DOCSLIB.ORG

TERF Wars: Narrative Productions of Gender and Essentialism in Radical-Feminist (Cyber)Spaces Jennifer Earles University of South Florida, [email protected]

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
TERF Wars: Narrative Productions of Gender and Essentialism in Radical-Feminist (Cyber)Spaces Jennifer Earles University of South Florida, Jearlesred@Yahoo.Com University of South Florida Scholar Commons Graduate Theses and Dissertations Graduate School 4-27-2017 TERF Wars: Narrative Productions of Gender and Essentialism in Radical-Feminist (Cyber)spaces Jennifer Earles University of South Florida, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: http://scholarcommons.usf.edu/etd Part of the Sociology Commons Scholar Commons Citation Earles, Jennifer, "TERF Wars: Narrative Productions of Gender and Essentialism in Radical-Feminist (Cyber)spaces" (2017). Graduate Theses and Dissertations. http://scholarcommons.usf.edu/etd/6696 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at Scholar Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Graduate Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Scholar Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. TERF Wars: Narrative Productions of Gender and Essentialism in Radical-Feminist (Cyber)spaces by Jennifer Earles A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of Sociology College of Arts and Sciences University of South Florida Major Professor: Sara L. Crawley, Ph.D. Donileen R. Loseke, Ph.D. Robert D. Benford, Ph.D. Elizabeth Bell, Ph.D. Date of Approval: April 26, 2017 Keywords: gender, lesbians, feminism, social movements, narrative, textual analysis, comparative historical, social media Copyright © 2017, Jennifer Earles DEDICATION Even before I understood feminism and how to put it into practice, my mother cared for me, encouraged me, and stood by my side. And, this process has certainly had its ups and downs. Through my own battle with colon cancer at 35, to the loss of my dear grandmother “Mimmi,” and to the death of my dog Spice who comforted me through it all, my mom, Jenny Hedden, accepted all my sadness, anger, and grief. She supported me with the unconditional love, care, and beauty that inspired me to push forward and succeed. I dedicate this dissertation to her and all the wonderful women in my life, especially my sister Eva and my grandmother Mimmi. Through her love, encouragement, and wonderful uniqueness, Eva has stayed my best friend through everything – she is someone who calls me every day just to make sure I’m happy, someone who drives 11 hours just to visit, and someone with whom I can laugh, cry, and scream at the world. We travel together and still love each other. And, though Mimmi is gone, I feel her love and inspiration everyday – through care and community, she became a feminist even before any of us knew what that meant. I love you all. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This incredible journey would not have been possible without the mentorship, encouragement, patience, and support of so many people. In no particular order, I extend my sincerest gratitude, respect, and appreciation to each of them. First, I would like to thank the community of women who dedicated their lives to producing feminist ideas, politics, and community. Their commitment to feminism and women’s liberation not only inspires me, but has afforded me the opportunities to live out load, to find communities of my own, and to pursue the study of feminism in higher education. These women certainly experienced some ups and downs of their own, but I hope I treated their words and experiences with the respect they deserve. They provided the lineage, history, and pride through which feminist and lesbian communities today can find inspiration. I wish to thank my committee chair and doctoral advisor, Dr. Sara L. Crawley. Not only has she become a trusted friend, but she also encouraged me to pursue feminist sociology from my work in women’s studies. Through our work together, Sara pushed me to stay grounded in the data and to continually think about my position as an analyst. She helped me to shape my areas of expertise, to think independently about my research, and to get the work done. Thanks to her, I have discovered the beauty in theory that will shape my work throughout the rest of my career. I am very grateful to have had the opportunity to work with a woman as talented, caring, and tough as Sara. I would also like to thank the other members of my committee, starting with Doni Loseke. After I learned of my cancer diagnosis during my third year, Doni found me in a state of shock. She listened, comforted me, and told me exactly what I needed to hear – that this wasn’t fair. Doni’s expertise in methodology and narrative identity has also been integral to my research, transforming me from a women’s studies scholar in sociology to a sociologist in my own right. Once again, I am so fortunate