The oppression of the sexual minorities started many years ago, and it is still practiced in the current century. Many societies discourage same-sex attraction claiming the behavior is harmful not only to the individual but also to the larger society. Before the 1970s, very few researchers such as Dr. Harry Benjamin dissented from this view claiming that the society was to blame for dysfunction and not sexual minority individuals. According to Dr. Benjamin, demonizing these individuals was the primary cause of the spread of the homosexuality practice in the society (Couch 2009, 1). Similarly, same-sex attraction used to be classified in the ‘Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders’ as one of the mental problems before it was removed in the early 1980s (Couch 2009, 1). Despite the passage of time, sexual minorities still experience much discrimination in addition to prejudice from heterosexists.
While some European countries such as the United States and the Netherlands have accepted sexual minority individuals, it is apparent that discrimination, prejudice, and violence remain great concerns to LGBT subjects along with their families. These issues cause a lot of distress to LGBTs in all environments, including governments, schools, and workplace (Couch 2009, 1). The claim is supported by The Hate Crime Report 2016 by Nick Antjoule that notes 4 in every 5 LGBT individuals experience hate crimes and more than a quarter experience violent crimes. According to this report, a third and a tenth of these homosexuals experience online hate crime and sexual violence respectively (Antjoule 2016, 2). Likewise, it shows that a good number of the LGBT people report hate crimes, but little is done by the authorities to discourage such behaviors. As a result, the majority of LGBT people avoid reporting hate crime issues.
Currently, discrimination against LGBTs in the US is very rampant and is evidenced by the introduction of a list of bills aimed at limiting their rights. North Carolina, for instance, abolished non-discrimination protection for gender identity together with sexual orientation, forcing transgender individuals to share public facilities that are identicle to the sexual identity they received at the time of birth. Similarly, Mississippi passed a law that allowed religious followers to discriminate against not only LGBT subjects but also individuals that cohabit. Tennessee, on the other hand, passed a law that allowed counselors and therapists to deny LGBT clients their services (Human Rights Watch 2017). All these events prove that LGBT people experience diverse forms of verbal and physical persecution on top of assault. Equally, celebrating, affirming as well as protecting relationships between individuals of the same sex has become an issue of not only political, but also social contention in the US. “Despite the legalization of same-sex marriage in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in 2004,” (Couch 2009, 2) 29 states in the US have amended their constitution to deny same-sex couples these rights. More than 15 states also practice laws that recognize only the marriage between persons of different sex.
“Homonegating processes” are the main issues of concern today. These processes are associated with the introduction of laws, rules, or social scripts with the intention of delineating sexual minorities from the entire society (Couch 2009, 4). They are also associated with demonizing the existence of sexual minority groups such as homosexuals in the community. The effects of homonegating processes on sexual minorities are grave. The prejudice together with discrimination from heterosexist influences the sexual minorities to develop psychological distress. Some studies show that sexual minority stress sometimes results in depression that manipulates majority of the victims to practice unhealthy behaviors like overconsumption of alcohol and use of drugs (Couch 2009, 4).
Statement of the problem
Many studies have been conducted on the implications of prejudice and discrimination against sexual minorities. However, very few studies exist on the measures that can be taken to reduce social exclusion as well as to normalize the practice of homosexuality in the society. Intervention measures to create awareness and improve social inclusion of social minorities to the larger society are an important area of research that needs to be included in the literature.
Theoretical Framework
When conducting a research study on marginalized individuals in the society, it is important for one to have a strong theoretical home base that grounds that study in a broad sphere of not only meaning but also understanding. To ground this dissertation, the researcher utilized queer theory to help him comprehend how the society influenced the perception of heterosexist on homosexual activity. Queer theory is a new theoretical speculation that emerged in 1991. It developed from studies on gay/lesbian, a discipline that is also new as it originated in the mid-1980s (Harris, K. 2005, 2). Gay/lesbian studies developed from feminist studies along with feminist theory. Gay/lesbian studies along with feminist studies work to promote the understanding of how normal and deviant sexualities are constructed. Unlike the two studies, queer theory has broad real of the investigation. It looks at anything that can be categorized as normal and deviant sexual activity or identity. The word “queer” is defined in the dictionary as something “odd” or “peculiar.” Thus, queer theory is associated with any form of sexuality that is queer in the sense of normative behaviors as well as identities (Harris, K. 2005, 2). The queer theory claims that “all sexual behaviors, all concepts linking sexual behaviors to sexual identities, and all categories of normative and deviant sexualities, are social constructs, sets of signifiers which create certain types of social meaning” (Harris, K. 2005, 2). Just like feminist theory, the queer theory argues against the claim that sexuality is an important element that is associated with biology or defined by the principles of morality. Queer theorists assert that sexuality is a complexion of different social practices and power, different individual activities, and institutional powers that interact to classify things as normative and deviant at a specific time (Harris, K. 2005, 2).
