499 Contemporary Readings in Law and Social Justic.docx

499
Contemporary Readings in Law and Social Justice
Volume 5(2), 2013, pp. 499–510, ISSN 1948-9137
PSYCHOLOGICAL ASPECTS OF CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE
MIHAELA RUS
[email protected]
Ovidius University, Constanţa
ALINA BUZARNA-TIHENEA GĂLBEAZĂ
[email protected]
Ovidius University, Constanţa
ABSTRACT. According to statistics, about 90% of people were
emotionally abused
in childhood, but many do not realize, deny or, worse, abuse
their own children or
others, considering that their treatment of childhood was
“natural and normal.”
Emotional abuse is a form of aggression, but the law can not
penalize it. Most
parents believe that child abuse means physical or sexual
violence and / or child
neglect. But they do not know that they can hurt the child

simply by their excessive
attitude. The emotional abuse is any behavior that is intended to
control, subjugate,
submit other beings through fear, intimidation, humiliation,
blaming, and “growing”
guilt, coercion, manipulation, invalidation etc. The
consequences of emotional abuse
are multiple, varied, extremely serious; they leave marks for
life, affecting child
development at various levels - emotionally, intellectually and
even physically.
Moreover, it will affect the future adult’s social and
professional life, relationships
and physical and mental health, to a greater or lesser extent,
depending on the type
of the emotional abuse, and on its frequency and intensity.
Keywords: behavior, emotional abuse, violence, control, sexual
abuse
1. Introduction
Abuse means the use of force in order to try to dominate a
child, to compel
him/her to do dangerous things that he/she does not want to do,
expose
him/her to hazardous situations or to situations perceived by
him/her as
dangerous. Any action that causes injury or psycho-emotional
disorders is
an abuse.
The abuse can be of several types:

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Physical abuse - involves the use of physical force against
children and
subjecting them to hard work that exceed their capabilities,
actions that
result in damage of their body integrity.
Emotional abuse - is the inappropriate behavior of adults
towards
children, behavior that adversely affects a child’s personality in
development. Child rejection, forced isolation, terrorization,
ignoration,
humiliation and corruption are manifestations of child abuse.
Sexual abuse - consists in exposing the child to watching
pornography,
seduction (advances, caresses and promises) or involvement in
sexual acts
of any kind.
Economic abuse – implies attracting, persuading or forcing the
child to
do income generating activities, the adults close to the child at
least partially
or indirectly benefiting from this revenue. The economic abuse
leads to
removing the child from school, thus depriving him of the
chance to access
superior social and cultural levels.
Neglection - is the adult’s inability or refusal to appropriately
communicate with the child, and the limited access to
education.

The term “sexual abuse” refers to the sexual exploitation of a
child
whose age does not allow him/her to understand the nature of
the contact
and to adequately resist it. This sexual exploitation may be done
by a child’s
friend whom he/she is psychologically dependent on.
The sexual abuse can have different aspects:
- sexual evocation (phones, exhibitionism, pornography, the
sexual
content of the adult’s language etc.)
- sexual stimulation (erotic contact, masturbation, incomplete
genital
contact, forced participation in the sexuality of a couple etc.)
- making sex (rape or attempted rape).
1.2 Issues of Abuse
a) Children may be abused since very young.
Children may be abused from a very early age. They are often
seduced
by games in a sexual- abusive situation. The abuser often
establishes
positive relationships with both parents and the child.
The child is encouraged or forced to engage in the abusive
relationship.
This is achieved through rewards and / or threats. The sexual
activity is
presented as something special, and the child should be

considered lucky
because he/she has “a chance” to participate in it. The child is
unable to
understand what is happening. Just when he/she is told that “the
game is
secret” he/she begins to understand that something is wrong.
The child’s role in this game varies. He/she may be required to
actively
participate in the game or be passive, as if “he/she would
sleep”.
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b) The agressors are rarely violent
Sexual abuse within the family or within the family network is
rarely
violent. Pattersen (1990) emphasizes that pedophile people are
seldom
violent; on the contrary, they appear to be sensual and
protective. However,
the abuse is emotionally traumatic, because the child’s silence
is often
ensured by corruption, and, at the same time, the child is made
to feel guilty
and responsible for what happens. The abuse may also be
violent or become
violent if the game evolves in intromission. The abuser often
develops a
behavioral model of restraint. The abuse may continue until the
child is able
to escape from that relationship or until someone realizes what
is happening

and puts an end to the situation. A confused and fearful aspect
of sexual
abuse is represented by the secret that the child must keep and
by the feeling
of complicity that dominates him/her.
c) The abuse associated with other types of maltreatment
The sexual abuse is often associated with other types of abuse
described
above. A child who has been sexually abused within his/her own
family
might also have been exposed to other types of maltreatment.
All these
have, of course, a number of common features. However, the
action for
sexual abuse is different from the activity of other types of
maltreatment,
because, in this case, we do not deal only with serious criminal
behavior,
but also with a taboo behavior. This case will be treated both
from the point
of view of the child’s welfare and as a court case.
d) Child sex tourism
At the seminar “Abuse and violence against children”, held in
Brasov,
in March 2000, which was attended by prosecutors, policemen,
representatives of the civil society and of specialized
institutions in
Romania and Italy, it has been shown that the violence against
minors is a
global phenomenon.
The Italian experts and the representatives of the civil society
have
acknowledged that Italy is the leading country which exports