to claim Doni as a mentor. I am also grateful to Rob Benford and Elizabeth Bell who took on this project and who provided me with so much support over the years. I am particularly thankful to Rob who wrote so highly of me in letters of recommendation and who took the time to chat with me about my interests and my life. A special thanks to Maralee Mayberry who also wrote many letters on my behalf and who provided me with invaluable pedagogical support. I would also like to thank Laurel Graham who sent me all those funny books and comics – they were just what I needed to get through some difficult times. And, I would especially like to thank Marilyn Myerson. I was lucky enough to have her as my mentor during my graduate work in women’s studies and she remains my friend today. During my long and painful months in the hospital, Marilyn visited almost every day. She held my hand as we talked and I cried. She shaped how I think of myself as a feminist and helped me to understand that feminism is not only important in public protests, but also how you treat those closest to you and in how you center women in your life. You are an amazing and inspiring woman that I am so lucky to call my friend. And, without the support of her friend and mine, Carolyn Ellis, I would not have discovered the beauty of autoethnography and been afforded the opportunity to work through my experiences. You have personally reshaped what it means to be a scholar and so many women owe their success to you. I am also grateful to my third-grade teacher, Mrs. Ready. Through all my social awkwardness, Mrs. Ready recognized my academic potential and set me on a track that culminated in a Ph.D. She was kind, beloved, and, recognized me thirty years later when we met on the streets of my hometown. You are gone but never forgotten. Many people afforded me the financial support and opportunities I received during my graduate work, including the University of South Florida, the Office of Graduate Studies, the Office of Research and Innovation, the Student Government, the Sociology and Women’s and Gender Studies departments, and Sociologists for Women in Society. My success also could not be possible without the incredible support network of my cohort, fellow graduate students, faculty, and staff who helped create such a warm and welcoming department. In particular, I wish to thank Brenda Mason for her emotional, personal, and scholarly support throughout this process. In addition to offering her invaluable comments on my work, Brenda was always there to listen, commiserate, and celebrate all our successes. We met through sociology, but have become lifelong friends. Thank you. I am also thankful for the support of Elaina Behounek, Hilary Dotson, Sean Currie, Loren Wilbers, David Zeller, Katie Cooper, and so many others. And, I would be remiss if I did not thank the administrative staff, including Elizabeth Fernandez, Patricia Greene, Fransheska Andaluz, Joan Jacobs, and Emelda Curry. Without you, I would still be sifting through mounds of paperwork and floundering through important deadlines. It was a pleasure working with you all. Once again, thank you to my mother, Jenny Hedden. You have persevered through so much and continue to support me with your kindness, camaraderie, and encouragement. And, thank you to my sister, Eva. You are my best friend, closest ally, and the person who best understands how far we’ve come and how much this project means. I would also like to thank my grandma Mimmi, the original feminist in the family, and my grandpa Derald “Big D” who was more like a father to me – you drove hours to help me when my car broke down, drove me to the airport even though you hated the traffic, and shared heart-breaking, yet inspiring stories about your time in Korea. You are missed every day. Lastly, thank you to Laurie and Jerry Rinnert, Nancy and Kevin Emmons, David and Julie Hedden, Ron Hedden, Stephen McGregor, all my cousins, and Spice, Sophie, and Sandy for all their love. Thank you. TABLE OF CONTENTS List of Figures ...................................................................................................................... iv Abstract ................................................................................................................................. v Chapter One: Introduction .................................................................................................... 1 Situating Radical Feminism and Lesbian Separatism within the Broader Movement ........................................................................................................... 5 Situating Radical Feminism in Online Spaces .......................................................... 9 Method: Narrative Productions of Meaning ........................................................... 11 Data ........................................................................................................................