Rumens (2015, 113) claims that the queer theory provides a wide scope of conceptual resources that can be used to bring to light organizational heteronormativities in accounting institutions. He notes that it can also be used in accounting studies to voice the interests and needs of LGBT people. Similarly, the queer theory will help the researcher in this study explain how established norms and categorization of sexualities led to the social exclusion of the sexual minorities such as homosexuals in the society. As it has been noted above, queer theory does not discriminate or marginalize individuals whose sexuality is outside the homosexual norm. Since this theory avoids all conceptualizations of sexuality, the study will have freedom of supporting the practice of self-identification. It will also help the researcher explain why homosexuality needs to be normalized in the society.
Statement of purpose
Discrimination and prejudice against homosexuals in the society are very rampant, and it causes a lot of psychological distress in the victims. They are practiced in organizations and schools, affecting the performance of employees and students respectively. About employment and schooling, many organizations and schools embrace heteronormative bias that exposes homosexuals to different forms of harm.
Aims and Objectives
Aims
The dissertation aims to determine the success of lesbian genre movies in promoting awareness and normalizing homosexuality. It also provides insight into how lesbian genre movies can influence women empowerment.
Objectives
1. Evaluate how lesbian genre movies increase awareness about the practice of homosexuality.
2. To assess how lesbian actors influence heterosexists to change their perception of homosexuality.
3. To understand how homosexuality awareness promotes normalization of homosexuality activity.
4. To recommend broadcasting of lesbian movies to promote social inclusion of homosexuals.
5. To show how lesbian genre movies contribute to women empowerment.
Research questions
The research questions that directed this study were:
1. How will lesbian genre movies increase awareness of the practice of homosexuality in the society?
2. How does the lesbians’ role in lesbian genre movies influence the views of heterosexist about homosexuals?
3. How will increase of awareness on homosexuality reduce taboos and fears among family and the society?
4. How will broadcasting program on homosexuality influence normalization of homosexuality activity?
5. How will women be empowered with the broadcasting of programs on homosexuality?
The significance of the study
The society is extremely polarized because of conceptualization of sexualities. Many members of the society believe that any sexual practice that goes against the norms of the society is evil and should be discouraged by all available means. Institutions along with organizations remain hostile environments for homosexuals. Due to increased cases of discrimination and prejudice against homosexuals, concerns have been raised relating to the measures that need to be employed to combat this problem effectively. According to Russell and Fish (2016, 1), the creation of awareness can influence a shift in understanding of not sexual identities, but also gender identities. One major contribution of this study is it expound on how movies can increase awareness of homosexuality practice. The assumption for this study is that creation of awareness through lesbian genre movies can make members of the society to shift their perception on the practice of homosexuality.
Definition of terms
The following terms are used extensively in this study, and for the study, their meanings are provided below:
Sexual orientation- the way a person identifies oneself sexually.
Heterosexuals- individuals that are attracted to opposite gender sexually.
Lesbian- refers to sexual attraction of female genders to each other.
LGBT- is an acronym for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender.
Queer- refers to a unique practice.
Straight- refers to individuals who are heterosexual.
Gay- refers to the sexual attraction between males.
Structure of the Study
The remaining parts of this study constitute literature review, discussion of the methods used to collect data, results, and analysis as well as conclusions recommendations.
In the review of the literature, the study provides a history of sexual minorities and the attitudes of other members of the society to this group of individuals. It also expounds on the reactions and acceptability of the homosexual practices in the society in addition to expounding on the contributions of feminisms to the promotion of women empowerment. The methodology part of this study provides detailed information relating to the population, the design, sample as well as the setting of the study. The methodology also provides analysis of the results (Chapter 4). The discussions of the findings of the literature review are provided in Chapter 5. The study concludes with a summary of the whole research along with the recommendations in Chapter 6.
