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Submitted in fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree in Masters of Technology in Nursing, Durban University of Technology, Durban, South Africa, 2015. / Introduction Access to effective health care is at the heart of the discourse on how to achieve the health related Millennium Development Goals. Lesbian and gay persons are affected by a range of social and structural factors in their environment, and as a result have unique health needs that might not be met by existing health care services. Sexual stigma remains a barrier to seeking appropriate health care. Lesbians and gays might delay seeking health care when needed or avoid it all together, because of past discrimination or perceived homophobia within the health care system. Aim of the study The aim of the study was explore and describe the accessibility of primary health care services to lesbians and gays in Umlazi in the province of KwaZulu-Natal. Methodology A qualitative, exploratory, descriptive study was conducted which was contextual in nature. Aday and Andersons’ theoretical framework of access was chosen to guide this study. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 12 lesbian and gay participants. The findings of this study were analysed using content analysis. Results Four major themes that emerged from the data analysis were discrimination of homosexual men and women by health care providers and community members in PHC facilities; attitudes of homosexual men and women towards health care providers; homophobic behaviour and equality of PHC services. Few participants were satisfied with the primary health care services they received. Intervention by the Department of Health, Department of Education, curriculum planners and Health Professionals Councils is recommended wherein homosexuality education should be addressed during pre-service and in-service education sessions so as to familiarise health care providers with such clients’ health care needs and to decreased homophobic attitudes.

Teng, Yue. / Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2009. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 33-38). / Abstract also in Chinese.

This project utilizes a case study approach to explore the various ways in which the portrayals of gay people have changed on American television. Three contemporary programs - Will & Grace, Queer Eye for the Straight Guy and The L Word - are examined as examples of how far American television has progressed in terms of treating gay people with respect. Whether those shows move beyond merely presenting gay characters and into a level of actively challenging mainstream views on gay people is also examined. Findings suggest different factors affect the ability of the individual programs to test said views - including the genres to which each belongs, and their presence on network television (Will & Grace), basic cable (Queer Eye for the Straight Guy) or premium cable (The L Word). While all three programs show some tendencies toward queerness, they also take steps toward negotiating with mainstream culture, indicating that complete queerness may be an unattainable goal on American television.

À partir de la décennie 1970, on voit surgir dans la plupart des métropoles en Occident des quartiers comprenant une grande concentration de ménages gays et d’établissements commerciaux destinés à cette clientèle. Les recherches menées sur le phénomène ont négligé de se pencher sur la façon dont la trajectoire de la communauté homosexuelle locale s’articule au parcours historique, politique et urbain de la ville où le quartier est situé. Ce travail vise à combler cette lacune et à éclairer la trajectoire qui a mené la population gay à s’approprier un espace urbain. Il dresse d’abord un panorama des quartiers étant devenus le secteur homosexuel de la ville et de la vie de ses habitants dans les métropoles de San Francisco, Paris et Montréal, à partir de sources secondaires sur l’urbanisation du quartier et sur la communauté gay locale depuis 1900 jusqu’à nos jours. Ensuite, il compare leur évolution selon une périodisation comportant deux axes principaux : l’époque où les homosexuels avaient un vécu clandestin dans la ville et la période où les gays cherchaient à vivre leur sexualité dans la sphère publique. Le résultat montre une trajectoire similaire où la sortie de la clandestinité aboutisse à un quartier ouvert, gentryfié et touristique qui passe par une formation de ghetto liée au contexte économique et politique national, mais aussi au cadre urbain de la ville. En identifiant les facteurs déterminants, il était possible de concevoir l’existence de figures types de quartier gay rendant possible la vie communautaire : le quartier gay portuaire et militant, le quartier symbole d’une culture et le quartier bastion ethnique. / Since the 70's most of major western cities have witnessed the proliferation of neighbourhoods with a large concentration of gay households as well as commercial establishments for this patrons. Previous research have neglected the correlation between the trajectory of homosexual community and the historical, political and urban course of the cities in which those neighbourhoods are located. This paper aims to fill that gap by analyzing the course which lead to the gay population to appropriate urban space. Firstly, through secondary sources about urbanization going back to the 1900, this study establishes an overview of locations that turned into the gay quarters of the city and that of the life of the inhabitants of the metropolitan areas of San Francisco, Paris and Montreal. Then their evolution is compared using two distinct periods: when homosexuals had a clandestine life in the city and the period when gay sought to live their sexuality in the public sphere. The result shows a similar trajectory where the exit of the underground lead to an open district, gentrified and touristic zone which goes through the formation of a ghetto strongly tied with the economic and politic spheres as well as with the urban background of the city. By identifying this scenario as key it was possible to conceive the existence of figures types of gay area making community life as possible: the port and militant gay district, the district symbol of a culture and the neighbourhood ethnic bastion.