sex tourists to
Romania. Sex tourism refers to those individuals, especially
pedophiles,
who came from Italy to Romania just to have sex. There are
some travel
agencies that, for a certain price, can provide these individuals
pictures of
the children available. They do not necessarily want to come to
Romania;
they can also go to Latin America, Thailand and Taiwan.
Because social and legal penalties for sexual abuse are severe
and
because there are no signs of sexual abuse that can be easily
noticed by
others, just as with physical abuse, many abused people refuse
reporting
such cases. The uncovered abuses are more numerous than those
reported.
This is also true for child sex tourism.
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e) The incest – a special form of abuse
Most authors agree regarding the existence of traits that can be
frequently and regularly seen in the “incestuous” family:
- The same drama is repeated over several generations.
- There is a significant family dysfunction.
- The child is not recognized as a subject.
The incest often begins within an atmosphere of seduction
quickly

accompanied by constraints and threats.
The father: if the father’s personality often reveals some
psycho-
pathological traits (perversity, psychopathy, mental deficiency,
alcoholism),
most often these traits are not evident. Numerous surveys have
shown the
existence of emotional immaturity, of a past marked by
emotional
deficiencies and separation. Prohibitions are wrongly
internalized. The
emotional relationships are experienced as an extreme
dependence. The
guilt related to the incestuous act is rarely felt, the father even
asserting his
right of possession or initiation duty.
Some authors have described two types of incestuous fathers:
- One who is experiencing his perversion in a depressed manner:
child
among children, he pities himself, he cries in jail, he transforms
his
daughter into the mother he wanted to have (passive-
dependent).
- One who justifies his sexual possession attitude towards
children by
theoretical arguments. He often has a dictatorial behavior
(active-
dependent).
The mother: her past is often “haunted” by sexual abuse or
violence.

Depressive traits are common. Paradoxical attitudes are not
rare: she
delegates childcare to the father; she lets children sleep with
their father
and, under various pretexts, she sleeps in another room.
Usually, the
mother’s unconscious complicity is present: she “does not want
to know
anything” and she passively (or a perversely?) accommodates
herself to the
situation.
The couple and the family: many families are characterized by
social
isolation, by the scarcity of social relations. The mother’s
absence due to
work during the night, illness or divorce can promote the
transition to an
incestuous act which, until then, remained in a latent state.
There are
frequent misunderstandings and difficulties in the couple’s
sexuality. Some
authors have noted that, sometimes, sexual abuse seems to have
the function
to avoid the sexual conflict in the parental couple and, some
other times, it
limits the conjugal conflict and prevents family breakup. For
other authors,
the couple’s relationship is based on the “violent husband -
female subject”
dependency. Witin this couple, the main links seem to be
dominated by
complicity and by the pleasure of absolute control. The couple’s
sexuality is
low or even nonexistent.

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Incestuous relationships - in 30-40% of cases, we are speaking
of
father-daughter incestuous relationships (and, in as many cases,
according
to other case studies, of grandfather - granddaughter incest).
Most occur
when the victim is aged between 6 and 12 years.
f) Conflicts in dysfunctional families
In all families there are conflicts and differences. In functional
families,
members learn to adjust to the differences, to live conflicts and
to express
their strong feelings (anger, for example) without this having
negative
consequences and harm the sustainability of relationships. Most
people who
lived in dysfunctional families, such as those where there has
been sexual
abuse, had the opportunity to learn such things.
Conflicts are inevitable, especially when we do not have the
same
opinion on several issues or when we feel threatened, ignored,
rejected.
1.3 Causes of Abuse
At a structural level, there can not be described a particular
psycho-
pathological organization of the victim. Thre has been already

indicated the
frequency of the depressive features, where the feelings of guilt,
shame,
self-devaluation dominate. Disturbances in the organization of
narcissism
(self-love) are common; they are marked by a very intense sense
of
humiliation, a lack of self-esteem which explains, in part,
subsequent
pathological behaviors in adolescence and adulthood. For some
authors
(Stoller), pathological behaviors in adulthood, especially some
perverse
behavior, would be an attempt to escape the feeling of
humiliation suffered
in childhood.
The main causes of sexual abuse are poverty, illiteracy,
exploitation
and vulnerability, violence, education, alcohol, drugs and
mental illness.
These data reflect the relationship between social problems and
the problem
of the increased number of sexual abuse cases.
1.4. Defense Mechanisms
Incest victims continue, in adulthood, to resort to various
survival
techniques that they were using during childhood in order to
deal with
abuse. For example, it is known that many cases of personality
duplication
are caused by a serious physical or sexual abuse. By
dissociating his/her

personality, a child can endure the terror of being raped,
persecuted.
Personality disintegration is probably one of the most radical
defense
mechanisms used by the incest victims. As it is known, such
behavior is
likely to be highly disruptive in adulthood. There are other
numerous
defense mechanisms against abuse that, without being radical,
can,
504
however, create difficulties to their adult survivors. We speak
here of
refusing to sleep in darkness, addiction, etc. For some time, the
defense
mechanism played a useful role but now, in adulthood, it may
prevent the
survivor to take his/her life into his/her own hands.
2. Clinical and Behavioral Manifestations
Physical attacks can be seen especially in the first 24-48 hours
following the
sexual abuse: bruises, swelling, bleeding, even severe genital
lesions,
genitourinary infections and sexually transmitted diseases. If
physical
examination is required (forensic finding or care), it must be
done in an
appropriate psychological context, with the previous preparation
of the

