Introduction to ‘Sexual Movements and Gendered Boundaries: Legal Negotiations of the Global and the Local’
| Date | 01 March 2005 |
| Published date | 01 March 2005 |
| Author | Surya Monro,Ruth Fletcher,Daniel Monk,Oliver Phillips,Doris Buss |
| DOI | 10.1177/0964663905049518 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
INTRODUCTION TO ‘SEXUAL
MOVEMENTS AND GENDERED
BOUNDARIES: LEGAL
NEGOTIATIONS OF THE
GLOBAL AND THE LOCAL’
DORIS BUSS, RUTH FLETCHER, DANIEL MONK, SURYA MONRO AND
OLIVER PHILLIPS
Carleton University, Canada, Keele University, UK, Birkbeck, University of
London, UK, Leeds Metropolitan University, UK and University of Westminster, UK
THIS SPECIAL issue examines the interplay between national and inter-
national legal arenas in the governance and regulation of gender and
sexuality. For scholars of gender, sexuality and law, there is much to
cheer at the international level. We might, for instance, celebrate the unprece-
dented visibility and activity of both feminist and lesbian and gay move-
ments. The result of that increased profile is a strengthening of policy and
laws governing a variety of social justice issues, from violence against women
to HIV/AIDS. ‘Women’s rights as human rights’ has become a familiar
slogan, bandied about by even the most unlikely international bureaucrat.
Similarly, lesbian and gay rights, while hotly resisted by many, have attracted
a phalanx of notable supporters. Influential human rights organizations, such
as Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, have dedicated ‘gay,
lesbian, bisexual and transgendered’ departments, and the complex human
rights machinery of the United Nations is increasingly recognizing and
responding to human rights violations of lesbian and gay men (Wintemute,
1995; Sanders, 1996; Stychin, 2003; Miller and Vance, 2004). This increased
visibility and an apparent erosion of traditional exclusions present oppor-
tunities and challenges for scholars and activists alike. For the contributors
to this special issue, from Australia, Canada, the Netherlands and the UK,
this new international climate represents not so much the end point of a
progressive narrative, but, rather, the point of entry into the debate – a critical
moment for asking new questions.
SOCIAL &LEGAL STUDIES Copyright © 2005 SAGE Publications
London, Thousand Oaks, CA and New Delhi, www.sagepublications.com
0964 6639, Vol. 14(1), 5–15
DOI: 10.1177/0964663905049518
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