Papers by Jordi Mas Grau
Contemporary Justice Review, 2024
Most European countries have adopted the hate crimes paradigm in their criminal systems for comba... more Most European countries have adopted the hate crimes paradigm in their criminal systems for combating bias-motivated violence. This model contributes to increasing public awareness about the unacceptability of violence committed against vulnerable groups, and the need to provide them with formal protection. However, the hate crime model has been challenged, under the auspices that the widespread failure of criminal punishment to act as a deterrent to crime calls into question the extent to which hate crimes legislation actually reduces violence towards a particular group. An alternative or complement to the punitive and individualistic approach of hate crimes that could ensure adequate reparation for criminal behavior is the implementation of restorative justice programs. In this article we present and discuss the results of the survey (n = 288) carried out in six European countries (Belgium, Bulgaria, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland and Spain) with the aim of gathering the knowledge, perceptions and practices regarding restorative justice of representatives of the main LGBT associations and other civil society organizations that fight against discrimination. The results obtained show that restorative justice is still an incipient jurisdictional paradigm that requires further consolidation if it is to constitute an alternative to the punitive model of hate crimes.
SEX EDUCATION, 2023
Various studies have demonstrated how the discrimination and
violence experienced by LGBT+ childr... more Various studies have demonstrated how the discrimination and
violence experienced by LGBT+ children and young people affect
their mental health and quality of life. Training for professionals
working with children and young people is a key means of helping
them provide the necessary support to LGBT+ children and youth
people, for handling any violence that may occur in their immediate
environment, as well as for empowering them. This article discusses
changes in the attitudes, beliefs and practices of professionals
working with children and young people following their participation
in a Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) delivered through
the online platform of the University of Girona. Two surveys were
carried out with the participants – the first at the beginning of the
course, and the second at the end – in order to evaluate possible
changes. Participants’ attitudes, beliefs and practices regarding
sexuality and gender diversity in childhood improved, even when
taking into account the fact that many began from an initial position
of support. The use of MOOC training has value, given the need
to engage with sexuality and gender diversity as part of formal
training for a variety of professionals working with children and
young people.
Revista Española de Investigación Criminológica, 2022
La Ley Orgánica 1/2015 incorporó los llamados delitos de odio en el Código Penal español. Para la... more La Ley Orgánica 1/2015 incorporó los llamados delitos de odio en el Código Penal español. Para las personas LGTBI+ la implementación de estas medidas legales de protección ha significado una oportunidad para combatir la discriminación, pero también ha dejado al descubierto algunos límites y desafíos. En la investigación que presentamos en este artículo mostraremos las experiencias de delitos de odio narradas por las personas LGTBI+ y las pondremos en relación con los recursos e intervenciones legales y las perspectivas criminológicas críticas. Para ello, se han realizado entrevistas semiestructuradas a 10 personas LGTBI+ y a 10 a profesionales de atención a víctimas. Los resultados apuntan a que los delitos de odio contribuyen a una representación de las violencias anti-LGTBI+ como una cuestión individualizada y desconectada de un contexto estructural cisheterocentrado1 y LGTBI+fóbico. De igual modo los resultados obtenidos muestran la tendencia a trasladar los conflictos sociales a las salas de lo penal en lugar de abordarlos desde otras formas de administración de justicia como la justicia restaurativa.
JOURNAL OF HOMOSEXUALITY, 2021
Whilst debates on sexual diversity in public space have been extensive, these have tended to focu... more Whilst debates on sexual diversity in public space have been extensive, these have tended to focus on large cities as the environments within which to analyze sexual and gender diversity, gradually consolidating an intrinsic relationship between the LGBTQ experience and the big city. This emphasis has led to the LGBTQ experiences of small and medium sized cities being overlooked, neglecting the complexity of the intersection between the urban and the sex-gender. Grounded on an original ethnographic work, this paper explores the experiences of LGBTQ people living in two medium-sized cities in Spain: Girona and Sabadell, to analyze the interrelationships between these cities and Barcelona as their main LGBTQ-friendly reference; and the perceptions of tolerance and hostility toward LGBTQ expressions in public spheres. The paper reveals that all cities are shaped by sexualized discourses and experiences, and argues that the experiences of LGBTQ people in medium-sized cities needs to be recognized to understand the influence of space in shaping the sex-gender experiences.