child. In any case, this should not represent a further intrusion,
a kind of
medical “rape”, worsening the already suffered trauma. On a
forensic plan,
it is important to sample the elements that may help identify the
agressor.
Psychological symptoms are frequent and show the suffered
mental
trauma. They are different depending on the uniqueness of the
event or on
its repetition.
There can be direct signs of distress: different somatic
complaints,
fatigue; food disorder, with a sudden onset of: anorexia,
vomiting, refusal to
feed; common sleep disorders: fear of sleep, bedtime rituals,
nightmares,
repeated nighttime awakenings or night terror; affective
disorders: apathy,
feeling confused, disinterest for games, sad face, bouts of tears,
depression;
adjustment disorders: sudden school difficulties, isolation,
escape, refusal to
stay at home or elsewhere with an adult. There are also
situations when the
school is seen as a means to escape the traumatic family
situation.
Other behaviors can be considered as indirect witnesses of the
traumatic sexual experiences experienced by the child
(especially when it is
repeated): unexpected and prolonged masturbation,
inappropriate sexual
conduct with an open curiosity, language that uses adult sex

words; sexual
games with dolls or children. All these behaviors do not
necessarily testify a
sexual abuse but their sudden appearance without a particular
event to
explain them, an evocative family situation, can guide the
clinician towards
this possibility.
The situations that can detect sexual abuse are varied. Children
can
often be very “direct” in expressing their memories related to
certain
intimate problems. Also, some younger children may confess
their sexual
experiences while playing, by sketching them verbally and / or
by means of
gestures (MacFarlane, 1986). A boy, for example, might require
the
kindergarten teacher to play with him in the same way “his
daddy” does and
if the child were asked to show how his daddy played with him,
he should
be able to demonstrate. But, generally, adults do not believe
what the child
505
says or they feel better if they talked about something else. A
child who is
not believed might try the next time not to directly confess his
problems,
making, however, further attempts to do it indirectly (Lindblad,
1989).

Older children sometimes talk to other children of the same age
who, in
turn, might tell it to adults. However, usually, the child keeps
the secret of
those stories, and denies them if asked directly.
The child who is aware of the “danger” and of the fact that
he/she must
not talk about it, and who has been probably threatened or
“double-
crossed”, may protest against the event of a visit to his father
living
elsewhere, during the weekend, doing so without giving any
explanation.
However, he/she might say: “Dad likes to play silly games - I
do not want to
visit him”. Then, the child stops breathing for several seconds
while the
adult decides whether he/she really needs to ask questions about
the child’s
statement or whether “it is better to leave things as they are
because,
anyway, the child said some weird things.”
The secrecy that reigns over the abusive relationship and the
child’s
vulnerability force him/her to be silent and allow the recurrence
of the abuse
for many years. The abuse takes place only when the child is
alone with the
abuser and the event can not be shared with anyone else. The
“secret” is
ensured by threats and corruption. “If you tell anyone what
happened, I’ll
go to jail”, “If you’ll tell your mother, she will always hate

you”. As time
passes, the child feels increasingly guilty and he/she will use
more and more
energy to cover the facts to which he/she was drawn.
2.1 Consequences
The children who were exposed to the sexual abuse from a small
age will
have an early sexualized behavior. They will approach other
people in a
way similar to the one learned from the abuser. They may have
a form of
pseudo-mature flirtation behavior. Kari Killén quotes the words
of a
pediatrician whom he consulted in connection to a child who
presented such
deviant behavior: “it is hard to judge someone’s feelings in such
a situation.
She acts like a bitch. I reacted in the same way in which I
respond to a bad
woman.” The girl was four years old.
These children are often reluctant to have contact with other
children of
their age. They are afraid that someone “could see.” They
isolate
themselves and perceive themselves as different from other
children. This
difference can be seen in the sense of “worse,” “blackguard” or
“more
adult,” secretly. Their ability to concentrate weakens and their
school results
deteriorate rapidly. They often try to avoid gym classes and
undressing in
the presence of other children and going to shower, “as others

might notice
it”. For the same reasons, they will try to avoid the school
doctor. At the
506
same time, they will struggle to avoid routine medical checks;
they will
often contact the nurse for various stomach pains, headaches,
leg pain and
other somatic problems.
Serious sleep disorders, phobias and nightmares with sexual
content
may also be signs that a child has been sexually abused.
Hysterical seizures
accompanied by screaming, tremors or fainting may also occur.
It is also
encountered a form of pseudoepilepsy (Putnam, 1985;
Finkelhor, 1986;
Conte, Berliner, 1988) and appetite disorders (Oppenheimer et
al. 1985;
Sloan, Leichner, 1986).
During adolescence, the frequency of suicidal thoughts, threats
and
attempts will increase. Unable to escape the abuse, they will act
as abuse
disclosure consequences could be worse than exposing the
abuse. Thus,
suicide can be seen as the only way out from an irresolvable
dilemma: to
tell or not to tell.

