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Divided we stand, united we fall? Structure and struggles of contemporary German sociology
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Reconfiguring the relationship between the ‘good (hetero)sexual subject’ and the grey area between sex and rape
Sexualities, Ahead of Print.
Though many advocates argue that ‘rape is rape’, empirical research demonstrates that many incidents and experiences are ambiguous. This article explores how heterosexual norms play into the construction of a grey area between ‘just sex’ and rape. Based on an analysis of 30 interviews with Norwegian men and women about alcohol-related heterosexual encounters, the article explores how such encounters can become ambiguous. There is a mutually constitutive relationship between what is ‘normal’ and what is not. Simultaneously, heterosexuality and sexual norms are fluid, contextual and constantly developing, so when norms regulating ‘normal’ sex shift, transgressions from these norms probably do as well. By using Gavey’s (2005) model of normative heterosexuality as a scaffold that supports rape culture as a heuristic device, I examine these stories of alcohol-related heterosexual encounters to investigate how norms about heterosexual sex are involved in how people constitute themselves as ‘good sexual subjects’ today. Based on these findings, I discuss how the pathway to becoming a good sexual subject may simultaneously lead into murky and ambiguous territory.
Though many advocates argue that ‘rape is rape’, empirical research demonstrates that many incidents and experiences are ambiguous. This article explores how heterosexual norms play into the construction of a grey area between ‘just sex’ and rape. Based on an analysis of 30 interviews with Norwegian men and women about alcohol-related heterosexual encounters, the article explores how such encounters can become ambiguous. There is a mutually constitutive relationship between what is ‘normal’ and what is not. Simultaneously, heterosexuality and sexual norms are fluid, contextual and constantly developing, so when norms regulating ‘normal’ sex shift, transgressions from these norms probably do as well. By using Gavey’s (2005) model of normative heterosexuality as a scaffold that supports rape culture as a heuristic device, I examine these stories of alcohol-related heterosexual encounters to investigate how norms about heterosexual sex are involved in how people constitute themselves as ‘good sexual subjects’ today. Based on these findings, I discuss how the pathway to becoming a good sexual subject may simultaneously lead into murky and ambiguous territory.
Scandinavian design. The continuous closet and queer refugees in Denmark
Sexualities, Ahead of Print.
This article explores how queer refugees’ navigation of ‘the closet’, centre of the coming out metaphor, is subverting its Scandinavian Design. While many queer people in Denmark conceptualize coming out of the closet as a desirable process, allowing queer subjects to become who they truly are, this understanding is challenged by the experiences of queer refugees who are strategically (not) coming out of the closet in different spaces and at different times. Through interviews with queer refugees and volunteers of a support group in Copenhagen, the article shows how these individuals negotiate the continuous closet – (re)appearing in different spaces and at different times. In being cautious about where to come out (on dating apps, in support groups, at home), to whom (friends, family, potential lovers) and at what time(s), queer refugees balance the refugee regimes’ expectations of normative LGBT(IQ)+ identities with their own complex lived realities.
This article explores how queer refugees’ navigation of ‘the closet’, centre of the coming out metaphor, is subverting its Scandinavian Design. While many queer people in Denmark conceptualize coming out of the closet as a desirable process, allowing queer subjects to become who they truly are, this understanding is challenged by the experiences of queer refugees who are strategically (not) coming out of the closet in different spaces and at different times. Through interviews with queer refugees and volunteers of a support group in Copenhagen, the article shows how these individuals negotiate the continuous closet – (re)appearing in different spaces and at different times. In being cautious about where to come out (on dating apps, in support groups, at home), to whom (friends, family, potential lovers) and at what time(s), queer refugees balance the refugee regimes’ expectations of normative LGBT(IQ)+ identities with their own complex lived realities.
More like a woman: Activa/Pasiva subjectivities in Cuba
Sexualities, Ahead of Print.