In the short period between 1931 and 1934 a flurry of gay-themed novels was published which were blatantly marketed as novels exploring the "twilight world" of homosexual men. In the subsequent seventy-odd years these titles have received very little attention, being entirely forgotten or sometimes erroneously grouped with postwar gay pulp fiction. Furthermore, almost without exception, the 1930s novels portray a concept of homosexuality which does not quite fit into the postwar view of sexual orientation or gay isolation. Section I explores how titles like A Scarlet Pansy, Strange Brother, and Twilight Men, all show a view of homosexuality that was immersed in gender norms and class differences much more than psychology or the modern concept of sexual orientation. In many cases, masculine or feminine behavior denotes status more than does the actual gender of one's sexual partner. Words like "homosexual" and "heterosexual" had a "highly clinical" sound to most 1930s ears (to quote a character in Better Angel). That is not to say, however, the readership of these novels were unfamiliar with "the love that dare not speak its name". In fact, it seems many novels took for granted their readers' knowledge of urban, working-class "fairy culture" and were seeking either to shock or, conversely, elicit sympathy by depicting non-flamboyant protagonists as well as stock pansies. In contrast to postwar treatments, the novels of the 1930s never depict gay men as existing in confused isolation. Section II explores how the novels oflen treat the gay shadow world as an elite, artistic club-albeit one filled with sinful excesses and potential dangers. Finally, after 1935 the tone of gay-themed novels changed abruptly, as the public's "pansy craze" abated. Older notions of"gender inversion" and ''Nature's intermediates" faded and homosexuality became more associated with psychological affliction with societal implications / History / M.A.

Social institutions in rural communities tend to be highly interrelated and social ties tend to be dense and multiplex. Human ecological theoretical models posit that all institutions in which an individual is embedded interact in complex ways. As such, this dissertation examines the influences of school, faith, family, and risk contexts on the grade point averages of students who attended school in nonmetropolitan counties in Appalachian Kentucky. Using data disaggregated by gender from nearly 5,000 adolescents, I identified risk and protective factors on grade point averages by attraction type (exclusively opposite-sex attracted, same-sex attracted, and unsure of attraction), identified differences in grade point averages between attraction types, and identified mediators and moderators of the relationship between attraction type and grade point average. School belonging positively influenced the grade point averages of unsure males and religious belief negatively influenced the grade point averages of same-sex attracted males. In general, sexual minority students reported lower grade point averages than their exclusively opposite-sex attracted peers. Among same-sex attracted males and females, this disparity in grade point average was mediated by school belonging. Among unsure males the variation in grade point average was largely explained by engagement in risk behaviors. The relationship between sexual attraction and grade point average was moderated by religiosity, marijuana use, and labor market optimism.

This thesis explores the implications of visibility and invisibility of transgender people, their constructed bodies, and how these bodies are used for both personal empowerment and education. By using various gender theorists for support, I argue that the transgender male body obtains power through visibility. Despite the many obstacles transgender males face, putting their bodies in a space of visibility gives them both personal power and the power to educate others about their bodies and sexuality. In doing a study of the human body and the different definitions applied to it, I show how we, as a society, are restricted by gender binaries and how the transgender body serves as a gap between the socially-constructed terms. Ultimately, transgender people are able to break through these barriers by subverting the definitions and meaning of “male” and “female.” / Includes bibliography. / Thesis (M.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2014. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