Chapter 2: Literature Review
Studies on LGBT started in the late 1970s and became common in 1980s. Before this period, little was known about LGBT community in most parts of the world. The lack of information about LGBT was not a big surprise since many people concealed their sexual identity because of personal issues as well as fear of societal reaction. The bisexual concept emanated in the early 1990s, leading to the creation of the acronym LGB. Transgender also popped as a sexual identity towards the end of the 1990s leading to the emergence of the renowned acronym LGBT (Robinson & Espelage 2012, 14). Dealing with LGBT individuals, including students were extremely hard in the 1970s. Educators used to refer to Willard Waller’s book of 1932 referred to as The Sociology of Teaching as the main guide on how to handle LGBT students and teachers. Waller’s book presented homosexuality as not only deviant and contagious, but also a dangerous disease (Robinson & Espelage 2012, 15). Based on the description provided by Waller, many institutions discouraged homosexual activity by expelling students who practiced it. Homosexuality started to be visible in the society in the late 1970s following the occurrence of riots referred to as Stonewall Riots from a group of homosexuals who complained of experiencing harassment because of their sexual orientation (Robinson & Espelage 2012, 15). In fact, many people associate Stonewall Riots with the emergence of gay rights movements. Similarly, the American Psychiatric Association joined Stonewall in fighting for gay rights in 1973 by removing homosexuality from the list of diseases provided in the “Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders” (Robinson & Espelage 2012, 15). The two incidents influenced slightly change of the society’s view of homosexuality practice.
Towards the end of the 1970s, a researcher known as Vivian Cass developed the first model, “a seminal research study for LGBT scholars” (Robinson & Espelage 2012, 15) that was used to identify homosexual development. The model assisted individuals studying the homosexual population to understand how homosexuals adopted their position as well as managed the experience of being homosexual (Robinson & Espelage 2012, 15). It is imperative to note however that awareness and visibility of homosexuals grew significantly in the 1990s. During this time, the LGBT community was not only increasingly empowered, but also started to accept negative criticisms of the homosexual community. The word “queer” became more common in this period as it was used to express negative overtones for this community (Robinson & Espelage 2012, 15). According to the LGBT community, the word “queer” served as a unifying factor for individuals who were marginalized by the heterosexists and the society.
Likewise, Robinson claims that LGBT was exposed in 1991 by the book Beyond Tolerance: Gays, Lesbians, and Bisexuals on Campus by Nancy Evans and Vernon Wall. According to him, this book presented the experiences of LGBTs in the school environment. Evans and Wall’s book exposed the predicaments of LGBT students besides creating awareness to the school administrations and faculty on the existence of LGBT students among other students in school. It also provided guidance on how administrators together with the faculty should handle this group of marginalized individuals in the society (Robinson & Espelage 2012, 16).
According to the 2015 report by European Region of International Lesbian (ILGA-Europe), LGBT community faces diverse forms of social exclusion in the society. The United Nations (UN) defines social exclusion as “a state in which individuals are unable to participate fully in economic, social, political and cultural life, as well as the process leading to and sustaining such a state” (UN 2016, 18). Social exclusion limits access to job education, and other opportunities in the society. Vezzelli (2014, 5) also asserts that social exclusion deprives individuals access to power and say, influencing them to feel powerless and without control over issues and decisions relating to their everyday lives. LGBT persons are the main victims of social seclusion. They are often separated from family links and friendship networks. In addition to harassment, LGBT experience invisibility at school. Recent research by Saskia Keuzenkamp on the embracement of homosexuality by the Netherlands also supports Vezzelli’s finding. The study showed that discrimination against LGBT individuals still exists despite the Netherlands’ strong support for same-sex marriage (Keuzenkamp, S. 2011, 7). Similarly, Keuzenkamp’s study evidenced lack of openness of LGBT subjects in lower schools like primary and secondary. According to Keuzenkamp’s findings, three in every ten pupils claimed that homosexual fellow-peers find it hard to speak out about their sexual preferences to other pupils openly. Only 5% of the pupils according to her study thought gay peers would be able to disclose their sexual diversity to other pupils at school (Keuzenkamp, S. 2011, 27). Keuzenkamp’s finding shows that social inclusion of LGBT subjects with other pupils in schools is still poor in a country that has invested heavily in increasing the acceptance of LGBTs.