Load more

Recommended publications
  • 1 GOV 1029 Feminist Political Thought TIMES to BE CONFIRMED
    GOV 1029 Feminist Political Thought TIMES TO BE CONFIRMED: provisionally, Tuesday 1:30-2:45, Thursday TBC Fall Semester 2020 Professor Katrina Forrester Office Hours: TBC E-mail: [email protected] Teaching Fellows: Celia Eckert, Soren Dudley, Kierstan Carter, Eve O’Connor Course Description: What is feminism? What is patriarchy? What and who is a woman? How does gender relate to sexuality, and to class and race? Should housework be waged, should sex be for sale, and should feminists trust the state? This course is an introduction to feminist political thought since the mid-twentieth century. It introduces students to classic texts of late twentieth-century feminism, explores the key arguments that have preoccupied radical, socialist, liberal, Black, postcolonial and queer feminists, examines how these arguments have changed over time, and asks how debates about equality, work, and identity matter today. We will proceed chronologically, reading texts mostly written during feminism’s so-called ‘second wave’, by a range of influential thinkers including Simone de Beauvoir, Shulamith Firestone, bell hooks and Catharine MacKinnon. We will examine how feminists theorized patriarchy, capitalism, labor, property and the state; the relationship of claims of sex, gender, race, and class; the development of contemporary ideas about sexuality, identity, and gender; and how and whether these ideas change how fundamental problems in political theory are understood. 1 Course Requirements: Undergraduate students: 1. Participation (25%): a. Class Participation (15%) Class Participation is an essential part of making a section work. Participation means more than just attendance. You are expected to come to each class ready to discuss the assigned material.
    [Show full text]
  • Critically Evaluate the Understanding of Gender As Discourse
    Vol. 1, No. 2 International Education Studies Critically Evaluate the Understanding of Gender as Discourse Changxue Xue College of Foreign languages, Yanshan University Qinhuangdao 066004, China Tel: 86-335-805-8710 Email: [email protected] Abstract In this paper, the author explores the different views on gender and the nature of gender as discourse. Furthermore, the author argues that discursive psychology’s views on gender are convincing and explain more than other perspectives of gender. Keywords: Gender, Essentialism, Constructionism Since the 1950s, an increasing use of the term gender has been seen in the academic literature and the public discourse for distinguishing gender identity from biological sex. Money and Hampson (1955) defined the term gender as what a person says or does to reveal that he or she has the status of being boy or girl, man or woman (masculinity or femininity of a person). Gender is a complex issue, constituents of which encompass styles of dressing, patterns of moving as well as ways of talking rather than just being limited to biological sex. Over the years, the perception of the issue ‘gender’ has been changing and developing from essentialism to social constructionism. Essentialism suggests that gender is a biological sex, by contrast, social constructionism suggests that gender is constructed within a social and cultural discourse. Due to its complex nature, gender intrigues numerous debates over the extent to which gender is a biological construct or a social construct. Social constructionists employ discourse analysis as a method for research on gender identity. Discursive psychology is one of most important approaches within discourse analysis in the field of social psychology.
    [Show full text]
  • Transgender Representation on American Narrative Television from 2004-2014
    TRANSJACKING TELEVISION: TRANSGENDER REPRESENTATION ON AMERICAN NARRATIVE TELEVISION FROM 2004-2014 A Dissertation Submitted to the Temple University Graduate Board In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY by Kelly K. Ryan May 2021 Examining Committee Members: Jan Fernback, Advisory Chair, Media and Communication Nancy Morris, Media and Communication Fabienne Darling-Wolf, Media and Communication Ron Becker, External Member, Miami University ABSTRACT This study considers the case of representation of transgender people and issues on American fictional television from 2004 to 2014, a period which represents a steady surge in transgender television characters relative to what came before, and prefigures a more recent burgeoning of transgender characters since 2014. The study thus positions the period of analysis as an historical period in the changing representation of transgender characters. A discourse analysis is employed that not only assesses the way that transgender characters have been represented, but contextualizes American fictional television depictions of transgender people within the broader sociopolitical landscape in which those depictions have emerged and which they likely inform. Television representations and the social milieu in which they are situated are considered as parallel, mutually informing discourses, including the ways in which those representations have been engaged discursively through reviews, news coverage and, in some cases, blogs. ii To Desmond, Oonagh and Eamonn For everything. And to my mother, Elaine Keisling, Who would have read the whole thing. iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Throughout the research and writing of this dissertation, I have received a great deal of support and assistance, and therefore offer many thanks. To my Dissertation Chair, Jan Fernback, whose feedback on my writing and continued support and encouragement were invaluable to the completion of this project.
