Friday 31 August 2012 – Abstracts
09:30 - 11:00: SESSION 9: LAW
Homophobia and Intimate Partner Violence of Lesbians and Gay Men in Taiwan
Shu-Man Pan
Graduate Institute of Social Work
National Taiwan Normal University, Taiwan
Jung-Tsung Yang
Department of Sociology
National Taipei University, Taiwan
With feminist and homosexual groups’ advocates, Taiwan in 1998 has enacted the Domestic Violence Prevention Act (DVPA), which is identified as the first act of preventing domestic violence in Asian countries. Restricted by conservative patriarchal ideologies, the DVPA however only serves to provide protection for heterosexual partners, particularly for those married couples. Those lesbians and gay men who endure intimate partner violence are excluded from the protection of the preservation order. This situation has not been changed until the amendment of the DVPA in 2007. Since then, the protection of the preservation order has been extended to suit for homosexual couples.
According to the statistics (Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Prevention Committee 2012), there is nearly fifty thousand cases of intimate partner violence reported to the DVSAP center, but only few cases are lesbians or gay men. Not asking for help indeed does not mean that violence against lesbians and gay men does not exist. Studies have demonstrated that abused lesbians and gay men hesitate to seek help because of the prevalence of sexual prejudice and homophobia in the society.
Studies in western countries have identified similarities of incidence and patterns of intimate partner violence between homosexual and heterosexual partners. However, there is no any empirical study regarding this issue in Taiwan. Therefore, in this study, using internet survey with 217 participants and focus group interviews with six members from gay and lesbian groups, we investigate the incidence of violence against lesbians and gay men, their help-seeking, and the DVPA’s restrictions for abused lesbians and gay men.
The results of this study have found that the incidence of intimate partner violence against gay and lesbian partner in the past one year is 7.4%, but the lifetime prevalence will be 16.6%. About forty percent of participants have faced with non-intimate partner violence due to their sexual orientation. Among those faced with intimate partner violence, they mostly endure psychological abuse and then physical abuse. Few have ever asked help from the preventing domestic violence system. They even seldom ask help from homosexual groups. Prevalent homophobia in Taiwan prevents lesbians and gay men from seeking help when they endure intimate partner violence. This study gives suggestions to promote the dialogues between service providers, general population, and the NGO groups. Also, this study provides some strategies to increase service providers’ sensitivities toward homosexual cultures and to make the practical policy.
Is Equality a Visible Right? A Consideration of Gender Norms and the Legislative Protection in the UK
Carol Kilgannon
Department of Law
University of Winchester, UK
I propose to give an overview of the current UK legal framework surrounding gender presentation in the workplace and the extent to which the law protects an individual who may present themselves outside of the conventional gender norm. Inherent in this discussion is the question of the extent to which we as individuals have real freedom to present ourselves visually in ways which are compatible with our own ideas of our gender identity and how we might wish to self-represent. This overview will consider this interesting question from an employment perspective where such issues are often most contested.
The interpretation of the levels of protection available in the UK is, it will be contested, still reliant on gender norms. This is true even where protection is sought for discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. There is an inherent conservatism in the interpretation of this protection which, it will be argued, is prescriptive and non-progressive.
The question of gender and religion is also important here. Perhaps paradoxically, religious gender representation can allow some greater protections against discrimination. Paradoxically, because there are often criticisms made of the de-gendering of females through religious dress codes. Nonetheless many women choose to conform to these conventions: does the law treat such choices differently and should it?
Finally, the issue of cross-dressing individuals and transgender individuals will be highlighted. Although unrelated in nature, the legal protections afforded can be related because of third party perceptions. Visual self-representation, while key to the individual, can create issues in real life. The “progressiveness” of the law on this issue is questionable.
A Queer Reading of the European Court of Human Rights Case Law on Sexual Orientation
Damian A. Gonzalez-Salzberg
School of Law
University of Reading, UK
Since 1981 the European Court of Human Rights has dealt with gay and lesbians’ rights in cases ranging from the criminalisation of certain expressions of sexuality to the right to marry. After more than two decades, the Court continues to accept sexual orientation as a valid basis for the differential treatment of individuals. In other words, certain decisions of European States recognising differential rights for gay and lesbian individuals have the blessing of the Court.
This paper undertakes a queer reading of the case-law of the European Court of Human Rights dealing with individuals’ sexual orientation. Its main purpose is to critically evaluate the failures and successes of the Court’s protection of gay and lesbians’ rights. In particular, the paper will analyse whether the reasons for the identified failures could be explained by the understanding given by the Court to the sexual orientation of individuals.