Similarly, feelings about homosexuality are diverse in the European countries. A 2008 survey in European countries showed the Netherlands leading in supporting a free-living of homosexuals in the society (Keuzenkamp, S. 2011, 10). According to that survey, however, the acceptance of homosexuality declines sharply from one country to another. It also identified Russia as one of the Europeans countries that discouraged homosexual practice (Keuzenkamp, S. 2011, 10). In another survey, evaluating people’s view on the wrongness of same-sex relationship, the Netherlands led in claiming that same-sex relationship not wrong at all. Other Europeans nations indicated difficulty in accepting the sexual relationship between individuals of the same sex (Keuzenkamp, S. 2011, 11). Similarly, a survey on the perception of people about homosexuals occupying high ranks in organizations indicated the Netherlands as the leading country with gay ministers. Iceland was also noted as the only current nation with a lesbian government leader by name Johanna Sigurdardottir (Keuzenkamp, S. 2011, 12). The findings from the surveys indicated great dissatisfaction with having such individuals occupying high employment positions in countries from Eastern Europe (Keuzenkamp, S. 2011, 12). Correspondingly, a survey on how people perceive the adoption of children by homosexuals provided mixed reactions. In the Netherlands for instance, a great percentage (70%) of the people embraced the adoption of children by homosexuals. The percentage dropped significantly in other European countries (Keuzenkamp, S. 2011, 14). Moreover, having gay or lesbian neighbors was found to trigger a lot of reaction from the people. According to Keuzenkamp’s study, the majority of the people feel uncomfortable to have gay neighbors. However, her study also showed some positive response to the acceptance of gay or lesbian friends in the society. According to the survey on the reaction of people on having homosexual friends, the majority of the people are not affected by the sexuality of their friends. Gays and lesbians can interact freely with other members of the society as friends (Keuzenkamp, S. 2011, 16).
One of the measures that are usually put to facilitate the acceptance of LGBT, reduce social seclusion, and homophobia in the society is an organization of projects and workshops that expound on sexual diversity. According to Bogdan and Tayloy, an accepting relationship is one between individuals with different attributes that exist for a long period (Bogdan and Tayloy 1989, 35). This type of relationship is void of stigmatizing and discrediting character. Thus, accepting relationships are grounded on the acceptance of individuals’ differences. The attribute by Bogdan and Tayloy refers to broad aspects that are against the social norm such as disability, ethnicity, and sexual orientation. Lorber argues that there are diverse forms of feminism that can influence gender equality and women empowerment in the society. According to him, the wave of feminism started in the 1960s with the emergence of “liberal feminism, Marxist and socialist feminisms, and development feminism” (Lorber 1997, 9). Liberal feminism discredits the association of gender variations with biology, arguing that the difference between men and women is very small. Based on this assumption, women of that time called for equality in exercising same rights and other opportunities such as education and work. Liberal feminism also encouraged both women and men to train and occupy the same jobs. Similarly, Marxist together with socialist feminism advocated for equality. These feminisms fought for the rights of women, emphasizing on the need for women to own property just like men (Lorber 1997, 12). According to Lorber, development feminism contributed significantly to the equating the status of women with the management of economic resources (Lorber 1997, 13). She claims that the control of resources influenced women to have high employment status. Despite all these contributions, the status of women did not change very much in the society. Majority of the women still occupy low-status jobs besides experiencing different forms of inequality in all settings.
The position of women in the society led to the emergence of gender reform feminisms in the 1970s. Lorber states that the entry of women into jobs occupied by men created awareness in women about the oppression they were undergoing. According to her, women became aware of frustrations and day-to-day put-downs from male colleagues in areas of employment, classes, socialization, and political movements (Lorber 1997, 15). Similarly, she notes that women were frustrated with their boyfriends as well as husbands since they considered them inferior. Women of the 1970s developed gender resistant feminisms such as the radical feminism, psychoanalytical feminism as well as lesbian feminism and standpoint feminism to overcome male chauvinism (Lorber 1997, 16). Lorber attributes gender inequality with the stratification systems in the society. In support of the claim, she notes that the occupation of top jobs by men create a platform for gender inequality since women are often excluded from the competition. The language of competition according to Lorber is an icon for not only physical violence but also sexual violence (Lorber 1997, 28). She also notes that gender inequality affects homosexual men. They are denied some privileges in addition to power in some societies such as the Western society. According to Lorber, this men’s feminism is a product of social construction.
Research Gap
According to the review of the literature, sexual minorities experience a lot of discrimination and prejudice in the society. Majority of the reviews expounded on the plights of the LGBTs in different environments. Most of the studies further argue that social exclusion is one of the factors that influence the suffering of homosexuals. Very few studies talk about the measures that can be employed to address the problems of LGBTs. The lack of adequate information about appropriate intervention measures is one of the research gaps that will be addressed in this study. Few studies also provided movies as one of the effective methods of increasing social inclusion of sexual minorities in the society. This study focuses mainly on the use of lesbian genre movies in creating awareness and normalizing homosexuality practice. None of the accessed studies in this research showed how movies could promote women empowerment. This study provides detailed information on the contributions of movies to women empowerment.
The rationale for the Study
From the review of different literature materials on sexual minorities in the society, it was apparent that different strategies had been employed to facilitate social inclusion of homosexuals in the society. However, it was evident that social exclusion of these individuals still exists and the majority of them suffer significantly from discrimination and prejudice. As homosexuals make a great percentage of individuals in the society, it is imperative that other members of the society do not recognize them as part of the society. Members of the society also deny them access to an environment that will make these individuals feel comfortable to engage in productive activities.