    [Show full text]
  • Feminism, Feminist Scholarship, and Social Integration of Women: the Trs Uggle for African- American Women Jilly M
    Journal of International Women's Studies Volume 5 | Issue 5 Article 7 Jun-2004 Feminism, Feminist Scholarship, and Social Integration of Women: The trS uggle for African- American Women Jilly M. Ngwainmbi Follow this and additional works at: http://vc.bridgew.edu/jiws Part of the Women's Studies Commons Recommended Citation Ngwainmbi, Jilly M. (2004). Feminism, Feminist Scholarship, and Social Integration of Women: The trS uggle for African-American Women. Journal of International Women's Studies, 5(5), 93-104. Available at: http://vc.bridgew.edu/jiws/vol5/iss5/7 This item is available as part of Virtual Commons, the open-access institutional repository of Bridgewater State University, Bridgewater, Massachusetts. This journal and its contents may be used for research, teaching and private study purposes. Any substantial or systematic reproduction, re-distribution, re-selling, loan or sub-licensing, systematic supply or distribution in any form to anyone is expressly forbidden. ©2004 Journal of International Women’s Studies. Feminism, Feminist Scholarship, and Social Integration of Women: The Struggle for African-American Women. By Jilly M. Ngwainmbii Abstract This paper focuses on the intellectual and scholarly basis of the struggle for social integration of African-American women into American society. Feminism is viewed as the broad context within which this struggle must be conceived, understood, and sustained. Because the struggle is conceptualized as intellectually driven, the paper begins by critically examining feminist scholarship and the contention that feminist scholarship provides the basis for social integration of African-American women into male-dominated American society. A distinct contribution of this paper to the current scholarship is a proposed framework for a process of social integration of African-American women, one which draws on the works and experiences of African-American women in general, and those in academe in particular.
    [Show full text]
  • The Literacy Practices of Feminist Consciousness- Raising: an Argument for Remembering and Recitation
    LEUSCHEN, KATHLEEN T., Ph.D. The Literacy Practices of Feminist Consciousness- Raising: An Argument for Remembering and Recitation. (2016) Directed by Dr. Nancy Myers. 169 pp. Protesting the 1968 Miss America Pageant in Atlantic City, NJ, second-wave feminists targeted racism, militarism, excessive consumerism, and sexism. Yet nearly fifty years after this protest, popular memory recalls these activists as bra-burners— employing a widespread, derogatory image of feminist activists as trivial and laughably misguided. Contemporary academics, too, have critiqued second-wave feminism as a largely white, middle-class, and essentialist movement, dismissing second-wave practices in favor of more recent, more “progressive” waves of feminism. Following recent rhetorical scholarly investigations into public acts of remembering and forgetting, my dissertation project contests the derogatory characterizations of second-wave feminist activism. I use archival research on consciousness-raising groups to challenge the pejorative representations of these activists within academic and popular memory, and ultimately, to critique telic narratives of feminist progress. In my dissertation, I analyze a rich collection of archival documents— promotional materials, consciousness-raising guidelines, photographs, newsletters, and reflective essays—to demonstrate that consciousness-raising groups were collectives of women engaging in literacy practices—reading, writing, speaking, and listening—to make personal and political material and discursive change, between and across differences among women. As I demonstrate, consciousness-raising, the central practice of second-wave feminism across the 1960s and 1970s, developed out of a collective rhetorical theory that not only linked personal identity to political discourses, but also 1 linked the emotional to the rational in the production of knowledge.