A queer reading of the case-law will show the existence of heteronormative assumptions underlying the opinions of the Court, which will help to understand the reasons behind the Court’s rulings. It would be proposed that the Court, as a regulatory body, is actually creating the legal consequences of being gay and lesbian in Europe. Which are the rights that these legal subjects are (and are not) entitled to? How unequal gays and lesbians are before the Law? That depends on the judgments of the Court.
11:00 - 11:30: COFFEE BREAK
11:30 - 13:00: SESSION 10: GLOBAL CULTURES II
“If [my] local mosque can have karate lessons, kickboxing, [and] cooking lessons for women, why can’t they have sexual health in that?”
Karim Mitha
UK Department of Health
London
UK
Of the estimated 2.9 million Muslims in the UK, approximately 52% are under 25 (Ahmed, 2009; Pew Research Centre, 2010; Younis, 2010). Despite this growing, young, population, little research has considered the effect of acculturative processes on their health outcomes. Though these processes can lead to changes in lifestyle and behaviour, little research has examined how they influence sexual health and activity, particularly amongst diasporic and post-diasporic Muslim communities (Bradby & Williams, 1999; French et al, 2005; Tariq, 2010). British Muslim youth often struggle to balance their traditional religio-cultural values against societal expectations in an increasingly sexualized culture (Malik et al, 2007; Younis, 2010; VAC, 2010). Due to its taboo nature, matters concerning sexual health are not openly discussed, although anthropological and sociological studies have shown that prescriptive behaviour does not always translate to behaviour in practice. Indeed, issues surrounding relationships, sexuality, and sexual health are the biggest concerns for Muslim service users (Younis, 2010). As yet, there is only suggestive evidence regarding the impact of acculturation on sexual behaviour in post-diasporic Muslim youth (Griffiths, 2008). The challenge becomes addressing their concerns in a religio-culturally appropriate manner. This paper provides an overview of the debate in the literature in this area, building upon the work of Griffiths, Prost, and Hart (2008), along with combining interview data from key respondents at service agencies catering to the British Muslim population. It discusses the impact of religiously prescribed behaviour and cultural values which may impact sexual health and activity of young British Muslims. It addresses the gender divide in sexual behaviour/expectations and the unique sexual health needs of the hidden MSM community. Finally, it offers possible interventions which may aid in addressing sexual health concerns of this population, including ways to discuss sexual health, groups to involve, and ways to cater services.
Touching the Untouchable. Sex as Social Criticism in the Work of Naima el Bezaz
Martina Vitackova
Palacky University
Olomouc
Czech Republic
Naima el Bezaz (Meknes, Morocco, 1974) is one of the first women immigrant authors, and the first Moroccan-Dutch woman, to be published in the Netherlands. El Bezaz deals with the position of immigrant (Moroccan) women in contemporary Dutch society in her whole oeuvre. She criticizes rigid Muslim belief and speaks openly about the issues of religiosity, sexuality and society in general. In her second book, Minnares van de duivel (Devil´s Mistress, 2002) El Bezaz touches on the contentious theme of Muslim (women´s) sexuality and the erotic which has annoyed the Muslim as well as the protestant public in the Netherlands. De verstotene (Outcast, 2006) continues this trend and includes even more open sexual scenes than the previous book. Lesbian sex, sex between a Muslim woman and a Jew, masturbation, … The well-selling writer explores in her work the tolerance border of the Moroccan-Dutch community and by doing so creates space for social debate concerning stigmatized Muslim women’s sexuality.
Critical Prejudices, Western Literature, and Conservative Faculties of Foreign Languages and Literatures
Mahdieh T. Khiyabani
Department of English Literature
Azerbaijan University of Shahid Madani,
Iran
The significant role of literary works and queer criticism in the legislation of the new trends of sexuality is unquestionable; and while queer criticisms have successfully shed light on remarkable aspects of literary works, sometimes it is discernible that there is a prejudiced overloading of queer studies on some particular authors and literary works. According to the present paper, such biased criticisms leave two types of drawback; first, they block the multidimensionality of these literary works, and gradually convince the readers that these works have only one single dimension which is homosexuality; second, as a result of such blockage, they (un)consciously push these works into a red boundary for restricted heterosexual literary communities, such as Iran, who for any reason, political or ideological, do not intend to move further beyond the traditional conceptions of sexuality. In such situations, the easiest solution for these authorities is a severe filtering of those literary works whose present criticisms (and not necessarily the works themselves) do not fit within their ethical and political framework. Consequently, great western authors or masterpieces, by the very hand of some radical queer critics lose the chance of being discovered through the lenses of much wider literati. By referring to Oscar Wilde and demonstrating such prejudiced queer studies on this author and his works, the present paper attempts to identify their butterfly effects on heterosexual faculties of foreign languages and literatures, in particular the case of Iran. The writer also provides suggestions in order to maintain a proper linkage between western literature and other different literary circles by avoiding prejudiced queer blockings of literary works.