There are described different types of self-destructive behavior
(Shapiro, 1987). Drug abuse since the early teens can somehow
ease their
pain. Prostitution might be another destructive, but logical way
to escape,
from a certain point of view (they learned it at home). These
children are
not able to focus on learning something at school and they will
not be
adequately prepared to compete on the labor market.
It can be said that it is more difficult to obtain a proof related to
sexual
abuse than to physical abuse. Exceptions are cases of sexually
transmitted
diseases and pregnancy cases. Sometimes, certain physical
changes can be
demonstrated, such as the dilatation of the anus, some traces
around other
body openings, pelvis, thighs and breasts. There are other
somatic
symptoms that may be inconclusively related to sexual abuse;
for example
chronic urinary tract and vaginal infections. Bleeding and
itching of the
genital and anal areas, chronic constipation, irregular and
delayed
menstruation can also be correlated with sexual abuse.
Psychosomatic
disorders, such as stomach pain and pelvic pain may also occur.
Other
children may have difficulty even to walk or sit.
Some children may be particularly concerned about sexual
games and
show detailed knowledge about adult sexuality. They are very

active and
take the initiative in sexual games with other children at
kindergarten, for
instance. Many of them regress and come to behave in ways
characteristic
of an earlier stage of development: for example, urinary
incontinence, baby
language. This identification dilemma appears in sexual abuse
because
regression is frequently met in children undergoing various
types of stress,
including family crises or nursery influence.
When a child shows several of these symptoms at the same time,
the
adult should take them into consideration, as sexual abuse might
be a
507
possible explanation. This hypothesis should be included in
making the
differential diagnosis.
Sexuality rules change very quickly. Pornographic films and
literature
for / with children are easily available. Other cultural changes
also occur,
including the increase in the number of divorces that result in
an increased
number of stepfather families, where incest taboos are supposed
to be lower
compared to families with biological parents.

Although there are some studies showing that child sexual abuse
does
not leave marks on his/her personality over time, however, most
of them
also stress that it undoubtedly affects the normal evolution of
the victim,
namely:
• the abused children suffer from anxiety and depression more
frequently than other children;
• they show a very low level of self-esteem regarding sexual
behavior
(i.e., they are dissatisfied after sex or they are often in
embarrassing sexual
situations);
• for male victims abused by men, the probability to become
homosexuals increases 4 times.
The consequences of child sexual abuse can be classified into:
a) physical (venereal disease, serious injury), psychological
(from
phobias and nightmares to suicidal tendencies) and social
(difficult
interpersonal relationships, delinquency, prostitution);
b) short-term and long-term (considered “delayed psychological
bombs”, including chronic depression, self-destructive
tendencies, function-
ing difficulties in marital-parental roles).
In women, four core symptoms of childhood sexual
psychotrauma
occur:

1) oppressive, obsessive memories, often accompanied by
nightmares
related to the abuse, which causes them fear before bedtime;
2) very pronounced self-underestimation;
3) distrust of men, and sometimes of women;
4) sexual indifference, vaginismus and frigidity.
Such women can not defend themselves, give in easily, and
become
victims of insistent demands. Showing multiple symptoms
(depression,
anxiety, alcohol and drug abuse, difficult interpersonal
relationships), they
can get the attention of psychiatrists. From the perspective of
some
specialists, eating disorders, such as anorexia and bulimia, are
often linked
to childhood sexual trauma.
Obsessions (obsessive thoughts, clear visions or outbursts of
memories,
nightmares), repressions (denial and emotional numbness),
combined with
guilt, fear and anger, are key features of PTSD. Posttraumatic
stress
508
disorder traits can also be found in cases of rape, which may
lead to feelings
of humiliation, increased vulnerability and the fragility of
personal identity.

The goal of the treatment of women with symptoms of
childhood
sexual trauma consists in finding the abuse and in the victim’s
subsequent
ability to share both her past and present experiences, in
connection with the
incident, including the hatred felt for the rapist and the grief
caused by the
fact that once her mother was unable to protect her from evil.
The victim
must transfer the responsibility for what happened on the adult
who
committed the abuse, thus freeing herself.
3. The Sexual Abuse in Romania – Statistics and Causes
The number of sexual offenses against children has doubled
during 1998-
2000; 90% of street children prostitute, and, in most
orphanages, they were
mistreated in one way or another.
According to a study made by the government agency for child
protection together with “Save the Children” and UNICEF
Romania
organizations, the number of child abuse cases has increased in
recent years,
such situations being encountered both in the family and in the
institutions
for the protection of minors.
The study refers to all forms of child abuse (emotional, physical
or
sexual) and to the methods of their exploitation (prostitution,

sex tourism
and others). The number of the sexual offenses against children
has doubled
during 1998-2000, compared to previous years; a quarter of the
victims
were children aged under 14 years. Also, in what concerns
children and
their families, nearly 90% were at least once subjected to
emotional abuse,
while three quarters suffered from physical abuse.
The same study reveals that the majority of street children
prostitute in
order to survive, but over 90% of them refuse to talk about the
abuses to
which they are subjected. Around 10% of the girls living on the
street
prostitute from a very young age, i.e. nine or ten years old.
Pedophilia is
increasingly common among street children, with a trend of
development
and organization. Many of them - especially boys - are the
victims of their
friends on the street or of the persons who recruit them in order
to put them
in connection with some clients. The authors of the study argue
that, in
Bucharest, there are around 40-50 adult clients, mostly
foreigners who came
to Romania under the pretext of business or tourism. They own
several
apartments in the capital, where they bring the children (most
aged between
8 and 15 years), and they film or photograph them while having
sex with
them.

The study also revealed the existence, in care institutions, of all
forms
of abuse against children, either by older colleagues or by the
staff within
509
the centers. Thus, nearly half of the 3,000 respondents
(institutionalized
children) confirmed the practice of beating penalties, but
admitted that it has
been less applied in the past two or three years. More than a
third of the
juveniles from care centers said they know about other children
forced to
participate in sexual practices, but few admitted that they were
subjected to
such abuse or that it happened in their institution.
In Romania, the explanations of the context in which abuse and
neglect
occur are:
1. The punitive education mentality, lack of empathy for the
child, for
his/her needs and aspirations. “You have to be strict with
child,” “The child
should be accustomed to the hardships of life,” “Beating comes
from
Heaven,” “Children must obey” are just some of the Romanian
educational
patterns.

