Guest Lecture Anna Kurowicka (Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw)
On the Role of Choice in the Formation of Asexual Identities
Since it emerged in the early 21st century in close proximity to the LGBTQ movement, asexual community relies on both identity politics and queer politics, two strategies used by sexual minorities. Politics based on strong identities, inspired by the “ethnic” model of minority, have proven a successful strategy in Western liberal democracies as they led to marriage equality and other legal non-discrimination clauses in a number of countries, so it is no wonder that asexuals also use similar arguments and discourses to fight for recognition. On the other hand, the emphasis on choice and individual understanding of (a)sexual identity brings asexuality closer to the vision of sexuality inspired by queer theories. Asexual identity is thus negotiated in tension between the exigencies of political battles for legitimacy and intricacies of an approach to sexuality that would encompass the variety of definitions used by self-identified asexuals. Political affiliations of asexual community are informed by debates around the meaning of asexuality, with competing definitions based on essentialist, constructivist, and queer conceptions of sexuality. The element of choice is seen as key in becoming asexual, which on the one hand links asexuality to queer theories, but on the other is rooted in the highly problematic liberal humanist vision of an independent, free, moral agent. In my exploration of asexual politics I hope to illuminate the productive potential of these tensions for asexual community as well as for queer politics.
This lecture is organized by the Department of American Studies in cooperation with the research area “Heterogenität und Kohäsion” (Heterogeneity and Cohesion) and the Coordination Centre for Gender Studies / Research and Equal Opportunities.
University of Graz
Department of American Studies
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amerikanistik@uni-graz.at
http://amerikanistik.uni-graz.at