13:00 - 14:00: LUNCH BREAK
14:00 - 15:30: SESSION 11: NORMS
Sexual Freedom and Monogamy
Natasha McKeever
Department of Philosophy
University of Sheffield, UK
In this paper I will argue that the norm of monogamy prevents people from constructing intimate and loving relationships on their own terms. Western culture refuses to recognise the validity of loving more than one person at a time through its cultural traditions and practices, but also, notably, through the institution of marriage and the recent institution of civil partnership in some countries. Polyamory is therefore not seen as a viable alternative to monogamy for many people. Those who want to have romantic relationships with more than one person are socially ostracised and those who desire to have sex with many people may be humiliated, rejected or dismissed as ‘oversexed’. In addition, those who accept their romantic partner having sex or loving other people tend to be pitied, humiliated or told they are ‘not really in love’ or ‘should not accept such treatment’. Indeed, one of the arguments put forward against the legalisation of gay marriage is that it might ‘open the floodgates’ to practices such as bigamy and polygamy.
Consequently, if you want to experience romantic love, you have little choice but be monogamous. We tend to see the desire to be in a romantic relationship as including the desire, and the promise, to be sexually exclusive. However, rates of adultery are high, suggesting that, given greater choice and flexibility in negotiating the terms of our loving and sexual relationships, many people would not opt for total monogamy. I, therefore, propose that ‘progressive regimes’, though becoming more tolerant of homosexual sex, and of more varied sexual practices, are still rather conservative with regard to the number of people we can and should love, and with whom we can and should have sex. Real commitment to sexual freedom and equality means accepting that this number ought to not always be one.
Sex, What’s Love Got To Do With It?
Nick Harding
Department of Philosophy
University of Reading, UK
“A popular sexual moral is the ‘sex with love’ view, the belief that sex ought to occur in the context of (romantic) love. There is a bold and modest version of this view. Bold: only sex in the context of love can be morally permissible and have high moral value. Modest: although loveless sex can sometimes be morally permissible if certain conditions are met, it has much less moral value than loving sex; given the moral problems it often causes, loveless sex ought to be avoided in pursuit of loving sex, which often is of high moral value. Both versions provide at least partial justification for many social norms: e.g. sexual monogamy; traditional marriage; and the condemnation of sexual promiscuity, sex with friends and sexually open relationships. The strongest rule-utilitarian case for each version is critically evaluated. Rule-utilitarianism is adopted because of its popularity and compatibility with alternative approaches that place importance on human well-being. I argue that a rule-utilitarian perspective would reject both versions, recognising instead the potential high moral value of both loving and loveless sex. Stating here that an act or practice has moral value is to recognise that it produces utility, which in turn gives us moral reasons to enable others to perform it, not prevent others from performing it, and possibly to perform it ourselves. Recognising the moral value of loveless sex would manifest in potentially changing the previously mentioned social norms: i.e. favouring a more sexually polygamous society. I argue that objections to attributing high moral value to loveless sex fail. Such objections include the risk of increasing STDs and unplanned pregnancies, the importance of sexual monogamy and traditional understandings of love, the degradation of people, causing sexual jealously, and the practical difficulty of meeting all the requirements for morally permissible loveless sex.
Mothers, Milk, Sexuality and Ethics
Sofie Vercoutere
Bioethics Institute Ghent & CEVI
Ghent University, Belgium
Ghent University Hospital, Belgium
In sexual ethics, ethicists investigate the conditions, circumstances, persons, attitudes and beliefs considering sexuality: under what conditions is it good or bad to have sex? In this abstract, I investigate the combination of human lactation and sexuality.
In philosophical and ethical literature, we find very few articles about the combination of lactating women and sexuality. For the most part, authors describe breastfeeding as having an adverse effect on a woman’s sexuality. For many people, the combination of lactation and coitus is problematic. In some religious views, people should respect the ‘lactation taboo’, which means that humans should not mix semen and milk. The duration of that prohibition differs, suggesting anywhere from forty days to two years.
Some authors describe the process of breastfeeding as analogous to sexuality and/or as a sexual act. The process of human lactation resembles the biological aspects of a female orgasm because of its relationship with the hormone oxytocin. During a female orgasm, the breast can leak or even squirt milk. For couples, this can be very confusing, frightening or sexually arousing. Some feminists consider this milk ejection as similar to a male ejaculation.
