Suchergebnisse

This book shows six different realities of same-sex families. They range from full recognition of same-sex marriage to full invisibility of gay and lesbian individuals and their families. The broad spectrum of experiences presented in this book share some commonalities: in all of them legal scholars and civil society are moving legal boundaries or thinking of spaces within rigid legal systems for same-sex families to function. In all of them there have been legal claims to recognize the existence of same-sex families. The difference between them lies in the response of courts. Regardless of the type of legal system, when courts have viewed claims of same-sex couples and their families as problems of individual rights, they have responded with a constitutional narrative protecting same-sex couples and their families. When courts respond to these claims with rigid concepts of what a family is and what marriage is as if legal concepts where unmodifiable, same-sex couples have remained outside the protection of the law. Until forty years ago marriage was the only union considered legitimate to form a family. Today more than 30 countries have granted rights to same sex couples, including several that have opened up marriage to couples of the same sex. Every day there is a new bill being discussed or a new claim being brought to courts seeking formal recognition of same sex couples. Not all countries are open to changing their legal structures to accommodate same-sex couples, but even those with no visible changes are witnessing new voices in their communities challenging the status quo and envisioning more flexible legal systems

This Chapter gives a brief analysis of the status of same-sex marriage in the United States prior to the US Supreme Court decisions of 2013 and the current status of litigation and political reforms triggered, in part by the court decisions. It shows that marriage is a central institution in the country's rationale of family law in ways that separate it from other Western countries that have allowed same-sex marriage. ; https://digitalcommons.wcl.american.edu/facsch_bk_contributions/1165/thumbnail.jpg

Fil: Saéz, Macarena. Universidad de Chile. Facultad de Derecho. Providencia, Chile

The issues of gender, sexuality and reproduction have gained a strong public presence in Latin America in recent years. Political agendas have begun gradually to include topics related to LGBTI rights and access of people "especially women " to reproductive justice. In some cases, these processes have generated policies, laws and judgments favorable to women and LGBTI movements?s demands. For example, in recent years, countries as diverse as Argentina, Uruguay, Mexico, Colombia and Brazil allowed same-sex marriage, whether through the adoption of laws or by favorable rulings, after broad political and social debates. Other countries, including Ecuador, Costa Rica and Chile, still do not recognize same-sex marriage, but have allowed civil unions. Argentina and Bolivia also adopted laws of gender identity which, among other things, guarantee the right to recognition of self-perceived identity over the one assigned at birth. Moreover, in recent years, Uruguay and the Federal District of Mexico have legalized abortion under a trimester-based system, while other countries have expanded the decriminalized grounds for terminating a pregnancy voluntarily, despite maintaining the illegality of abortion.However, the successful expansion of rights with respect to gender, sexuality and reproduction, is not a linear process or free from controversy and backlashes. In 1997, for example, El Salvador banned abortion without exception, a decision emulated by Nicaragua in 2007. In 2015, the Peruvian Congress rejected the adoption of a civil union law. In addition, since at least 1998 Latin America has seen a wave of litigation and legislative processes against emergency contraception (Peñas Defago and Morán Faúndes, 2014). Some of these have been reversed. In Chile, a law was passed in 2010 during Michelle Bachelet?s first administration (2006-2010) allowing the public health system to provide emergency contraception, which reversed an unfavorable ruling of the Constitutional Court in 2008. In Honduras and elsewhere, however, bans on emergency contraception remain.Considering the ongoing and often public controversy around these issues, it is necessary to develop and deepen the frames through which we understand how these dynamics unfold in the region. To this end, the contributors to this special issue understand gender and sexuality as public and political fields characterized by tensions, disputes and struggles over power, including state power.