Local Government Studies, 2021
In recent years, local government administrations in Spain have strengthened their commitment to ... more In recent years, local government administrations in Spain have strengthened their commitment to putting into effect policies that favour the well-being of LGBTQ+ people. This has happened not only in large cities, but in small rural municipalities as well. Based on the discourses, representations and practices of professionals in health and social services, this article is organised around two interrelated axes of analysis. First, we assess the extent of knowledge regarding public policies among professionals and LGBTQ+ people. And second, we
examine the rural area as a specific setting for the application of LGBTQ+ policies. This leads us to the conclusion that such legal changes are important but not sufficient in themselves to ensure the well-being of LGBTQ+ people. Moreover, LGBTQ+ policies need to consider local contexts and avoid transferring the rationale of the big city into rural environments.
Revista de Catalunya , 2020
Culture, Health & Sexuality , 2021
Even though transgender people continue to experience violence and discrimination in many aspects... more Even though transgender people continue to experience violence and discrimination in many aspects of life, there has been progressive recognition of their experiences and demands in recent decades. This article analyses the process of claiming civil rights and the evolution of health care for transgender people in Spain, from the mid-1970s to the present day, paying particular attention to the narratives of key actors involved. To this end, three socio-historical periods are identified: (1) the travesti period (the mid-1970s to the early 1990s), characterised by strong social and institutional transphobia and resulting self-care practices; (2) the transexual period (mid-1990s to the 2000s), when demands for health care were institutionalised under a pathological medical model; and (3) the transgénero or trans period (2010s until the present) when identity and bodily autonomy have been re-claimed through a socio-cultural prism that has denounced pathologisation. At each stage, political, social and economic factors intervened at both national and international levels to trigger an ongoing negotiation between transgender movements and dominant social institutions, all within a changing universe of social values.
Documents d'Anàlisi Geogràfica , 2019
The big city has been presented in the media and some academic research as the ideal space for LG... more The big city has been presented in the media and some academic research as the ideal space for LGBT people. Indeed, the big city is conceived as the only livable and experimental place for sexual and gender diversity, thus monopolizing the meanings of gender-generic diversity. Grounded in a study of two mid-sized cities (Girona and Sabadell) that focused on the experiences, discourses, representations and practices of LGTB people living outside the big city (Barcelona), and using qualitative data gathered in-depth interviews, discussion groups and participant observation, this paper analyzes and discusses two fundamental issues. Firstly, the links, relationships and influences between mid-sized cities and the big city in terms of sexual and gender diversity; and secondly, the construction of alterities through the relationship between the centers and urban peripheries of these two cities.
Droit et cultures, 2019
This paper analyses the process of obtaining LGBT rights in Spain since the end of the Francoism ... more This paper analyses the process of obtaining LGBT rights in Spain since the end of the Francoism dictatorship to the present, paying special attention to the opinions and experiences of LGBT people. To this end, data from in-depth interviews with LGBT people who live and/or work in the city of Sabadell (Catalonia) will be analysed.
As in most Western countries, in Spain mainstream LGBT+ organisations set aside the revolutionary claims against the socio-sexual system, in order to adopt a more moderate discourse based on civil rights and social inclusion. Nonetheless, the most radical discourses and organisations -nowadays inspired by queer theories- have always been very active, and have achieved an important socio-political change regarding the depathologisation of health assistance to transgender people.
The article argues the importance of not abandoning the critique of our sex/gender system for the sake of social inclusion and tolerance, given that it is the only way to counteract daily, symbolic and structural violence.
