#MeToo and LGBTQ+ Salvadorans: social and leadership challenges

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to argue that the myriad social forces in El Salvador make it difficult for LGBTQ+ to publicly declare their sexual orientation or name their perpetrators and hence to use the #MeToo hashtag as a leadership strategy of their movement. Design/methodology/approach A qualitative research design was used that included interviews and focus group discussions with LGBTQ+ leaders of organizations and government officials. A descriptive/interpretive approach was used to understand their experiences of being LGBTQ+, leadership approach to gain their rights and knowledge of #MeToo. Findings Although the movement has contributed to the public dialog about sexual misconduct, it has not had an impact on the “coming out” of LGBTQ+ on Twitter, public exposure of offenders, improved treatment of LGBTQ+ or significant changes in employment law for LGBTQ+ Salvadorans. Rather than the celebrity-led #MeToo movement, a continuation of the more grassroots approach that Salvadoran LGBTIQ+ leaders use may more successfully achieve their protection and rights. Research limitations/implications Further research should be completed regarding the impact of leadership on changing the social imaginary and the leadership approach most appropriate for this impact. Social implications The study provides a case to further explore the leadership's role in changing the social imaginary. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this paper is the first to illustrate that #MeToo cannot be successful in all cultural contexts or with all LGBTQ+ communities and that grassroots approaches may be more appropriate in countries such as El Salvador.

An overview of coming out research: Introducing a three‐lens typology

“…Due to technological developments, (social) media have become another sub‐area within coming out research. For example, research explored and critically reflected on LGBTQ+ individuals' coming out negotiation to family, friends, work colleagues, and strangers via Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, blogs, and online dating platforms (e.g., Chester et al., 2016; Duguay, 2016; Etengoff & Daiute, 2015; George, 2011; Onanuga, 2021; Owens, 2017; Phua, 2020; Steinfeld, 2020; Thompson & Figueroa, 2020; Waggoner, 2022) or on reality TV shows (e.g., Bannink & Wentink, 2015; Boross & Reijnders, 2015, 2017). The analysis of celebrities' coming out and related press coverage has been also of interest (e.g., Benozzo, 2013; Motschenbacher, 2019; Schallhorn & Hempel, 2017; Tinker, 2021).…”

“…13 13 Countries of all inhabited continents are represented within my ‘coming out’ search findings (peer‐reviewed articles or academic books, published in English). For example, in order of their publication date: North America (United States [e.g., Dank, 1971; Fankhanel, 2010; Herdt, 1989; Li & Samp, 2021a; Pastrana et al., 2017; Trahan & Goodrich, 2015), Mexico (e.g., Carrier, 1989), Canada (e.g., Brotman et al., 2002; Kahn & Alessi, 2018), Jamaica (e.g., White et al., 2016), El Salvador (e.g., Thompson & Figueroa, 2020)), Europe (Germany (e.g., Barglowski et al., 2018; Götz & Blanz, 2020; Schafer, 1976), United Kingdom (e.g., Almack, 2007; Clarke & Earley, 2021; Humphrey, 1999; Nordqvist & Smart, 2014; Weeks, 1977), Ireland (e.g., Daly et al., 2020; Neary, 2013; Ryan, 2003; Sharek et al., 2015), Austria (e.g., Bunzl, 2005), Netherlands (e.g., Bannink & Wentink, 2015; Brand, 2005; Maliepaard, 2018), Norway (e.g., Hegna, 2007; Malterud & Bjorkman, 2016), France (e.g., Charbonnier & Graziani, 2016; Provencher, 2011), Hungary (e.g., Béres‐Deák, 2011), Malta (e.g., Bradford & Clark, 2011), Italy (e.g., Benozzo, 2013; Pieri, 2021; Pistella et al., 2020), Portugal (e.g., Costa et al., 2013; Gato et al., 2020; Torres & Rodrigues, 2021), Slovenia (e.g., Kuhar & Švab, 2014; Švab, 2016), Belgium (e.g., Haxhe & D’Amore, 2014), Spain (e.g., de Miguel et al., 2018; Vilanova et al., 2020), Poland (e.g., Barglowski et al., 2018), Romania (e.g., Haxhe et al., 2018), Turkey (e.g., Barglowski et al., 2018…”