A presente tese tem por tema a pioneira jurisprudência do Tribunal de Justiça do Rio Grande do Sul, relativamente às demandas por reconhecimento de efeitos jurídicos às uniões entre pessoas do mesmo sexo, compreendidas essas demandas como uma luta pela implementação da cidadania sexual, cujo obstáculo político principal na América Latina tem sido a resistência de setores conservadores do campo religioso. Partindo dessa premissa, a qual está evidenciada na literatura, o objeto da pesquisa focou a questão da influência religiosa no enfrentamento jurídico de questões ligadas à cidadania sexual. No intuito de pensar as causas das diferentes interpretações judiciais que conduzem ao reconhecimento (ou não) das uniões gays, foram analisadas decisões do TJRS e entrevistas realizadas com os magistrados que atuam na área do Direito de Família. O estudo buscou identificar as concepções dos magistrados sobre conjugalidade gay, religião e família, tentando identificar as categorias de pensamento que são acionadas pelos magistrados no momento de decidir. Um dos principais achados da pesquisa foi identificar a vinculação entre a rejeição à conjugalidade gay e o emprego de categorias de classificação ligadas à moral sexual cristã manifesta na valoração negativa da homossexualidade. Tal valoração aparece como fundamento subjacente aos argumentos formalmente empregados para justificar um tratamento desigual a gays e lésbicas. / The pioneering jurisprudence of the Rio Grande do Sul Court is analyzed regarding the recognition of juridical consequences of same sex unions. The legal claim for same sex marriage is here understood as part of a pledge for sexual citizenship. The main obstacle for such sexual rights in Latin America has been the resistance of conservative religious sectors. This thesis focuses on examining the religious influence of legal and juridical decisions regarding sexual citizenship. In order to analyze the factors related to the diversity of judicial interpretations leading the recognition (or not) of same sex marriage, we collected and analyzed documents consisting of the Court decisions, as well as interviewed in depth judges who work in Family Courts. The judges’ ideas of gay conjugality, religion and family were studied as to understand the concepts and categories they use when they take decisions on legal matters. One of the main findings of our research is a negative relation between gay marriage and the use of Christian concepts and categories regarding sexual morality – the use of religious categories which place a negative value on homosexuality. The negative value of homosexuality underlies arguments formally used in legal decisions that justify treating differently gays and lesbians.

This thesis contains four chapters. The first chapter gives an overview of the current situation concerning same-sex parent families in France. This involves discussions of the PACS (Pacte civil de solidarité), adoption, and marriage, as well as the societal influences that caused the massive negative response to the Taubira law. The second chapter goes into more detail concerning portrayals of homosexuality in French media throughout the years. There is a focus, however, on one of the earliest portrayals of lesbianism in French literature: The Nun by Diderot. Lastly, the third chapter involves further explanation of the history of homosexuality and same-sex parent families. This chapter explores these ideas specifically in the context of French history, as well as how conditions for same-sex parent families have changed in recent years. The fourth and final chapter presents conclusions of the research.

This thesis analyzes the ideologies present the campaign rhetoric surrounding the 2008 California legislative initiative Proposition·8. Using Foss' method of ideological criticism the campaign is read prior after the opposition response to determine if an ideological shift occurs. The study is framed to identify this shift as a potential product of oppositional interaction, a characteristic of rhetoric defined by Smith and Windes. The study concludes that the shift in ideology during the campaign by the supporters of Proposition 8 was a significant development. The response from the Proposition 8 campaign reframed the debate, making the electorate vulnerable to a different ideology. This new ideology places the state education apparatus, not the courts, in the spotlight as the state mechanism that is in dispute in the marriage controversy. When placed in .this context, theories of political economy are employed to explain how the electorate may have interpreted these arguments. One. explanation offered is that the response ideology of the Proposition 8 campaign allowed voters to vote to outlaw gay marriages as a proactive response to a mistrust of education. The discussion section indicates that this could be an adjustment to existing ideologies, or development of an issues specific ideology that is only relevant for one issue in the mind of the individual. Ultimately, this study demonstrated the utility of ideology as a method to analyze political rhetoric and examines the role that oppositional interaction plays in the long-term development of public dialectic.