2. The existence of taboos, false modesty and sense of
helplessness that
explain community indifference and non-intervention in cases
of abuse.
3. The lack of an effective child protection - medical,
educational,
social and legal services have limited and reduced resources.
These
deficiencies are accompanied by the inadequate mentality of
those working
in this field.
4. The lack of the necessary legislation. The issue of child
abuse is
weakly, vaguely and incompletely mentioned in the national
legislation.
There has not been developed a domestic legal system that
strengthens and
supports the enforcement of the international law in the field, to
which
Romania adhered. For example, the emotional abuse is not
provided in the
Romanian legislation.
4. Conclusion
In Romania, child abuse/neglect is common. Abuse and neglect
are seen as
something quite normal in many families and in child care
institutions.
According to a national study conducted by the National
Authority for
Child Protection and Adoption, on a sample of 1555 households

that
included at least a minor in the family and 1259 children
between 13-14
years, 9.1% of the children surveyed said that they underwent a
type of
sexual abuse. Most children, i.e. 5,7%, said that their own drunk
parents
forced them to do different indecent actions, and 2.2% said that
they were
forced to caress their erogenous body parts. The majority of the
abused
children is from Moldova, Oltenia and Crisana Maramures and
is part of
large and poor families, with a fairly low level of education.
510
REFERENCES
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Margolin, L. (1994), “Child Sexual Abuse by Uncles: A Risk
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Child Abuse & Neglect 18(3): 215-225.
Margolin, L. (1992), “Child Abuse by Mother’s Boyfriend. Why
the
overrepresentation?” Child Abuse & Neglect 16(4): 541-552.
Margolin, L., Craft, J.L. (1990), “Child Abuse by Adolescent

Caregivers,”
Child Abuse & Neglect 14(3): 365-374.
MacFarlane, K. (1986), Sexual Abuse of Young Children.
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Putnam, F.W. …
Social�Geography
Part�4:�Gender�&�Sexuality
Machismo��Marianismo
� Gendering—refers�to�the�socially�produced�nature�of�
masculine/feminine�categories
�
Gender�is�not�a�stable�or�fixed�identity�category,�but�
is�constructed�and�
maintained�through�discourse�and�everyday�actions
� Geographically�differentiated—
produced�through�sociospatial�relations—
changes�over�space�and�time
� Ideological�categories
� Machismo—
fearless,�authoritarian,�aggressive,�promiscuous
� Marianismo—
submissive,�selfͲdenial,�humility,�gentle,�kind,�dependent,
�

quiet,�devoted�to�family�and�home
� Complementarity:�Honor�through�reproduction
Women’s�Issues:�Work
� Urban/rural�divide—
more�likely�to�work�for�wages�if�
in�urban�area,�but�does�not�account�for�homework
� Formal�economy—predominantly�an�extension�of�
traditional�roles�(“caring�professions”)
� Paid�20Ͳ40%�less�than�men�even�if�they�have�
better�qualifications/education
� Agriculture
� Number�fell�between�1960Ͳ1980�(mechanization),�
but�resurgence�with�NTAEs
� Land�reforms/inheritance�demonstrate�gender�
bias�that�benefits�men�over�women
� Manufacturing
� Maquiladoras—60%�of�workers�are�women—
women�preferred�because�of�perceived�gendered�
attributes
� “double�day”—work�outside�home�does�not�
guarantee�any�break�on�work�inside�home

Women’s�Issues:�Work
� Economic�Restructuring�– women�and�
children�suffer�disproportionately�from�
neoliberal�reforms�– budget�cuts�target�
“female”�professions,�job�loss,�careͲgiving�
more�expensive,�stress�=�domestic�violence,�
family�breakdown
� Informal�economy�– much�of�women’s�work�
is�located�in�the�informal�economy—has�
both�positive�and�negative�aspects
� Street�sellers�versus�domestic�workers�
(among�the�most�exploited�and�invisible;�
urban�migration�phenomenon)
Women’s�Issues:�Education
� Women’s�literacy—directly�linked�to�
decline�in�population�growth
� Class�differences�in�education
� Poor:�families�often�focus�scarce�
resources�on�male�children
� Middle�class:�½�of�higher�education�
students�are�women
Women’s�Organizations
�

Generally,�women�have�more�representation�and�leadersh
ip�roles�in�the�
informal�political�sphere
�
Idealized�gender�identity�as�mothers�often�entrepot�for�
women’s�action�–
Mother’s�of�the�Plaza�de�Mayo�(but�30%�of�disappear
ed�were�women)
� Often�serves�as�a�consciousnessͲraising�mechanism
�
Organized�spaces�for�women’s�collective�reflection�outsi
de�the�home
&KHFN�RXW��6RQLD�(��
$OYDUH]��3URIHVVRU�RI�
/DWLQ�$PHULFDQ�
3ROLWLFV��80DVV�
$PKHUVW�
Feminism(s)
� Who�set’s�the�agenda�for�“women”?
� ‘Woman’�as�a�category�is�symbolic,�and�does�
not�represent�the�diversity�of�women;�
women�have�different�positionalities,�and�
identities�and�issues�are�complex�and�
complicated�by�context
� (Sometimes)�contentious�relationship�
between�middle�class�feminism�and�working�

