Impacts of Mormon Rhetoric on White Queer Members' Identity Performances
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University of New Mexico UNM Digital Repository Communication ETDs Electronic Theses and Dissertations Spring 4-29-2020 “This is How You Navigate the World”: Impacts of Mormon Rhetoric on White Queer Members' Identity Performances Ben Brandley University of New Mexico Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/cj_etds Part of the Critical and Cultural Studies Commons, Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Commons, and the Religion Commons Recommended Citation Brandley, Ben. "“This is How You Navigate the World”: Impacts of Mormon Rhetoric on White Queer Members' Identity Performances." (2020). https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/cj_etds/133 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Electronic Theses and Dissertations at UNM Digital Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in Communication ETDs by an authorized administrator of UNM Digital Repository. For more information, please contact [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]. Ben Brandley Candidate Communication & Journalism Department This thesis is approved, and it is acceptable in quality and form for publication: Approved by the Thesis Committee: Shinsuke Eguchi , Chairperson Yangsun Hong David Weiss i “THIS IS HOW YOU NAVIGATE THE WORLD”: IMPACTS OF MORMON RHETORIC ON WHITE QUEER MEMBERS’ IDENTITY PERFORMANCES By Ben Brandley B.Sc. in Communication, Weber State University, 2017 THESIS Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts in Communication The University of New Mexico Albuquerque, New Mexico May 2020 ii © Copyright Ben Brandley. All rights reserved. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS At times our own light goes out and is rekindled by a spark from another person. Each of us has cause to think with deep gratitude of those who have lighted the flame within us. —Albert Schweitzer ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ First of all, I would like to acknowledge anyone who sits, or has sat, in congregations not knowing if the next speaker will condemn your being as sinful or evil, or to those who, during a casual encounter in a church hallway, have heard queerphobic remarks either outright or masked as jokes. This is for you. This is to those who keep their queerness a secret because they don’t want to recognize it out of fear of God, country, family, friends, or church members. This is to those who face discrimination because of Mormonism for other reasons including racism, ageism, ableism, marital status, and so many more forms of hate that unfortunately have found homes in Mormon congregations and temples. I want to acknowledge the often illusive, but very real, power of love in treating others with genuine care. If one scripture holds true and clings to me more than others, it is “God is love” (1 John 4:8). I want to acknowledge that I have personally perpetuated cisheteronormativity. I have turned a blind eye to it and the White supremacy that I enforced—usually in the name of God. iv While I can never make up for the harm I did then, I know that now I can do my best to stop such hatred, starting with me. This is for my parents and grandparents, for my siblings, and my best friends, especially Kenzie, who have taught me so much and took care of me. While many of you may not agree with all I say, I hope we will choose love over our differences. This is for Richie. This is for all the professors, mentors, supervisors, and leaders who believed in me when I didn’t believe in myself. This especially includes my committee, Drs. Eguchi, Hong, and Weiss, who gave me insights, inspiration, and moments for which I will be forever indebted. Shinsuke, your wisdom, guidance, critique, and support has helped me in my personal life and academic life, and I am thankful for all you’ve done. Sun, I am so glad for all your expertise, for the moments of growth in which you enlightened me, and for all the comfort and encouragement when I doubted myself. David, I’m thankful for your insights, suggestions, critiques, and opportunities that pushed me to be a better student, writer, and researcher. This is for all my fellow graduate students in the program who have become my friends and confidants, to all of us who have shared tender moments of loss, uncertainty, joy, and hope. Finally, this is for the participants. Thank you for sharing your stories. v “THIS IS HOW YOU NAVIGATE THE WORLD”: IMPACTS OF MORMON RHETORIC ON WHITE QUEER MEMBERS’ IDENTITY PERFORMANCES By Ben Brandley B.Sc. in Communication, Weber State University, 2017 M.A. in Communication, University of New Mexico, 2020 ABSTRACT The Mormon Church is one of the fastest growing and most conservative religious organizations in the world. The Church’s conservatism has meant that its rhetorics, doctrines, and discourses have cultivated a culture of queerphobia and anti-queer sentiments. By interviewing 15 transgender, bisexual, and gay Mormons who are active in the Church, I conducted a critical thematic analysis that yields insights and critiques into how Mormon rhetoric impacts the identity performances and relationships of queer members. Using queer theory and Whiteness as conceptual and theoretical lenses, the analysis revealed four major themes: 1) queerness as non-identity, 2) the primacy of divine identity, 3) paradoxes of ideologies, and 4) health issues regarding identity performance. The communicative impacts of these themes highlight the intricate influence Mormon rhetoric has on relationships and shaping the participants’ identity performances. Limitations are discussed and future directions are encouraged. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS PREFACE………………………………………………………………………………..ix CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION .................................................................................... 1 Problem Statement .......................................................................................................... 1 A Brief History of Mormonism ....................................................................................... 2 Identity Performance ....................................................................................................... 5 Research Questions……………………………………………………………………..6 Preview…………………………………………………………………………… ……9 CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW ..................................................................... 10 Theories and Frameworks ............................................................................................. 10 Queer Theory ............................................................................................................. 10 Whiteness. .................................................................................................................. 14 Whiteness and Mormonism .......................................................................................... 15 Queerness and Mormonism……………………………………………………… …..24 Research on Queerness and Religion ........................................................................... 32 The Family ................................................................................................................. 33 Extant Research on Queer Mormons. ........................................................................ 33 CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGIES ............................................................................. 37 Research Questions ....................................................................................................... 37 Data Collection .............................................................................................................. 38 Interviewees. .............................................................................................................. 38 Interviews. .................................................................................................................. 40 vii Positionality and Reflexivity ......................................................................................... 43 Data Analysis ................................................................................................................ 44 CHAPTER 4: ANALYSIS ............................................................................................. 48 Queerness as Non-Identity. ............................................................................................ 48 Primacy of Divine Identity. ............................................................................................ 62 Paradoxes of Ideologies. ................................................................................................ 69 Health Issues regarding Identity Performance. .............................................................. 79 Relational Health. .................................................................................................... 80 Mental Health........................................................................................................... 86 Spiritual Health. ....................................................................................................... 90 CHAPTER 5: DISCUSSION ......................................................................................... 99 Review .......................................................................................................................... 99 Thereotical Contributions……………………………………………………………107 Critical Self-Reflexivity……………………………………………………………..111 Limitations…………………………………………………………………………..116 Future Directions ..................................................................................