August PhD defense: Abelardo León

Abelardo León, Monday, August 29, 2016, in room H-1001.01, 1455 de Maisonneuve Blvd. W. at 10:00 a.m.

Thesis Title: Homomercracias: Social change and sexual diversity in times of emerging neoliberalism in Chile

ABSTRACT

During the last few years, increasing sensitivity has been shown toward the civil and sexual rights for gay, lesbian and transgender people in Chile. There are several reasons for this, which include, for example: the emergence of the student movement in 2006, which encouraged several social groups to demand recognition of their rights, and the institutional support from the conservative government of Sebastián Piñera (2010-2014). From here, important steps in favor of the LGBT population where taken, making them more visible in the media, approving the antidiscrimination law in 2012, and creating the conditions for the approval of the civil union agreement in 2015 during Michelle Bachelet’s tenure as president.

Accordingly, this qualitative case study examines the symbolic dimension of LGBT civil rights discourse in the 10 years leading up to the approval of the civil union agreement in 2015. This research uses phenomenology as a broad conceptual umbrella, and Critical Discourse Analysis and Multimodality as methodological approaches. In this sense, this study is grounded in three interdisciplinary areas: Discourse Analysis, Queer Studies and the study of Social Movements. I have analyzed this political moment as the effect of a new relationship between homosexuality, the global market and liberal democracies using a concept which I call Homomercracias. My conclusion is that under these economic and political conditions, the commodification of homosexuality leads to the emergence of a regulated pattern of homosexuality—a white, male, socially successful professional—which, though widely accepted in Chilean society, is strongly marked by racial and economic biases.

Key words: Homomercracias, Social Change, Discourse Análisis, LGBT Studies, Empathy