class�and�indigenous�women’s�issues
� Indigenous�feminism:�struggles�against�
racism,�sexism�and�economic�exploitation�
can�and�should�be�complimentary�and�
simultaneous�struggles
Women’s�Issues:�Formal�Politics
� Some�leaders�have�used�idealized�gender�
identities�to�gain�power
� Eva�Peron�(Argentina)—the�shadow�to�the�
figure
� Violeta�Barrios�de�Chamorra�(Nicaragua)—
healing�mother�to�unite�her�divided�
children
� Gendered�Laws
� Discriminatory—ex.,�woman’s�adultery�as�
reason�for�divorce
� Emancipatory—ex.,�quotas�for�
representation
� Argentina—30%,�Brazil—20%
Masculinities
�
Like�the�category�‘Woman’�the�category�‘Man’�obscures
�the�diversity�of�

men
� Ideal�vs.�reality
� ‘Crisis�of�masculinity’�–
as�women’s�activities�and�access�to�the�labor�
market�widen,�men�are�participating�more�in�domestic�l
abor�and�child�
care;�women�as�breadwinner�challenges�male�identity
Gender�&�Sexuality
� Heteronormativity:�social�practices�(ideas�and�
behaviors)�which�act�to�reinforce�the�belief�
that�heterosexual�relations�are�the�only�truly�
‘natural’�or�‘normal’�sexuality�and�that�all�
other�types�of�sexuality�are�consequently�
deviant�or�‘unnatural’
� HeteroͲspace:�in�general,�spaces�are�always�
assumed�to�be�heterosexualized
� HOW�DOES�THE�ARTICLE�BY�BABB�
EXEMPLIFY�THIS�CONCEPT?
� Creating�other�spaces�(material�&�
metaphorical):�classes�at�CAU,�gayͲfriendly�
businesses,�community,�parades,�NGOs,�
movements�(local,�national,�transnational)
� Exclusions:�lesbians�in�public�space—marks�
traditional�spatial�boundaries
*D�3ULGH��6DR�3DROR

Gendering�Spaces
�
Spaces�are�gendered�(as�well�as�sexualized�and�racializ
ed)
� Physical�spaces�(material)
� La�calle/la�casa
� The�nation
� Abstract�spaces�(metaphorical)
� Public/private
� In/out�of�place
� Center/margins
� Inclusive/exclusive
� The�nation�–
how�are�the�gendered�body�and�the�nation�conflated�in
�
this�description�of�Cuban�prostitution?
R EPORT ON NICARAGUA AND E L SA LVADOR
OUT IN PUBLIC
GAY AND LESBIAN ACTIVI SM IN NICARAGUA
Bv FLORENCE E. BABB
2000: I return to Nicaragua after being away for two
years to find the capital city transformed with a new
city center boa ting hotels, shopping malls and mul-

tiplex c inema The movte Boys Don't Cry is playing
and it tory of sexual transgres ion in the U.S.
Mtdwest ts meeting a favorable response, at least
among those I talk to tn the progressive commumty.
Rita, a long-ttme AIDS activtst and self-proclaimed
"dyke," tell me he wtshes all the legislators in the
country would see It and expand their notion of citi-
zen rights to tnclude sexual minorities.
2002: "I'm neither tn the clo et nor on the balcony,"
is the way that Carlos, a Nicaraguan in his early thir-
ties, de cribes himself to me during Gay Pride week
in June. We are sttting wtlh a couple of other men in
the local gay bar they run, waiting for a panel dis-
cussion to begin on lilY and safer sex practices.
Whi le Carlos is quite comfortable with his sexuality
as a gay man and has a middle-class awareness of the
globalized identity that "gay" confer . like many oth-
ers in Managua 's LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual ,
rransgender) population he does not feel a need to
proclatm hts tdenttty loudly.
2003: At a veekly Sunday service of the gay
Metropolitan Church in Managua. the young pastor
named Alberto speaks of ''God's love for everyone,
rich and poor, gay, s.tratght. le bian and bisexual."
The doLen assembled men - including several I
know as renowned drag queens, here wearing street
clothes-and a couple of women pass a candle from
one person to the next, saying "God loves you as you
are." They take communion and Alberto gives thanks
to the jomada, in reference to Gay Pride week, for
allowing the LGBT community to speak out about
human rights. They conclude their mass '' ith guitar
music and flirtatious dancing on the patio. A few

Florence E Babb IS professor of anchropology and women's
scud-
les ac che Umvers1ty of Iowa She 1s rhe auchor of After
Revolutton Mapp1ng Gender and Cultural PolitiCS 1n
Neohberal
N1caragua (Unlvef'SICY of Texas Press, 2001)
Vol XXXVII, No 6 MAY/JUNE 2004
Lesb1ans and gay men marched publicly m Managua durmg
che 1989 celebrat1on of the Sandimsta Revolution's tenth
anmversary
days later, some of these same individuals are pre-
sent when I give a talk based on my re earch on les-
bian and gay politics and culture in Nicaragua. The
venue is Puntos de Encuentro (Gathering Poin ts),
Nicaragua's largest feminist nongovernmental orga-
nizauon (NGO), and I am addressing the mall com-
munity of activists and their allies. The audience
tncludes women and men who work in other NGOs
such a Xochtquetzal, whtch offers services relattng
to health, sexuality and AIDS. After I fintsh, a lively
conversation ensues about hether there IS truly
27
REPORT ON NICARAGUA AND EL SALVADOR
tions. particularly among men.
The public appearance of activists, who were
both Sandinista and gay, marked a more

