Institute of Latin American Studies
Homophobias, Human Rights and Social Change in the French and British Caribbean
Professor David Murray
(York University, Toronto)
The Caribbean region is often characterized as uniformly homophobic and LGBT rights are often claimed by governmental and non-governmental organizations as the conduit through which change can be effected. What happens when we question assumptions about the meaning of homophobia and the effects of imposing this term on dispersed and diverse societies? How might we also constructively question rights as a universal strategy through which to change local laws, beliefs and practices? The goal of this presentation is to critically engage with key concepts in sexual minority discrimination and rights talk occurring in transnational contexts, utilizing ethnographic examples from Barbados and Martinique in order to challenge assumptions of the uniformity and translatability of LGBT rights as a primary response to homophobia in the Caribbean.
Convenor: William Tantam, Postdoctoral Fellow (Centre for Integrated Caribbean Research)