Human beings are the only mammals that can decide to separate lactation from mothering, since they can have an adult nursing relationship with another person. So-called ‘lactation porn’ considers wet, maternal, leaking breasts as erotic. Therefore, breastfeeding can disrupt the delicate border between motherhood and sexuality.Biologically, it is not harmful, and there is no scientific evidence that it is bad. An adult nursing relationship, or an activity such as in ‘lactation porn’, should be acceptable, as long as is executed between consenting adults, who decide freely to engage in such practices with mutual respect and with no intention of harming the other person.
15:30 - 16:00: COFFEE BREAK
16:00 - 17:30: SESSION 12: PORN
Pornography as Performative Discourse
Oana Zamfirache
Faculty of Philosophy
University of Bucharest, Romania
Pornography is said to be a performative discourse: it does what it says. By presenting women as sexual objects, always ready to be taken and possessed, it creates a world where women are mostly seen in this way. But where does this power to subordinate come from? What conditions have to be met so that the effects of pornography could be guaranteed? Does this performative force of the pornographic representation necessarily entail censorship? Is there any other way to counter this injurious speech?
My hypothesis is that pornography creates stereotypes regarding feminine sexuality and that this may count as a social effect of this particular kind of representation. Because in the western culture talking about sex and especially about women’s sexuality is considered a taboo and even a perversion, women’s sexuality was and in a way still is an enigma. Pornography has exploited this lack of knowledge and has created a sexual guide for the interactions between sexes. The problem is that “pornotopia” is as normative in its effects as the regulatory discourses of yore, the only difference being that its norms are implicit and therefore rarely acknowledged. And this makes us even more vulnerable to it.
The aim of this paper is to see how sexual representations act and what the proper way to counter these effects is. Not entirely abstract, but without giving in to the temptation of final social solutions either, the paper will follow J. L. Austin’s suggestion: „in philosophy, forearmed should be forewarned.”
The UK Regulation of Sadomasochism On and Off Screen: The OPA and BBFC after R v Peacock
Sarah Harman
Screen Media Research Centre
Brunel University, UK
The British Board of Film Classification, under the UK’s Obscene Publications Act (1959) guidance (and recently reinforced by 2008’s Section 63 of the Criminal Justice and Immigration Act) has a long history of censoring cinematic representations of sadomasochism. From Pier Paolo Pasolini’s Salo, or the 120 Days of Sodom (1975) banned until 2000, to the more recent The Human Centipede 2: Full Sequence (2011) and A Serbian Film (2010), the BBFC has always regarded such images of sexual violence as liable to harm an imagined audience.
Conversely, in the recent landmark R v Peacock case, a male sex worker charged under the OPA for possessing ‘extreme’ hardcore gay pornography featuring sadomasochistic acts, was found not guilty by a jury of his peers for distributing images which would ‘deprave and corrupt’. Thus, it would appear that such censorship is not only founded upon flawed and outdated modes of audience perceptions, but fails to account for contemporary audiences and their changed access to such sadomasochistic imagery.
This paper thus argues that both the OPA (vis-à-vis the Law Commission and CPS) and BBFC are in crisis, and seeks to question: Will the response be a relaxation, or tightening of their legal reach on how audiences consume such ‘sexually violent’ images?; And further, what might such a term mean in this increasingly digital and ‘pornographied’ age?
A Psychobiosocial and Gender-focused Approach to Male and Female Pornography
Wim Slabbinck
Sexologist
Belgium
In this presentation, a psychobiosocial model is developed on male and female sexuality, sexual desire and pornography. This model, which is essentially based on the theories of erotic plasticity and sexual strategies, attempts (1) to explain the difference in pornographic consumption between men and women; (2) to formulate an answer to the question if female pornography is a genre in the making or just a peripheral phenomenon of male pornography.
The author develops five arguments why men are more strongly oriented towards pornography than women. These are: (1) the male tradition of pornography; (2) the message of most pornographic materials; (3) the neurobiological differences between men and women; (4) the different manner in which men and women evaluate pornography and (5) the different approach of men and women to sexuality and desire.
Finally I investigate what the difference in sexual arousal at pornographic consumption may involve. I propose a number of desired, but not necessarily absolute criteria for woman-friendly pornography. If pornography is not ideal for women, are there alternatives? Pornography and the various subgenres only constitute one of the possible ways to satisfy sexual desires. Are there other online expressions that are more in line with the female view on sexuality? What will the future (of pornography) bring and will it be for the benefit of both genders?
17:30 - 18:00: CLOSING COMMENTS
