Human rights and sexuality - reimagining the language of equality towards transformation in and through education

Abstract

For many years, arguments in favour of sexual minorities' equality and sexuality rights have brought about legal reform worldwide. Although there are those who would contend that human rights and legal mechanisms associated with minorities could contribute to some positive experiences for sexual minorities, others have pointed out that legal reform brought about by the anti-discrimination laws does not necessarily result in a noticeable change in people's discriminatory attitudes, nor does it automatically translate into lived experiences of equity for minority groups. Research in the education sector shows that despite promises of inclusion and non-discrimination brought about by human rights law, many education institutions 'continue to reproduce patterns of heterosexism ' (Francis and Msibi 2011, 160). Drawing from a project titled 'Human Rights Literacy: A search for meaning', the article explores how students in higher education institutions conceptualise sexual equality within a human rights discourse. Findings reported here indicate that the non-translation of legal rights into inclusion and equality for sexual minorities might be due to the gap between formal and substantive conceptualisations of equality.Acknowledgment of sexual minorities' equal rights appears to be superficial while students

Editorial: On critique, dissensus and human rights literacies

“…One might then question why most human rights discourses are positioned in an uncritical, descriptive and rational realm and are unable to question or address human rights violations. This is answered, through various lenses and in different lived and research contexts, by the authors in this special edition (Du Preez, Simmonds and Chetty 2017;Simmonds and Du Preez 2017;Becker 2017a;Roux 2017;Keet, Nel and Sattarzadeh 2017;De Wet 2017). It seems that human rights have lost their dissident and rebellious spirit (Kapur 2006).…”

Moral responsibility and speaking to the 'dark side of human rights'

“…One might then question why most human rights discourses are positioned in an uncritical, descriptive and rational realm and are unable to question or address human rights violations. This is answered, through various lenses and in different lived and research contexts, by the authors in this special edition (Du Preez, Simmonds and Chetty 2017; Simmonds and Du Preez 2017;Becker 2017a;Roux 2017;Keet, Nel and Sattarzadeh 2017;De Wet 2017). It seems that human rights have lost their dissident and rebellious spirit (Kapur 2006).…”

A sociological exploration of the need for safe spaces for lesbian and gay students on a South African university campus

“…The education and sensitisation about gay and lesbian students' issues may result in the development of inclusive policies and 'nurturing practices'. Increased sensitisation and consciousness among students and staff about issues related to homosexuality may encourage the management of education institutions to amend their policies to protect homosexual students against discrimination (De Wet 2017;Macgillivray 2004). These initiatives may furthermore encourage university staff members and students, their families and friends to participate in training sessions to become so-called 'safe spaces' and/or 'allies' for potential victims (Evans 2000(Evans , 2002.…”