilize work on gender fluidity and diversity; and apply this to disaster research, policy, and practice.

Keywords: gender, gender minorities, disaster, rapid review, binary

Topics: Environment, Environmental Disasters, Gender, LGBTQ, Sexuality

Year: 2019

Citation:

Kinnvall, Catarina, and Helle Rydstrom, eds. 2019. Climate Hazards, Disasters, and Gender Ramifications. Abingdon: Routledge.

Authors: Catarina Kinnvall, Helle Rydstrom

Annotation:

Summary:
This book focuses on the challenges of living with climate disasters, in addition to the existing gender inequalities that prevail and define social, economic and political conditions.

Social inequalities have consequences for the everyday lives of women and girls where power relations, institutional and socio-cultural practices make them disadvantaged in terms of disaster preparedness and experience. Chapters in this book unravel how gender and masculinity intersect with age, ethnicity, sexuality and class in specific contexts around the globe. It looks at the various kinds of difficulties for particular groups before, during and after disastrous events such as typhoons, flooding, landslides and earthquakes. It explores how issues of gender hierarchies, patriarchal structures and masculinity are closely related to gender segregation, institutional codes of behaviour and to a denial of environmental crisis. This book stresses the need for a gender-responsive framework that can provide a more holistic understanding of disasters and climate change. A critical feminist perspective uncovers the gendered politics of disaster and climate change.

This book will be useful for practitioners and researchers working within the areas of Climate Change response, Gender Studies, Disaster Studies and International Relations. (Summary from Routledge)

Table of Contents:
1. Introduction: Climate Hazards, Disasters and Gender Ramifications
Helle Rydstrom and Catarina Kinnvall

2. Gender Responsive Alternatives on Climate Change from a Feminist Standpoint
Maria Tanyag and Jacqui True

3. Why Gender Does Not Stick: Exploring Conceptual Logics in Global Disaster Risk Reduction Policy
Sara Bondesson

4. Women as Agents of Change? Reflections on Women in Climate Adaptation and Mitigation in the Global North and Global South
Misse Wester and Phu Doma Lama

5. Industrial/Breadwinner Masculinities and Climate Change: Understanding the 'White Male Effect' of Climate Change Denial
Paul Pulé and Martin Hultman

6. Climate Change and 'Architectures of Entitlement': Beyond Gendered Virtue and Vulnerability in the Pacific Islands?
Nicole George

7. Gender as Fundamental to Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Reduction: Experiences from South Asia
Emmanual Raju

8. #leavenoonebehind: Women, Gender Planning and Disaster Risk Reduction in Nepal
Katie Oven, Jonathan Rigg, Shubheksha Rana, Arya Gautam, and Toran Singh

9. Gendered and Ungendered Bodies in the Tsunami: Experiences and Ontological Vulnerability in Southern Thailand
Claudia Merli

10. Disasters and Gendered Violence in Pakistan: Religion, Nationalism and Masculinity
Sidsel Hansson and Catarina Kinnvall

11. Crises, Ruination and Slow Harm: Masculinized Livelihoods and Gendered Ramifications of Storms in Vietnam
Helle Rydstrom

12. In the Wake of Haiyan: An Ethnographic Study on Gendered Vulnerability and Resilience as a Result of Climatic Catastrophes in the Philippines
Huong Nguyen

13. Accountability for State Failures to Prevent Sexual Assault in Evacuation Centres and Temporary Shelters: A Human Rights Based Approach
Matthew Scott

14. Conclusions
Catarina Kinnvall and Helle Rydstrom
 

Topics: Age, Class, Environment, Climate Change, Environmental Disasters, Ethnicity, Feminisms, Gender, Masculinity/ies, Gendered Power Relations, Patriarchy, Gender Equality/Inequality, Sexuality

Year: 2019

Citation:

Gaard, Greta. 2017. Critical Ecofeminism. Lanham: Lexington Books.

Author: Greta Gaard

Annotation:

Topics: Environment, Climate Change, Feminisms, Ecofeminism, Feminist Political Ecology, Gender, Masculinity/ies, Sexuality

Year: 2017