En el presente artículo se analiza el modo en que se ha conceptuado la transexualidad en el Manua... more En el presente artículo se analiza el modo en que se ha conceptuado la transexualidad en el Manual Diagnóstico y Estadístico de los Trastornos Mentales (DSM). Veremos que los sucesivos cambios de denominación y de criterios diagnósticos obedecen a las presiones reci-bidas por los redactores del manual por parte de cientí-ficos, académicos, organismos políticos y asociaciones por los derechos “trans”. Fruto de estas tensiones se ha reconceptualizado la transexualidad en diversas ocasio-nes, pero se han mantenido las connotaciones mórbi-das de la categoría diagnóstica. Abordaremos asimismo el debate sobre la patologización de la transexualidad, que está dominado por dos discursos contrapuestos: el que justifica su inclusión en el DSM porque cree que de este modo se garantiza el acceso a la terapia hormonal y quirúrgica, y el que la critica porque considera que el diagnóstico contribuye a la estigmatización de las perso-nas “trans”. Concluiremos el artículo sosteniendo que el acceso a los recursos sanitarios para personas “trans” ha de entenderse como un derecho básico que no pue-de estar sujeto a requisitos clínicos.
This paper analyses the two major paradigms through which the trans phenomenon has been conceptua... more This paper analyses the two major paradigms through which the trans phenomenon has been conceptualized in Western societies: transsexuality and transgenderism. Based on data obtained from two qualitative research projects conducted in Catalonia (Spain), we show the existence of conflicts
between individuals and groups close to both paradigms. Some who consider themselves to fall within
the realm of transsexuality criticize those whose bodies and subjectivities do not conform to gender binary believing them to compromise their social integration project. On the other hand, some transgenderist activists complain that certain sectors rejecting their trans condition, seeking social normalization. The paper concludes with a problematization of trans people’s ability to reinforce or subvert the sex/gender system.
Revista de Estudios de Antropología Sexual, 4 (1): 136-151, 2013
Transsexualism covers an area of plural discursive intersection where different kinds of narrativ... more Transsexualism covers an area of plural discursive intersection where different kinds of narratives converge to define it. There are political debates between transsexuals and transgenderists; there are medical stories and their power to create realities through diagnosis; and there are also real people developing particular subjectivities. There are many maps and there are also many territories to travel through and understand transsexualism. On these pages we present the basic structure of the medical management process of transsexualism and discuss how transsexual people position themselves in front of the medical discourse in an institutional environment of medical care of transsexuality.
Gazeta de Antropología, 30 (3), 2014
This article reviews the cultural construction of transsexuality in Spain from the democratic tra... more This article reviews the cultural construction of transsexuality in Spain from the democratic transition so far. The paper defines three historic periods (pre-gay, gay and post-gay) and shows how transsexuality and transgender have been construed throughout each of them. The paper aims to analyze the social and identity transformations that unfold in Spain in relation to transgender by focusing on transsexuality. The categories of travesty and operated travesty were hegemonic in the pre-gay period, whereas the category of transsexual was hegemonic over the whole gay period. By contrast, in the current post-gay period, the category of transgender is a conceptual and discursive novelty that includes and, at the same time, goes beyond the previous categories. The article focuses on transsexual women.
Quaderns-e, Institut Català d'Antropologia, 18 (1): 65 - 79
In a society where gender is conceived as a natural extension of sexual dimorphism, the mismatch ... more In a society where gender is conceived as a natural extension of sexual dimorphism, the mismatch between these two variables is considered as a deviation from the norm to which is granted the status of mental pathology. Thus, any trans person wishing to commence a transformation process of their body must first undergo a psychiatric assessment in order to obtain a diagnosis of "gender identity disorder".
This article analyses the diagnostic process of transsexuality in a Spanish hospital. It also examines the ideological stance of the medical staff and of the service users as to whether transsexuality is a mental disorder and whether a compulsory psychiatric diagnosis is an unavoidable pre-condition for the access to treatment.
