EMBODIMENTS AND EXPRESSIONS OF QUEER AND NON-BINARY IDENTITIES by Alexis ...

98 Pages·2017·0.42 MB·English

“I EXIST”: (TRANSCENDING) EMBODIMENTS AND EXPRESSIONS OF QUEER
AND NON-BINARY IDENTITIES
by
Alexis Hinojosa, B.S.A.S.

A thesis submitted to the Graduate Council of
Texas State University in partial fulfillment
of the requirements for the degree of
Master of Arts
with a Major in Sociology
August 2017

Committee Members:
Patti Giuffre, Chair
Rachel Romero
Audrey McKinney
COPYRIGHT
by
Alexis Hinojosa
2017
FAIR USE AND AUTHOR’S PERMISSION STATEMENT
Fair Use
This work is protected by the Copyright Laws of the United States (Public Law
94-553, section 107). Consistent with fair use as defined in the Copyright Laws, brief
quotations from this material are allowed with proper acknowledgement. Use of this
material for financial gain without the author’s express written permission is not allowed.
Duplication Permission
As the copyright holder of this work I, Alexis Hinojosa, authorize duplication of
this work, in whole or in part, for educational or scholarly purposes only.
DEDICATION
To the beautiful group of self-identified queer and non-binary individuals who
participated in this study, and to the entire LGBTQIA+ community – we are in this fight
of resistance and resilience together. ¡Adelante!
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
First and foremost, I would like to thank my thesis chair and mentor, Dr. Giuffre,
for her unconditional support and encouragement throughout my journey in higher
education. Her student-centered enthusiasm and dedication, both inside and outside the
classroom, have been a constant motivator for me throughout my time at Texas State
University. I would also like to thank my classmates and colleagues in the sociology
masters program. I cannot thank you enough for your unrelenting encouragement, “vent
meet-ups” over happy hour, and friendship. I would not have been able to make it this
far without y’all.
Additionally, I would like to give a special shout out to my family for always
being my safe haven and for supporting my queer identity and academic pursuits. You
keep me going and inspire me to be unapologetically myself. Last, but not least, I would
like to give my deepest gratitude to the respondents that participated in my research.
Thank you for allowing yourselves to be vulnerable and for sharing your difficult, yet
inspiring, stories. Your voices help in the fight against anti-LGBTQIA+ prejudice and
discrimination, while helping to complicate traditional gender and sexuality narratives.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .................................................................................................v
ABSTRACT ..................................................................................................................... viii
CHAPTER
I.   INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................1
II.   LITERATURE REVIEW AND THEORETICAL FRAMEWORKS ...............4
Binary Systems of Gender and Sexuality ....................................................5
Heteronormativity ........................................................................................7
Coming Out ................................................................................................10
The Fluidity of Gender and Sexual Identities ............................................12
Embodiment ...............................................................................................13
Determining Gender ...................................................................................15
(In)visibility ...............................................................................................17
Theoretical Frameworks ............................................................................18

III.   METHODS ......................................................................................................23
Sampling and Recruitment .........................................................................23
Analytical Strategy .....................................................................................24

IV.   FINDINGS .......................................................................................................27
Queering Queer Identities: Moving from “Normal” to “Fluid” .................28
Queering Bodies .........................................................................................36
Passing and Covering .................................................................................43
Passing and Covering for Queer Folx of Color .........................................51
Fear and Violence: Negotiating Identities in Different Spaces .................58
Queering Language: Negotiating Pronouns and Language .......................63
Queer as Resistance and Empowerment ....................................................70

V.   DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION .............................................................80

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APPENDIX SECTION ................................................................................................85
REFERENCES ............................................................................................................87

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ABSTRACT

This study examines the ways in which non-binary and self-identified queer
people negotiate embodiments and expressions of their gender and sexual identities.
How do people embody and/or express their queer identity? How/why (not) is a queer
self-expression important? Is there a connection between self-expression of a queer
identity and coming out? This thesis utilizes an intersectional approach to queer theory in
order to challenge and destabilize binary assumptions of gender and sexuality. Fifteen
self-identified queer people share their lived experiences and discuss the negotiation of
their self-presentations and behavior in different spaces. Results show inclusive and
affirming language is needed in order to help with visibility, knowledge, and
understanding because queer gender and sexual embodiments, identities and experiences
are multifaceted, complex and fluid.

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I.   INTRODUCTION
The recent Supreme Court ruling for marriage equality and Caitlyn Jenner’s
public announcement that she is a transgender woman have amplified the ongoing
dialogue about diverse (and privileged) gender and sexual identities. The Marriage
Equality Act and Caitlyn’s public transition are evidence of a pivotal time to be studying
gender and sexuality not only because these events challenge traditional ideas of “innate”
gender categories and normative White (hetero)sexual identities, but because these
occasions cater to a very narrow group of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer or
questioning, intersex, asexual or a-romantic (and/or people who identify with other
sexual and gender identities) (LGBTQIA+) people.
While on the surface it appears that the LGBTQIA+ community has made notable
advancement, our current political administration under President Trump has taken
significant steps back (and to the Conservative right) in regard to gender and sexual
(in)justices. For example, several states have proposed new “bathroom bills” that legally
require people to use the restroom that matches their biological sex. Several researchers
argue that the current American political climate is a reflection of the racism,
homophobia, transphobia and classism that are still alive in society. In order to grasp the
social significance of gender and sexuality, particularly from an intersectional
perspective, it is important to first understand how these concepts and identities are
socially constructed and challenged.
What does it mean to identify as queer? A sociological perspective relies on
social processes, as opposed to biology, to understand the creation and reproduction of
gender and sexuality (Richardson 2007; Westbrook and Schilt 2014). West and

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Zimmerman (1987) describe “doing gender” as the daily adoption of stylistic behaviors
and mannerisms to present oneself as either male/masculine or female/feminine.
Sexuality refers to the attractions and desires one feels toward other persons, which have
traditionally been categorized as heterosexuality and homosexuality (Lucal 2008).
Butler’s (1990) critique of the “sex” and “gender” distinction splits biological aspects that
distinguish bodies into male and female from cultural cues that those bodies are naturally
assumed to be. However, individuals who identify as queer reject these dominant binary
categorizations (Better 2014). Queer gender and sexual identities are dissident and
transgressive in nature, depending on time and space. In other words, queer identities are
not easily categorized as masculine or feminine, and/or heterosexual, bisexual or
homosexual.
Gender and sexual categories are thought to be binary, or polar, from one another.
However, this binary would not exist if social divisions did not exist (Richardson 2007).
Richardson’s analysis of relationships that connect gender and sexuality is evidence of
the complexities between them and explores their ability to coexist as a result of one
another, and to exist independently from one another. Richardson suggests that gender
and sexuality can be better comprehended when we think about gender being prioritized
over sexuality, gender as an effect of sexuality, and sexuality and gender as separate. For
example, when gender is prioritized over sexuality the binary dividing heterosexuality
and homosexuality is seen to be derived from gender (p.461). Defining gender as a result
of sexuality suggests that to become “properly gendered” is to become heterosexual,
where homosexuality is perceived as a sign of “improper gender” (p.462).
Conceptualizing gender and sexuality as separate assumes that sexual desires, practices

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