    [Show full text]
  • Sexual Controversies in the Women's and Lesbian/Gay Liberation Movements
    University of Massachusetts Amherst ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst Masters Theses 1911 - February 2014 1985 Politics and pleasures : sexual controversies in the women's and lesbian/gay liberation movements. Lisa J. Orlando University of Massachusetts Amherst Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.umass.edu/theses Orlando, Lisa J., "Politics and pleasures : sexual controversies in the women's and lesbian/gay liberation movements." (1985). Masters Theses 1911 - February 2014. 2489. Retrieved from https://scholarworks.umass.edu/theses/2489 This thesis is brought to you for free and open access by ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst. It has been accepted for inclusion in Masters Theses 1911 - February 2014 by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst. For more information, please contact [email protected]. POLITICS AND PLEASURES: SEXUAL CONTROVERSIES IN THE WOMEN'S AND LESBIAN/GAY LIBERATION MOVEMENTS A Thesis Presented By LISA J. ORLANDO Submitted to the Graduate School of the University of Massachusetts in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF ARTS September 1985 Political Science Department Politics and Pleasures: Sexual Controversies in the Uomen's and Lesbian/Gay Liberation Movements" A MASTERS THESIS by Lisa J. Orlando Approved by: Sheldon Goldman, Member Philosophy \ hi (UV .CVvAj June 21, 19S4 Dean Alfange, Jj' Graduate P ogram Department of Political Science Lisa J. Orlando © 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985 All Rights Reserved iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank the following friends who, in long and often difficult discussion, helped me to work through the ideas presented in this thesis: John Levin, Sheila Walsh, Christine Di Stefano, Tom Keenan, Judy Butler, Adela Pinch, Gayle Rubin, Betsy Duren, Ellen Willis, Ellen Cantarow, and Pam Mitchell.
    [Show full text]
  • Lesbian Jurisprudence?
    City University of New York (CUNY) CUNY Academic Works Publications and Research CUNY School of Law 1990 Lesbian Jurisprudence? Ruthann Robson CUNY School of Law How does access to this work benefit ou?y Let us know! More information about this work at: https://academicworks.cuny.edu/cl_pubs/324 Discover additional works at: https://academicworks.cuny.edu This work is made publicly available by the City University of New York (CUNY). Contact: [email protected] Lesbian Jurisprudence? Ruthann Robson* 'The inquiry is lesbian jurisprudence. Does it exist? Can it exist? How is it different from recent "attempts" at feminist juris- prudence,' if at all? How is it different from jurisprudential at- tempts to ground homosexuality, 2 if at all? And if lesbian jurisprudence exists, what are its characteristics, its concerns, its methodologies? And if lesbian jurisprudence is being created, what should be its characteristics, its concerns, its methodologies? This article poses the question of lesbian jurisprudence. In order to understand the complexity of the question, this article first offers some preliminary definitions for lesbianism as well as a brief explication of jurisprudence. Combining lesbian and juris- prudence into a question, this article limits the question by re- jecting two possible answers: that lesbian jurisprudence is feminist jurisprudence and that lesbian jurisprudence is a paradigm capable of universal application. The article then seeks to give present im- aginative content to the question by drawing upon mythical meta- phors from our collective past and by surveying science fiction conceptions of the future. The mythical metaphors serve a pur- pose similar to that served by the common embodiment of justice as a woman blindfolded and holding a scale.