A presente pesquisa analisa o processo de emergência de grupos organizados de jovens LGBT e de seu engajamento. Foram realizadas entrevistas semi-estruturadas com fundadores/as e coordenadores/as de grupos jovens LGBT, bem como observação de campo junto às atividades desenvolvidas pelas entidades, o que permitiu problematizar e descrever: o contexto de emergência desses grupos, seus modos de organização e funcionamento, suas bandeiras de luta e formas de ação, tal como o perfil e o processo de engajamento desses/as jovens. Assim foi possível traçar um panorama histórico envolvendo as seguintes organizações atuantes na cidade de São Paulo: Projeto de Apoio a Gays e Lésbicas Adolescentes (PAGLA), E-jovem, XTeens, Jovens e Adolescentes Homossexuais (JA) e Projeto Purpurina. Assim como traçar o cenário atual em Paris com foco nas seguintes entidades: MAG Jeunes LGBT, Pôle Jeunesse, CONTACT e Le Refuge. Essas organizações promovem encontros, online e offline (presenciais e virtuais) de apoio mútuo voltados a jovens, que varia de 13 a 29 anos e abordam sobretudo: autoaceitação, conflitos na família, com amigos, na escola, universidade e trabalho. Os grupos e os/as jovens apresentam ressalvas em relação à política institucional (governos, partidos, eleições, espaços de participação e controle social), para eles/as fazer política significa promover transformações sociais a partir de suas vidas cotidianas, que eventualmente podem passar por reivindicações pontuais em relação a legislações, políticas ou serviços públicos. / This research analyzes the process of emergence of organized groups of LGBT youth and their engagement. Semi-structured interviews were held with founders and coordinators of LGBT youth groups and field observation with the activities developed by the entities, which allowed discuss and describe: the emergence of such groups, their modes of organization and operation, their struggles themes and forms of action, such as their profile and engagement process. Thus it was possible to trace a historical overview involving the following organizations actives in São Paulo: Projeto de Apoio a Gays e Lésbicas Adolescentes (Pagla), E-Jovem, XTeens, Jovens e Adolescentes Homossexuais (JA) and Projeto Purpurina; As well as outline the current situation in Paris focusing on the following groups: MAG - Jeunes LGBT, Pôle Jeunesse, CONTACT e Le Refuge. These organizations hold meetings, online and off-line, of mutual support aimed at young people, which ranges from 13 to 29 years and cover mainly: self-acceptance, conflicts in the family, with friends, at school, university and work. Groups and young have reservations about the institutional policy (governments, parties, elections, opportunities for participation and social control), for them politics means promoting social change from their everyday lives, which can eventually move by specific claims regarding legislation, policies or public services.

This thesis foregrounds a question unanswered in queer theory�s account of the ongoing reproduction of heteronormativity. In Gender Trouble, Judith Butler asks "From where does the performative draw its force, and what happens to the performative whose task it is to undo" that discursively legitimated enacting? (Bodies That Matter 224-5). While queer theory offers a compelling account of how the normative fictions of identity privilege heterosexuality, the first part of Butler�s question remains relatively under-theorised. This thesis addresses this gap and argues that to understand the source of performative authority, we must address the intimate relationship between gay identity and commodity culture. Thus, I investigate the connections between the marketing industry, an historically politicised gay press, and a lesbian and gay politics imagined through the paradigm of identity, and argue that they combine in a citational feedback loop to performatively produce gay identity as the "ideal consumer." I then undertake case studies of two media texts, the website Gay.com and the television series Queer Eye for the Straight Guy, in order to demonstrate how the white, male, middle-class gay aesthete functions hegemonically as gayness in culture. My analysis then turns to the second part of Butler�s question -"what happens to the performative whose task it is to undo?"- and examines the consequences of the absence of an analysis of commodity culture for the notion of queer. To that end, I suggest that alongside their repetitions of gay normativity, both Gay.com and Queer Eye perform queer possibility. However, the case studies I undertake, along with the critical reception of Queer Eye and the internet technologies behind Gay.com, suggests that these media texts fall short of the promise of queerness. This apparent failure to disturb heteronormative reproduction is connected in these critiques to each text�s commercial imperatives. This thesis argues that such critiques tend to rely on determinations of the authenticity of queer performance, and emphasise veracity over queer theory�s potential to exploit the critical potential of deliberate indeterminacy. I argue, instead, that a key part of queer theory�s contingency is its capacity to respond to the changing performative contexts of the normative repetitions it seeks to undo. To put this more simply: If consumer desire defines contemporary gayness, then it is with consumer desire that queer theory must contend. It is precisely the indeterminacy of queer that enables such shifts in its strategies of subversion. Recognition of how queer�s indeterminacy enables those subversive moves returns us to the importance to queer theory of a sustained consideration of the constitutive capacities of commodity culture. What I suggest in this thesis is that if we do no ask "From where does the performance draw its force?" then we cannot answer "And what happens to the performative whose task it is to undo?" the normative framework of identity.