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Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Commons

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Social and Behavioral Sciences

2003

Queer

Articles 1 - 2 of 2

Full-Text Articles in Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies

Science, Identity, And The Construction Of The Gay Political Narrative, Nancy J. Knauer Jan 2003

Science, Identity, And The Construction Of The Gay Political Narrative, Nancy J. Knauer

Nancy J. Knauer

This Article contends that the current debate over gay civil rights is, at base, a dispute over the nature of same-sex desire. Pro-gay forces advocate an ethnic or identity model of homosexuality based on the conviction that sexual orientation is an immutable, unchosen, and benign characteristic. The assertion that, in essence, gays are "born that way," has produced a gay political narrative that rests on claims of shared identity (i.e., homosexuals are a blameless minority) and arguments of equivalence (i.e., as a blameless minority, homosexuals deserve equal treatment and protection against discrimination). The pro-family counter-narrative is based on a behavioral …


Old Maids And Faeries: The Image Problem, Polly Thistlethwaite Jan 2003

Old Maids And Faeries: The Image Problem, Polly Thistlethwaite

Publications and Research

Librarian stereotypes are akin to those of gays and lesbians. Librarians battling negative professional images are in common cause with gays and lesbians battling similarly slanderous representations. This article proposes relationships between these varieties of maligned people and professionals.