outspoken movement.
were well known in urban
Nicaragua , in 1987, FSLN secu-
rity agents called in and
detained a number of gay men
and lesbians whose more
politi ca l sexual identification
was viewed as a deviation.
something that can be called a "movement" in the
country. Later, a reporter asks whether I would say
that it is "normal" to be homosexual and whether
human rights should extend to the homosex ual popu-
lation. I don my anthropological hat for the occasion
and assure the well-meaning man that homosexual s
are normal and deserving of full rights to social
inclusion.
These are a few of the many private and public responses to an
increasingly vocal and visible gay and les bian presence that I
have encoun-
tered in N1caragua since 1989. As a fore1gn
researcher and observer of the public emergence of
an LGBT community and social movement since the
Sandinistas lost the 1990 elections, I had expected to
find some resistance to my participation in the
charged discussion . What I have found, to my sur-
prise, is a passion for debating the local, national and
transnational aspects of gay culture and politics with
as broad and international a group as possible.
To understand the current context. however, one
needs to look back at the c hanges that have occurred
over the last 25 years. The revolutionary Sandinista
National Liberation Front (FSLN) government

( 1979-1990) provided an opportunity for disenfran-
chised women and men to become players in the
soc ial drama transforming much of the country in the
1980s. Along with agrarian, health. education and
legal reform. gender equality became part of the
agenda. And the new constitu tion of 1987 included
women ·s right under the rubnc of protecting the
family ac; the ba<;ic umt of society.
The inclus1ve vtsion of the Sandinistas did not
extend. however. to a non-heteronormative concep-
tion of the Nicaraguan family and society. When les-
bians and gay men began organizing in the second
half of the 1980s, the Sandinistas were not prepared
to extend their revolutionary vision to this new con-
stituency by s upporting their call for social recogni-
tion and civil rights. As in other ocialist-oriented
societtes, homosexuality was regarded as part of the
"decadent" bourgeois past, and it met a chilly
response from party militants. despite the fact that
well-regarded Sandinistas were among those quietly
organizing in Managua. Although same-sex rela-
28
If the silencing of the nascent
gay movement in Nicaragua was effective, this
changed by 1989, when some 50 Nicaraguan gay
rights activists and their internationa l supporters
marched openly to the Plaza de la Revoluci6n for the
tenth anniversary celebration of the Sandinista vic-
tory, capturing national and international attention .
They wore black T-shirts with hand-painted pink tri-
angles, sy mbolic of gay pride internationally.
Although the FSLN initially clamped down on gay
organizing, this public appearance of activists, who

were both Sandinista and gay, marked the beginning
of a more open and outspoken movement along with
a more tolerant public reception.
The Sandinista loss in the 1990 election signaled
the entry of a cemrist government eager to reclaim
U.S. support, peacetime relations and an end to the
economic embargo. The consequent neoliberaJ cli-
mate favored the return of some Nicaraguans who
had left the country during the years of revolutionary
government. Among these were a number of gay
"Miami boys" who es tablished businesses that
included gay-friend ly bars and cultural venues. At
the same time, Nicaraguan and internationalist
activists began establishing NGOs to meet needs the
state was no longer willing or able to address.
Whereas the Sandinista Health Ministry was by the
end of the I 980s promoting AIDS education and
making condoms widely avaHable. such proactive
services became the providence of NGOs in the sub-
sequent decade. Centers operated by lesbian and gay
activists. often feminist in orientation, provided not
only services but also a base for a gay community to
form.
Not coincidentall). the NGOs were catalyzing
agents for the first Gay Pride celebrations in the
country. The year 1991 marked the separation of
many femini s ts from the Nicaraguan Women 's
Association (A MNLAE) and also the first public
Gay Pride event. Several hundred people, both gay
and straight, gathered at a popular cultural center for
a film showing of the gay-themed Torch Song Trilogy
followed by a panel discussion of homosexuality and
human rights . The audience responded with passion-
ate testimonies of experiences in family and society,

endor ·ing a call for greater tolerance and under-
standing. In the years since then , Gay Pride has
NACL REPORT ON THE AMERICAS
rece1ved more attention, with weeks of activities for
its commemorauon .
Lesbian and gay activ1 m wa galvanized the fol-
lowing year b) the reacuvation of a draconian
sodomy la'' The government of Violeta Barrios de
Chamorro et out to regulate sexual beha' ior, sanc-
tioning as "natural" and legal only those sexual prac-
tices related to procreation. The law criminalized
sexual acti"1ty "between persons of the same sex"
conducted in a "scandalous way." More than 25
groups joined together to launch the Campaign for a
Sexuality Free of PreJudice. Despite years of protest,
however, the law remains on the books. Although it
is rarely enforced, many believe that the law fuels
continuing intolerance.
Throughout the 1990s. gay activism continued to
find expression in small group of individuals and tn
NGO , health clime and cultural "enues. The
Central Amencan Umverslt} offered its first course
in sexuality studie. , and ga) bars and club offered
pace for ame- ex tndtviduals to socialize. The
large avatlable to gay men m the larger soctety. Tht
l'i not surprismg given the conunued eparation of
genders in Ia c:asa and Ia cal/e (home and street). The

neoliberal tum has presented ne'' opportumlle for
men. particularly tho. e of the m1ddle class, who have
the econom1c mean to enjo) ga) bar and other
'enues. Women, in contrast, are scarce until Gay
Pride bnngs together more diverse crods for a host
of event ranging from academic panels to readmgs
of erotic poetry. Annual gatherings such as a contest
to select the Goddess Xochiquetzal are intended to
help democratize the socia l space, but a majonty
who compete are men in drag. The 2003 competition
saw the first woman contestant to enter and win.
The former pastor of the Metropolitan Church,
Armando. related to me places where gay men regu-
lar!> meet tn Managua, including bars, movie the-
aters, house part1es and even the Metrocentro Mall,
'"h1ch he called ··Metro Gay." In contra t, he sa1d
lec;b1ans have few place to meet and soc1ahze. and
he descnbed their parties as fie Has de traje (potluck
dinners). Lesbians themselves fre-
quently cite their family re ponsl-
bilities, includmg care of chtldren,
and lack of financial resources to
enter what they perceive a male
·pace . A number of tho e le btans
working in NGOs also have very
full professional lives and close
circles of friendship. but little
available time to spare. As a result,
there is occasional tension between
gay men and lesbians over the
women's perce1ved dominance in
NGOs and men's perceived advan-
tages as consumers under the new
market conditions of globalization.