    [Show full text]
  • Trans* Politics and the Feminist Project: Revisiting the Politics of Recognition to Resolve Impasses
    Politics and Governance (ISSN: 2183–2463) 2020, Volume 8, Issue 3, Pages 312–320 DOI: 10.17645/pag.v8i3.2825 Article Trans* Politics and the Feminist Project: Revisiting the Politics of Recognition to Resolve Impasses Zara Saeidzadeh * and Sofia Strid Department of Gender Studies, Örebro University, 702 81 Örebro, Sweden; E-Mails: [email protected] (Z.S.), [email protected] (S.S.) * Corresponding author Submitted: 24 January 2020 | Accepted: 7 August 2020 | Published: 18 September 2020 Abstract The debates on, in, and between feminist and trans* movements have been politically intense at best and aggressively hostile at worst. The key contestations have revolved around three issues: First, the question of who constitutes a woman; second, what constitute feminist interests; and third, how trans* politics intersects with feminist politics. Despite decades of debates and scholarship, these impasses remain unbroken. In this article, our aim is to work out a way through these impasses. We argue that all three types of contestations are deeply invested in notions of identity, and therefore dealt with in an identitarian way. This has not been constructive in resolving the antagonistic relationship between the trans* movement and feminism. We aim to disentangle the antagonism within anti-trans* feminist politics on the one hand, and trans* politics’ responses to that antagonism on the other. In so doing, we argue for a politics of status-based recognition (drawing on Fraser, 2000a, 2000b) instead of identity-based recognition, highlighting individuals’ specific needs in soci- ety rather than women’s common interests (drawing on Jónasdóttir, 1991), and conceptualising the intersections of the trans* movement and feminism as mutually shaping rather than as trans* as additive to the feminist project (drawing on Walby, 2007, and Walby, Armstrong, and Strid, 2012).
    [Show full text]
  • Strategies for Sexual Subversion: Informing the Future of Sexualities Research and Activism
    STRATEGIES FOR SEXUAL SUBVERSION: INFORMING THE FUTURE OF SEXUALITIES RESEARCH AND ACTIVISM ANDREA P. HERRERA University of Oregon Abstract In this paper, I review, analyze, and evaluate the myriad ways early canonical and more recent high-profile scholarship in the field of sexualities envision a liberatory sexual politics and the most fruitful modes of achieving it. Due to theorists’ diverging interpretations of the causes and forms of sexual oppression as well as their differing visions of liberated sexuality, I find that prescriptions for dismantling the “ethnosexual regime” (Nagel 2000) vary widely. The strategies suggested by scholars can be categorized into: 1) radical lesbian-feminist separatism, 2) identity politics, 3) the redeployment of gender, which encompasses trans and intersex bodies, gender play (e.g., butch-femme, drag, and shifting constructions of masculinity), and non-binary identities, 4) micro-level individual and interpersonal solutions, 5) changes in educational institutions, and 6) sexualities research itself. I conclude by making suggestions for sociologists who seek to further theorize and effect the subversion of normative systems of sexuality. Introduction Implicit in much sexualities research is the belief that another world is possible, one free from sexual regulation, oppression, persecution, and violence. While nearly all scholars of sexualities identify problems in the contemporary social organization of sexuality, they differ in their estimations of the causes and solutions to these issues. This paper is a qualitative meta-analytic review of the ways early canonical and more recent high-profile scholarship in Andrea P. Herrera ([email protected]) is a PhD candidate and sociologist at the University of Oregon specializing in gender, sexuality, embodiment, and new media.
    [Show full text]
  • Survival. Activism. Feminism?: Exploring the Lives of Trans* Individuals in Chicago
    SURVIVAL. ACTIVISM. FEMINISM? Survival. Activism. Feminism?: Exploring the Lives of Trans* Individuals in Chicago Some radical lesbian feminists, like Sheila Jeffreys (1997, 2003, 2014) argue that trans individuals are destroying feminism by succumbing to the greater forces of the patriarchy and by opting for surgery, thus conforming to normative ideas of sex and gender. Jeffreys is not alone in her views. Janice Raymond (1994, 2015) also maintains that trans individuals work either as male-to-females (MTFs) to uphold stereotypes of femininity and womanhood, or as female-to-males (FTMs) to join the ranks of the oppressors, support the patriarchy, and embrace hegemonic masculinity. Both Jeffreys and Raymond conclude that sex/gender is fixed by genitals at birth and thus deny trans individuals their right to move beyond the identities that they were assigned at birth. Ironically, a paradox is created by these radical lesbians feminist theorists, who deny trans individuals the right to define their own lives and control their own bodies. Such essentialist discourse, however, fails to recognize the oppression, persecution, and violence to which trans individuals are subjected because they do not conform to the sex that they were assigned at birth. Jeffreys (1997) also claims there is an emergency and that the human rights of those who are now identifying as trans are being violated. These critiques are not only troubling to me, as a self-identified lesbian feminist, but are also illogical and transphobic. My research, with trans identified individuals in Chicago, presents a different story and will show another side of the complex relationship between trans and lesbian feminist communities.