The researcher believes that creation of awareness about homosexuality and its contributions will influence other members of the society to change their perception of sexual minorities. Participation of homosexuals in movies has also made gay and lesbian actors very prominent in the movie production industry. Such characters appeal to many people, evidencing a positive impact on the lives of homosexual individuals (Gomillion and Giuliano 2011, 331). The researcher further believes that use of movies to create awareness about homosexuality will also facilitate women empowerment as the society will accept homosexuals and consider homosexuality as a normal practice.
Chapter 3: Methodology
Introduction
Chapter 3 expounds on the methods used in collecting data in this study. It will provide information on the research design, the sample picked from the identified population, and the instruments used to collect data.
The setting of the Study
The movies used in this study were selected from an array of lesbian genre movies. The interview response of some lesbian characters in different movies was also recorded as data for this study. Similarly, questionnaires were used to collect data from the audience of female genre movies. The interviewees were asked to fill in the questionnaires based on their perception of the movies and characters in those movies.
Population and Sample
Cowan defines population as “a group of elements that are all alike on at least one characteristic, but usually more than one” (Cowan 2007, 113). The study population for this research was individuals practicing homosexual activities in the society. However, it was impossible to identify those individuals in the society because of the fear related to self-identification and social exclusion that results when such individuals disclose their sexual orientation to other members of the society. Therefore, the sample selected for this study included lesbian genre movies and filmophiles of such movies. Since many people watch lesbian genre movies, the sample of the study was reduced to a handful of individuals (N=24) to collect data quickly as well as allow easy analysis of their responses. Questionnaires with closed and open-ended questions were distributed to the 24 interviewees. All personal information about the respondents to the questionnaires was kept confidential. Similarly, 20 lesbian genre movies were used as primary sources in this study.
This research study also used purposeful sampling in collecting data. Since the study required before-hand information from individuals with rich information, random sampling was considered inappropriate. Purposive sampling is used in a research study “because the goal is to solicit the perceptions of specific groups of people who are well informed about the situation” (Schuh, Upcraft, and Associates 2001, 43). The sources of information in this study were selected based on their richness information about the experience of being sexual minority persons in the society.
Design of the Study
Due to the complexity of this study, that is, the unwillingness of sexual minorities to take part in many studies relating to their sexual orientations, this study relied on recorded movies as primary sources. The movies for this study were selected based on their content as well as the role played by homosexual actors. Similarly, the study used questionnaires as primary study instrument. The questionnaire constituted of closed and open-ended questions to allow participants of the study to express their perceptions in addition to experiences of lesbian genre movies.
Data Collection
Data collection method for this study was mainly qualitative. Given that the study was also required to concentrate on some actors’ reactions as well as the reactions of the audience for lesbian genre movies, the researcher approached some case studies with the ethnographic lens not only to make the study more personalized but also representative of a variety of experiences. The study used Feminist Ethnography to collect data. Craven and Davis define such study as “a project committed to documenting lived experience as it is impacted by gender, race, class, sexuality, and other aspects of participants’ lives” (Craven and Davis 2013, 1). The study opted for ethnography because it “is flexible, iterative method that enables researchers to gain a nuanced, contextualized understanding of the everyday social lives and relationships of those they study” (Hesse-Biber 2014, 140). According to Hesse-Biber, ethnography is a research method that is often conducted in a setting occupied by people. It employs varied data collection techniques which are often qualitative like interviews. Participant observation is also one common method that is used in this type of research. The method allows researchers to observe the day to day life of the study’s participants by being part of it since the aim of the research is to develop a deep understanding of the informants. Feminist ethnographers often rely on formal or informal interviews with the participants of the research study to collect more information. Interviews provide the researchers with the platform to explore the thoughts and reflections of individuals in a study and compare the findings with previous observations. For instance, data was gathered by watching and listening to narratives of lesbian characters in movies such as Atomic Blonde and Bad Blood. The portrayal of lesbian characters in spy-thriller movies such as atomic blonde was also observed. Moreover, the study engaged some group of youths in finding the views of other members of the society about the involvement of lesbian characters in playing key roles in movies. All these facilitated the understanding of the way the society views homosexuality.
Instrumentation
The participants renowned for watching lesbian genre movies were supplied with questionnaires. All participants’ identities, as well as collected information, were kept confidential. The theater where this research was carried out was also kept confidential for not only this study but also the importance of confidentiality emphasized by the management of the theater.
Chapter 4: Data Analysis and Findings
Collection of data for this research study relied on two methods; use of anonymous questionnaires to collect qu
