The aim of this paper is to analyse the reformulation of the place and role of religion in Spanish public institutions after the constitutional disestablishment of the Catholic Church and religious diversification of society. Drawing upon qualitative fieldwork in six Spanish prisons, we argue that there is a process of the realignment of forces between the religious groups that provide services in such institutions, the Catholic Church adopting an attitude in between adaptation and subtle resistance to the loss of a number of its previous prerogatives. This incomplete demonopolisation of public organisations can be explained as the result of two opposing forces: (a) convergence towards the European standards of accommodation of religious diversity; and (b) Catholic resistance to the loss of established advantages.
30 December 2015 in Revista Internacional de Sociologia
A partir de una aproximación cualitativa, este artículo analiza las tensiones y negociaciones cotidianas que se producen en torno a la presencia y rol de la religión en las prisiones y hospitales contemporáneos en España. Más concretamente, el artículo examina la emergencia de nuevas formas de encaje entre la Iglesia católica, las minorías religiosas y las instituciones seculares; y sus implicaciones en cuanto a la naturaleza secular del Estado y las desigualdades entre grupos. La complejidad de las dinámicas religioso/secular, catolicismo/diversidad religiosa y religión/espiritualidad patentes en el marco de estas instituciones evidencia la imposibilidad de dibujar un modelo único para dar cuenta de cómo la religión y la diversidad religiosa son gestionadas en estos contextos.
El siguiente artículo presenta dos debates teóricos, la distinción entre sexo y género, y entre violencia y agresión, para analizar el modo en el que éstos se encuentran presentes en la Ley integral de medidas contra la violencia de género. Desgranaremos las consecuencias que comportan las concepciones de violencia y género implícitas en la Ley, así como el modelo de relaciones que contribuye a reproducir.
The hegemonic narrative in the West establishes that having same-sex relationships constitutes an identity that must be public. This article analyses how this narrative is reproduced and/or subverted in the discourses of queer migrant people from Muslim backgrounds in Catalonia (Spain). The analysis of 10 interviews reveals a more fluid notion of sexual orientation, an uncomfortableness with the identity categories regarding sexuality, and a stronger distinction between the public and the private boundaries. The informants found themselves in a complex situation that made it impossible for them to completely reproduce or subvert the overlapping normativities of both the origin and host society, compelling them to devise hybrid strategies to live their sexuality. The article closes with a reflection on the implications of the different ways of living sexuality in relation to the theorization of sexual/intimate citizenship and LGBT equality policies, which also reproduce the western hegemonic understanding of sexuality.
This article reflects on the biases in sexual and gender diversity policies in relation to the axis of cultural and religious diversity in Catalonia (Spain), where these policies have experienced an enormous boost since 2014. The paper aims to analyse the articulation between the experiences of queer migrants from Muslim backgrounds living in Catalonia and the LGBT and intercultural policies. Based on interviews both with queer migrants and people involved in developing public policies, we analyse how these two axes intersect. The approach of policies is mainly monofocal and assimilationist, failing to acknowledge the hybridity of queer migrant experiences. However, we also find examples of policy programmes that adopt an intersectional perspective and embrace hybridity by advancing more inclusive LGBT equality policies. The conclusions highlight two axes of tensions that have emerged in the analysis of the policies: the construction of the figure of the queer person from a Muslim background and the role of the state regarding sexual and gender diversity.