    [Show full text]
  • Rethinking Coalitions: Anti-Pornography Feminists, Conservatives, and Relationships Between Collaborative Adversarial Movements
    Rethinking Coalitions: Anti-Pornography Feminists, Conservatives, and Relationships between Collaborative Adversarial Movements Nancy Whittier This research was partially supported by the Center for Advanced Study in Behavioral Sciences. The author thanks the following people for their comments: Martha Ackelsberg, Steven Boutcher, Kai Heidemann, Holly McCammon, Ziad Munson, Jo Reger, Marc Steinberg, Kim Voss, the anonymous reviewers for Social Problems, and editor Becky Pettit. A previous version of this paper was presented at the 2011 Annual Meetings of the American Sociological Association. Direct correspondence to Nancy Whittier, 10 Prospect St., Smith College, Northampton MA 01063. Email: [email protected]. 1 Abstract Social movements interact in a wide range of ways, yet we have only a few concepts for thinking about these interactions: coalition, spillover, and opposition. Many social movements interact with each other as neither coalition partners nor opposing movements. In this paper, I argue that we need to think more broadly and precisely about the relationships between movements and suggest a framework for conceptualizing non- coalitional interaction between movements. Although social movements scholars have not theorized such interactions, “strange bedfellows” are not uncommon. They differ from coalitions in form, dynamics, relationship to larger movements, and consequences. I first distinguish types of relationships between movements based on extent of interaction and ideological congruence and describe the relationship between collaborating, ideologically-opposed movements, which I call “collaborative adversarial relationships.” Second, I differentiate among the dimensions along which social movements may interact and outline the range of forms that collaborative adversarial relationships may take. Third, I theorize factors that influence collaborative adversarial relationships’ development over time, the effects on participants and consequences for larger movements, in contrast to coalitions.
    [Show full text]
  • Gender/Sex Diversity Beliefs: Heterogeneity, Links to Prejudice, and Diversity-Affirming Interventions by Zachary C
    Gender/Sex Diversity Beliefs: Heterogeneity, Links to Prejudice, and Diversity-Affirming Interventions by Zachary C. Schudson A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Psychology and Women’s Studies) in the University of Michigan 2020 Doctoral Committee: Professor Sari van Anders, Co-Chair Professor Susan Gelman, Co-Chair Professor Anna Kirkland Associate Professor Sara McClelland Zach C. Schudson [email protected] ORCID iD: 0000-0002-1300-5674 © Zach C. Schudson ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to thank the many people who made this dissertation possible. First and foremost, thank you to Dr. Sari van Anders, my dissertation advisor and co-chair and my mentor. I have never met someone more committed to social justice through psychological research or to their students. Your expansive, nuanced thinking about gender and sexuality, your incredible, detailed feedback on everything I wrote, your lightning-quick, thoughtful responses whenever I needed anything, and your persistence in improving communication even when it was difficult all make me feel astoundingly lucky. Despite the many time and energy-intensive challenges you have faced over the last several years, you have done everything you can to facilitate my success as a scholar, all the while showing deep care for my well-being as a person. Thank you also to Dr. Susan Gelman, my dissertation co-chair, for your incredible support these last feW years. Your intellectual generosity is truly a gift; I feel smarter and more capable every time we speak. Thank you to Drs. Sara McClelland and Anna Kirkland, members of my dissertation committee and my teaching mentors.
    [Show full text]