Book Chapters by Jordi Mas Grau
Intersecciones encarnadas. [Con]textos críticos en género, identidad y diversidad, 2020
El presente volumen analiza la pluralidad de vivencias, percepciones y representaciones de mascul... more El presente volumen analiza la pluralidad de vivencias, percepciones y representaciones de masculinidades no hegemónicas en la sociedad y en la cultura españolas de las últimas tres décadas. Su objetivo es doble: profundizar en los discursos y figuraciones de masculinidades gais, lésbicas y trans a través de muy diversos documentos, con una voluntad claramente interdisciplinaria, para, en segundo lugar, iluminar una realidad escasamente atendida por las ciencias humanas y sociales en España. Resulta especialmente pertinente introducir y valorar la productividad en este contexto de un concepto como el de «masculinidad», que debe asociarse a las estructuras de poder derivadas de la legitimización del patriarcado, para el análisis de la «disidencia sexual» en nuestra historia reciente. Todas las aportaciones del presente libro lo confirman directa o indirectamente, empezando por aquellas que se emplazan en la sociología y la antropología (Jordi Caïs, Óscar Guasch, Jose Antonio Langarita, Jordi Mas y Fernando Villaamil), siguiendo por la producción artística (Juan Vicente Aliaga) y cinematográfica (Jorge Luis Peralta), los estudios literarios (José Antonio Ramos, Alberto Mira y Alfredo Martínez-Expósito) o el activismo y la historiografía trans (R. Lucas Platero).
Memorias, identidades y experiencias trans. (In)visibilidades entre Argentina y España, 2015
Visibles pero, al mismo tiempo, invisibles: esa paradójica condición ha marcado ?y continúa marca... more Visibles pero, al mismo tiempo, invisibles: esa paradójica condición ha marcado ?y continúa marcando? la existencia de las personas trans. La reconstrucción de posibles genealogías tropieza, en consecuencia, con un cierto vacío en materia de representaciones, más si se trata de relatos en primera persona, no mediados por un "otro" ajeno a la realidad social y sexual de travestis, transexuales y transgéneros. Este libro apunta a ofrecer una mirada interdisciplinaria sobre el universo trans en la Argentina y en España desde la década de 1960 hasta principios de este milenio. Se trata de contribuir al rescate y recuperación de voces y experiencias, tanto por medio del análisis textual y sociológico o la reconstrucción historiográfica, como de testimonios que alumbren, en primera persona, los diversos itinerarios del travestismo, la transexualidad y el transgenerismo. Los testimonios interrelacionan voces como las de Camila Sosa Villada, Kim Pérez, Naty Menstrual, Lohana Berkins, Eduardo Mendicutti y Pietro Salemme. Los artículos pertenecen a investigadorxs argentinxs y españolxs de diversas generaciones: María Soledad Cutuli, Jaime de la Calle, Óscar Guasch, Santiago Joaquín Insausti, Jordi Mas, Alejandro Melero, Adrián Melo, Rafael M. Mérida, Alejandro Modarelli, José Antonio Nieto, Cristina Ornielli, Jorge Luis Peralta, Raquel (Lucas) Platero Méndez y Majo Torres.
En sintonía con el creciente interés hacia el estudio de las masculinidades en el campo de las hu... more En sintonía con el creciente interés hacia el estudio de las masculinidades en el campo de las humanidades y ciencias sociales, el presente volumen ofrece un conjunto de ensayos e investigaciones que abordan el tema en un periodo especialmente significativo de la historia española reciente. Tras la muerte de Franco en 1975 y la derogación, en 1979, de algunos artículos de la Ley de Peligrosidad y Rehabilitación Social (1970) —utilizada para perseguir y criminalizar a lesbianas, homosexuales y transexuales bajo la dictadura— se abrió un periodo de importantes transformaciones, examinadas aquí a la luz de los estudios culturales, de género o la teoría queer.