This article explores the gender and sexuality of activa/pasiva women in Cuba. The construction of activa and pasiva is very similar to other masculine/feminine female relationships around the world, often referred to in English as ‘butch’ and ‘femme’. In 2017, I interviewed 33 self-identified lesbian and bisexual women and 23 policymakers, officials, cultural contributors, and activists, in the cities of Havana, Santa Clara, and Matanzas. The women I met enjoyed and found power in their masculine/feminine partnerships. However, in contrast to a view of Cuba as increasingly tolerant and progressive towards LGBT people, my case study analyses how other lesbian and bisexual women vilify activas and pasivas in order to elevate themselves through distance, as a route to social inclusion. It demonstrates how political and social tolerance for lesbian and bisexual women is a gendered discourse that relies on their correct performance of white, middle-class, feminine gender normativity. I explore how feminine lesbian presentation is attached in Cuba to ideas of whiteness, modernity, education, and progressiveness, while masculine presentation is denigrated as old-fashioned, patriarchal, and replicating heterosexist norms. I analyse this discourse, showing it to be embedded in racist and traditional ideas of femininity which themselves uphold the gender binary. In particular, I argue that masculine women are made into abject others, using homonormativity theory and the black politics of respectability to show how gender normativity underpins social and political tolerance for lesbian and bisexual women.
This article explores the gender and sexuality of activa/pasiva women in Cuba. The construction of activa and pasiva is very similar to other masculine/feminine female relationships around the world, often referred to in English as ‘butch’ and ‘femme’. In 2017, I interviewed 33 self-identified lesbian and bisexual women and 23 policymakers, officials, cultural contributors, and activists, in the cities of Havana, Santa Clara, and Matanzas. The women I met enjoyed and found power in their masculine/feminine partnerships. However, in contrast to a view of Cuba as increasingly tolerant and progressive towards LGBT people, my case study analyses how other lesbian and bisexual women vilify activas and pasivas in order to elevate themselves through distance, as a route to social inclusion. It demonstrates how political and social tolerance for lesbian and bisexual women is a gendered discourse that relies on their correct performance of white, middle-class, feminine gender normativity. I explore how feminine lesbian presentation is attached in Cuba to ideas of whiteness, modernity, education, and progressiveness, while masculine presentation is denigrated as old-fashioned, patriarchal, and replicating heterosexist norms. I analyse this discourse, showing it to be embedded in racist and traditional ideas of femininity which themselves uphold the gender binary. In particular, I argue that masculine women are made into abject others, using homonormativity theory and the black politics of respectability to show how gender normativity underpins social and political tolerance for lesbian and bisexual women.
“I am not human without my phone”: How the socio-cultural realities of Liberia shape Liberian mobile youth culture
Mobile Media &Communication, Ahead of Print.
Mobile youth culture (MYC) is a concept that refers to the distinctive ways in which young people adopt and use mobile phones. However, most studies on MYC are situated in the Global North, where the lived realities of teenagers are different from teenagers in the Global South. Through an investigation of how MYC manifests in Liberia, this article adds to the growing literature on mobile communication in the Global South. By doing so, the study responds to scholarly criticisms of the assumption that young people everywhere experience the use of mobile phones in similar ways. Based on qualitative semi-structured interviews with 38 Liberian teenagers, our findings challenge the western, educated, industrialized, rich, and democratic (WEIRD)-centric suggestion of a worldwide “monoculture,” because our results show that although mobile connectivity gives Liberian teenagers opportunities similar to those afforded to their peers in most WEIRD (and non-WEIRD) societies, it is simultaneously experienced markedly different by them. We therefore argue for a more “inclusive” conceptualization of the MYC concept.
Mobile youth culture (MYC) is a concept that refers to the distinctive ways in which young people adopt and use mobile phones. However, most studies on MYC are situated in the Global North, where the lived realities of teenagers are different from teenagers in the Global South. Through an investigation of how MYC manifests in Liberia, this article adds to the growing literature on mobile communication in the Global South. By doing so, the study responds to scholarly criticisms of the assumption that young people everywhere experience the use of mobile phones in similar ways. Based on qualitative semi-structured interviews with 38 Liberian teenagers, our findings challenge the western, educated, industrialized, rich, and democratic (WEIRD)-centric suggestion of a worldwide “monoculture,” because our results show that although mobile connectivity gives Liberian teenagers opportunities similar to those afforded to their peers in most WEIRD (and non-WEIRD) societies, it is simultaneously experienced markedly different by them. We therefore argue for a more “inclusive” conceptualization of the MYC concept.
