| This research is an interrogation of the movement for same-sex marriage equality in the United States and the challenges it represents to the security of the nation. In order to examine why and in what ways same-sex marriage is interpreted as a danger or threat to the nation and its security, I draw upon critical feminist IR theory, including theories of nation and nationalism, queer theory, and feminist theories on marriage and heteronormativity to frame my research. The national security imaginary with its gendered, sexualized and racialized constructions of "danger" and insecurity suggests that gay marriage is perceived as threatening to the reproduction of the heteropatriarchal, capitalist nation. While the U.S. nation-state is founded on myths of white, heteropatriarchal, christian, capitalist norms, it also sees itself as a liberal democratic nation in which the equal rights of all are respected. It is this tension between these two contradictory "myths" of the nation that provide an apertura for same-sex equality claims and victories.;Feminist discourse analysis is utilized to examine primary and secondary data, including senate and congressional hearings, legal cases, state and federal amendments, the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), and the proposed Federal Marriage Amendment, as well as interviews, the efforts of LGBTQ organizations, and a variety of cultural documents. Arizona and Massachusetts are used as two very dissimilar case studies in this dissertation to explore the "politics" and the history of the same-sex marriage debate in each state. My findings indicate that because heteronormative marriage in the U.S. functions as a tool of the state to reproduce the gendered, racial and sexual configurations of the nation and its citizenry, the same-sex movement is facing serious obstacles. It also demonstrates that the use of civil rights language and liberal equality claims may further the aims of the same-sex marriage movement. |