Las masculinidades plurales de la Transición exigían una mirada también plural: de allí la interdisciplinariedad que distingue al libro y que enriquece los análisis de las múltiples identidades y representaciones consideradas, desde los activismos al cine, desde la literatura a las artes visuales. Las trayectorias y procedencias de lxs colaboradorxs contribuyen a la diversidad de enfoques. Los desafíos a la «masculinidad hegemónica» de travestís, lesbianas masculinas o locas —entre otras tantas formas de disidencia— permiten dar cuenta de los poderosos efectos de la norma, pero también de su fragilidad.
Masculinidades de la Transición, pero también en transición: además de reconstruir realidades, discursos y experiencias de los primeros años de la democracia española, estos ensayos evidencian el carácter dinámico y contingente de todas las masculinidades, la imposibilidad de asignarles un significado definitivo y la necesidad incesante de cuestionarlas. Participan en este proyecto Juan Vicente Aliaga, Kerman Calvo, Estrella Díaz, Óscar Guasch, Geoffroy Huard, Dieter Ingenschay, Elena Madrigal, Alfredo Martínez-Expósito, Jordi Mas, Rafael M. Mérida, Alberto Mira, Jorge Luis Peralta, Jaume Pont, José Luis Ramos y Gracia Trujillo.
The objective of Hispanic (LGT) Masculinities in Transition is to investigate the cultural repres... more The objective of Hispanic (LGT) Masculinities in Transition is to investigate the cultural representations/intersections of masculinity and sexual minorities (lesbians, gays, and transgenders) in Spain between the passing of the Law of Social Dangerousness and Social Rehabilitation (1970) and the reform of the Penal Code in 1995. In order to meet this aim, this volume analyzes the artistic production of a number of Spanish and Latin American male and female individuals who, first, were able to question the structures of control and domination in Spain in the last years of Franco’s dictatorship; second, were able to open up new horizons of freedom in the context of the criminalization of the previous decades; and, third, were able to bring about new models of masculinity that were more egalitarian during the first years of the new democracy.
More specifically, Hispanic (LGT) Masculinities in Transition will interlink the fields of political and historical change and artistic production in order to assess whether cultural representations can be understood as mere reflections of social and political change. In terms of the materials being examined, these are, in the first instance, literary, although other narratives are also addressed (filmic production and plastic arts). This volume is essential reading for professors and students of contemporary Spanish history and culture, as well as for those interested in lesbian, gay, transgender, and masculinity issues.
Book Reviews by Jordi Mas Grau
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Papers by Jordi Mas Grau
violence experienced by LGBT+ children and young people affect
their mental health and quality of life. Training for professionals
working with children and young people is a key means of helping
them provide the necessary support to LGBT+ children and youth
people, for handling any violence that may occur in their immediate
environment, as well as for empowering them. This article discusses
changes in the attitudes, beliefs and practices of professionals
working with children and young people following their participation
in a Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) delivered through
the online platform of the University of Girona. Two surveys were
carried out with the participants – the first at the beginning of the
course, and the second at the end – in order to evaluate possible
changes. Participants’ attitudes, beliefs and practices regarding
sexuality and gender diversity in childhood improved, even when
taking into account the fact that many began from an initial position
of support. The use of MOOC training has value, given the need
to engage with sexuality and gender diversity as part of formal
training for a variety of professionals working with children and
young people.
examine the rural area as a specific setting for the application of LGBTQ+ policies. This leads us to the conclusion that such legal changes are important but not sufficient in themselves to ensure the well-being of LGBTQ+ people. Moreover, LGBTQ+ policies need to consider local contexts and avoid transferring the rationale of the big city into rural environments.