Sexuality and sexual violence: A qualitative study exploring the perspectives of sexuality educators and sexual violence professionals
Sexualities, Ahead of Print.
There has been an increase in discussion concerning the integration of sexuality education and the prevention of sexual violence. Furthermore, this is a concern at the level of different pedagogical professions in Germany, since sexuality education and sexual violence prevention have developed as largely separate fields. Both sexuality educators and sexual violence professionals work with a broad target group to prevent sexual violence, including children, young people, as well as parents and professionals working in social work or education. They collaborate at times, but they also engage in debates about their respective pedagogical approaches. Based on group discussions with 12 teams specializing in the two fields, this article analyzes how their tacitly shared knowledge (collective orientation) underpins their different pedagogical strategies. This should be considered to improve their long-term inter-professional cooperation.
There has been an increase in discussion concerning the integration of sexuality education and the prevention of sexual violence. Furthermore, this is a concern at the level of different pedagogical professions in Germany, since sexuality education and sexual violence prevention have developed as largely separate fields. Both sexuality educators and sexual violence professionals work with a broad target group to prevent sexual violence, including children, young people, as well as parents and professionals working in social work or education. They collaborate at times, but they also engage in debates about their respective pedagogical approaches. Based on group discussions with 12 teams specializing in the two fields, this article analyzes how their tacitly shared knowledge (collective orientation) underpins their different pedagogical strategies. This should be considered to improve their long-term inter-professional cooperation.
Tree and Like A Bamboo
Agrarian change in neoliberal Turkey: Insights from privatization of the sugar industry
Abstract
This paper investigates the dynamics of neoliberal agrarian restructuring within the Turkish sugar industry, focusing on the 2018 privatization of the Alpullu Sugar Factory. The analysis examines the transformative impact of market dependence and land commodification on relationship of farmers with the agricultural sector. Specifically, it focuses on two significant neoliberal shifts that have altered the dynamics of farming. First, the withdrawal of state support in agricultural markets prompted farmers to diversify their income streams, leading to a transition from sugar beet cultivation to alternative crops and contemplation of urban migration. Second, in the 2000s, farmers, grappling with declining agricultural revenues, increasingly relied on private bank credits as a means of financial security. This shift was propelled by changes in agricultural policy regulations and the dissolution of state-sponsored credit systems. Employing a blend of qualitative and quantitative research methods, this study elucidated these complex transformations and their profound impact on agrarian livelihoods, land ownership shifts, production strategies and market relationships. The research revealed the complex interplay of social, economic and historical dynamics steering the trajectory of the Turkish sugar industry, providing valuable insights into neoliberal restructuring.
The spectre of docking in circumcision debates
Sexualities, Ahead of Print.
This articles considers the ongoing penile circumcision debates by focusing on the deployment of ‘docking,’ a sexual practice between men. Docking involves pulling one’s foreskin over the glans of another penis. In this article, I consider both “anti” and “pro” circumcision literature and the use of docking in the service of arguments about the procedure. I show that the use of docking can be traced to Daniel M. Harrison’s article “Rethinking Circumcision and Sexuality in the United States” published in Sexualities. Ultimately, I argue that while docking is interesting to consider, it remains something of spectre that haunts the debates more than it is an empirical concern. Consequently, I argue that further study is needed about docking in general, as well as in the particular context of circumcision debates.
This articles considers the ongoing penile circumcision debates by focusing on the deployment of ‘docking,’ a sexual practice between men. Docking involves pulling one’s foreskin over the glans of another penis. In this article, I consider both “anti” and “pro” circumcision literature and the use of docking in the service of arguments about the procedure. I show that the use of docking can be traced to Daniel M. Harrison’s article “Rethinking Circumcision and Sexuality in the United States” published in Sexualities. Ultimately, I argue that while docking is interesting to consider, it remains something of spectre that haunts the debates more than it is an empirical concern. Consequently, I argue that further study is needed about docking in general, as well as in the particular context of circumcision debates.