As in most Western countries, in Spain mainstream LGBT+ organisations set aside the revolutionary claims against the socio-sexual system, in order to adopt a more moderate discourse based on civil rights and social inclusion. Nonetheless, the most radical discourses and organisations -nowadays inspired by queer theories- have always been very active, and have achieved an important socio-political change regarding the depathologisation of health assistance to transgender people.
The article argues the importance of not abandoning the critique of our sex/gender system for the sake of social inclusion and tolerance, given that it is the only way to counteract daily, symbolic and structural violence.
between individuals and groups close to both paradigms. Some who consider themselves to fall within
the realm of transsexuality criticize those whose bodies and subjectivities do not conform to gender binary believing them to compromise their social integration project. On the other hand, some transgenderist activists complain that certain sectors rejecting their trans condition, seeking social normalization. The paper concludes with a problematization of trans people’s ability to reinforce or subvert the sex/gender system.
This article analyses the diagnostic process of transsexuality in a Spanish hospital. It also examines the ideological stance of the medical staff and of the service users as to whether transsexuality is a mental disorder and whether a compulsory psychiatric diagnosis is an unavoidable pre-condition for the access to treatment.
Book Chapters by Jordi Mas Grau
Las masculinidades plurales de la Transición exigían una mirada también plural: de allí la interdisciplinariedad que distingue al libro y que enriquece los análisis de las múltiples identidades y representaciones consideradas, desde los activismos al cine, desde la literatura a las artes visuales. Las trayectorias y procedencias de lxs colaboradorxs contribuyen a la diversidad de enfoques. Los desafíos a la «masculinidad hegemónica» de travestís, lesbianas masculinas o locas —entre otras tantas formas de disidencia— permiten dar cuenta de los poderosos efectos de la norma, pero también de su fragilidad.
Masculinidades de la Transición, pero también en transición: además de reconstruir realidades, discursos y experiencias de los primeros años de la democracia española, estos ensayos evidencian el carácter dinámico y contingente de todas las masculinidades, la imposibilidad de asignarles un significado definitivo y la necesidad incesante de cuestionarlas. Participan en este proyecto Juan Vicente Aliaga, Kerman Calvo, Estrella Díaz, Óscar Guasch, Geoffroy Huard, Dieter Ingenschay, Elena Madrigal, Alfredo Martínez-Expósito, Jordi Mas, Rafael M. Mérida, Alberto Mira, Jorge Luis Peralta, Jaume Pont, José Luis Ramos y Gracia Trujillo.
More specifically, Hispanic (LGT) Masculinities in Transition will interlink the fields of political and historical change and artistic production in order to assess whether cultural representations can be understood as mere reflections of social and political change. In terms of the materials being examined, these are, in the first instance, literary, although other narratives are also addressed (filmic production and plastic arts). This volume is essential reading for professors and students of contemporary Spanish history and culture, as well as for those interested in lesbian, gay, transgender, and masculinity issues.
Book Reviews by Jordi Mas Grau
violence experienced by LGBT+ children and young people affect
their mental health and quality of life. Training for professionals
working with children and young people is a key means of helping
them provide the necessary support to LGBT+ children and youth
people, for handling any violence that may occur in their immediate
environment, as well as for empowering them. This article discusses
changes in the attitudes, beliefs and practices of professionals
working with children and young people following their participation
in a Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) delivered through
the online platform of the University of Girona. Two surveys were
carried out with the participants – the first at the beginning of the
course, and the second at the end – in order to evaluate possible
changes. Participants’ attitudes, beliefs and practices regarding
sexuality and gender diversity in childhood improved, even when
taking into account the fact that many began from an initial position
of support. The use of MOOC training has value, given the need
to engage with sexuality and gender diversity as part of formal
training for a variety of professionals working with children and
young people.
examine the rural area as a specific setting for the application of LGBTQ+ policies. This leads us to the conclusion that such legal changes are important but not sufficient in themselves to ensure the well-being of LGBTQ+ people. Moreover, LGBTQ+ policies need to consider local contexts and avoid transferring the rationale of the big city into rural environments.
As in most Western countries, in Spain mainstream LGBT+ organisations set aside the revolutionary claims against the socio-sexual system, in order to adopt a more moderate discourse based on civil rights and social inclusion. Nonetheless, the most radical discourses and organisations -nowadays inspired by queer theories- have always been very active, and have achieved an important socio-political change regarding the depathologisation of health assistance to transgender people.
The article argues the importance of not abandoning the critique of our sex/gender system for the sake of social inclusion and tolerance, given that it is the only way to counteract daily, symbolic and structural violence.
between individuals and groups close to both paradigms. Some who consider themselves to fall within
the realm of transsexuality criticize those whose bodies and subjectivities do not conform to gender binary believing them to compromise their social integration project. On the other hand, some transgenderist activists complain that certain sectors rejecting their trans condition, seeking social normalization. The paper concludes with a problematization of trans people’s ability to reinforce or subvert the sex/gender system.
This article analyses the diagnostic process of transsexuality in a Spanish hospital. It also examines the ideological stance of the medical staff and of the service users as to whether transsexuality is a mental disorder and whether a compulsory psychiatric diagnosis is an unavoidable pre-condition for the access to treatment.
Las masculinidades plurales de la Transición exigían una mirada también plural: de allí la interdisciplinariedad que distingue al libro y que enriquece los análisis de las múltiples identidades y representaciones consideradas, desde los activismos al cine, desde la literatura a las artes visuales. Las trayectorias y procedencias de lxs colaboradorxs contribuyen a la diversidad de enfoques. Los desafíos a la «masculinidad hegemónica» de travestís, lesbianas masculinas o locas —entre otras tantas formas de disidencia— permiten dar cuenta de los poderosos efectos de la norma, pero también de su fragilidad.
Masculinidades de la Transición, pero también en transición: además de reconstruir realidades, discursos y experiencias de los primeros años de la democracia española, estos ensayos evidencian el carácter dinámico y contingente de todas las masculinidades, la imposibilidad de asignarles un significado definitivo y la necesidad incesante de cuestionarlas. Participan en este proyecto Juan Vicente Aliaga, Kerman Calvo, Estrella Díaz, Óscar Guasch, Geoffroy Huard, Dieter Ingenschay, Elena Madrigal, Alfredo Martínez-Expósito, Jordi Mas, Rafael M. Mérida, Alberto Mira, Jorge Luis Peralta, Jaume Pont, José Luis Ramos y Gracia Trujillo.
More specifically, Hispanic (LGT) Masculinities in Transition will interlink the fields of political and historical change and artistic production in order to assess whether cultural representations can be understood as mere reflections of social and political change. In terms of the materials being examined, these are, in the first instance, literary, although other narratives are also addressed (filmic production and plastic arts). This volume is essential reading for professors and students of contemporary Spanish history and culture, as well as for those interested in lesbian, gay, transgender, and masculinity issues.
The aims of this research are to determine the factors that made possible the appearance of the transsexuality as a pathological category and the transsexual as a new kind of subjectivity; to observe the processes of diagnosis and therapy in a Gender Identity Disorder Unit; to analyse the process of identity and corporal (re)construction among the trans persons; and, to comprehend the two existing paradigms: transsexuality and transgenderism. In order to accomplish these objectives characteristic qualitative method techniques have been employed: in-depth interviews, participant observation, on-line observation and focus groups.
The biomedicine conceives of transsexuality as a biological dysfunction which only concerns the health and social situation of the person. Conversely, this research emphasises the intersubjective and socio-cultural dimensions of the phenomena. The purpose of this work is not to bring an end to the biomedical attention of the trans persons. However, the current model of attention is considered discriminatory towards the ways of signifying and expressing transgender that do not fit into the normative standards. There is an identity and corporal multitude which does not enjoy an institutional recognition and which is often denied access to its fundamental rights.