The transnationalization of les-
bian and gay politics and culture IS
on di pia) in Nicaragua. The adop-
Among the Nicaraguan LGBT rights activists wer£O the1r
mternationaltst allies all wear- tion of the Ga} Pride annual
cele-
mg hand-patnted pmk tnangles, stgmfymg mremat1onal gay
pflde brat ion on or around June 28 in
NGO Xochiquettal began publishing the magazine
Fuera del closet (Out of the Closet) in 1993, which
offers a mix of poetry. art and informative articles.
Women were often the ones putting a public face on
lesbian and gay is ues, notably when Mary Bolt
Gonzalez "rote the first book on gay identity in
Nicaragua. St•11cillameme diferentes (Simply
Different), published in 1996. focusing on lesbian
self-esteem.
Lesbians are certainly prominent in the organized
acuvity of the fledgling movement, but they are far
less 10 evtdence 10 the social spaces that are by and
Vol XXXVII, No 6 MAY/JuNE 2004
honor of the 1969 Stonewall rebel-
lion in New York City as practiced in the United
State and other countries is one sign of global con-
nection . Other material, ideological and linguistic
markers also suggest Nicaraguans ' desire to affiliate
with the international gay movement. Pink triangle ,
red ribbons , rainbows and the acronym LGBT -or
LGBIT, which not only recognizes lesbians, gay
men, bi exuals and transgendered individuals, but

also tran vestite - are all in evidence. The tropes of
the "closet" and "coming out" are widespread now,
a man) lesbian'> and gay men seek greater public
vi ib1lity.
29
In contrast to the past, when male same-sex partners
were often described as "active" (penetrative) and
" passive" (penetrated) with the latter category stigma-
tized, today the terms used to describe "gays" and
"lesbians" are heard more frequently and in a more
positive light. Also common is more open discussion
of AIDS and human rights. as Nicaraguans participate
actively in the global discourse surrounding these
issues. On the cultural front, the popular television
to build a national lesbian and gay movement has yet
to bear fruit. the event stimulated a good deal of pro-
ductive discussion. The participants took the collec-
tive thinking of the group back to their various indi-
vidual organizations and put it to practical use.
For now, lesbian and gay groups and NGOs often
find that more is gained by creating and claiming ties
with international counterparts and movements than
by remaining focused at local or national levels. Jn the
face of continued homophobia and internal
political differences, identification and sol-
'NGO's are cheap for the state and good

for capitalism, but social movements have
become NGO-ized.'
idarity with international groups may be
desirable. Furthermore, most organizations
depend on international financial support,
often from Europe, and funding agencies
expect to find programs and services that
mirror the activities of their own countries'
gay rights movement. As a result, competi-
tion over scarce funding is often fierce
program, Sexto Sentido (Sixth Sense), brings a sympa-
thetic gay character to viewers throughout the country.
In all these ways, lesbian and gay issues have received
growing public attention in recent years. Although not
always favorable, this attention contributes to an
increasing awareness of sexual diversity among the
broader Nicaraguan population.
In a similar way to the women's movement of a
decade or two ago, the gay and lesbian movement
today reveals how far some nations are willing to go
in accommodating cultural difference and extending
citizenship rights to all. In Nicaragua. the mass
women 's movement produced a feminist leadership
that became instrumental in charting the direction of
lesbian and gay culture and politics. This has been one
of the most striking aspects of the nascent move-
ment-the degree to which women have assumed
prominent roles through participation in NGOs and
social activism. Indeed, to understand contemporary
sexual politics in the country, it is crucial to consider
women 's stake in the course of local and national
change. Moreover. the association of Nicaraguan gay

politics with transnational currents is most clearly
apparent through the involvement of women, as well
as men, in a host of projects across Central America
and beyond.
During Gay Pride week in 2002, the lesbian-femi-
nist leadership of Xochiquetzal called together 13 les-
bians and 13 gay men for a day long meeting held in a
lesbian-owned bar. They formed a Managua "cell" in
hope of inspiring more cell s to organize around the
country, which could eventually coalesce into a
national movement. Among the advances were agree-
ments to endorse lesbian and gay rights, to support
others to "come out" and to move cautiously toward
forming alliances internationally. While the initiative
30
among feminist and gay organizations. Arguably, the
competition for resources among NGOs and other
groups substantially impedes the formation of
stronger ties of solidarity at the national level. Even
those who are the beneficiaries of such international
support are often harsh critics of the consequences of
the state relinquishing responsibility for many social
projects now taken on by NGOs. As Nicaraguan fem-
inist and left intellectual Soffa Montenegro put it,
"NGOs are cheap for the state and good for capitalism,
but the social movements have become NGO-ized."
While globalization presents opportunities for
individuals and social movements to expand sexual
expression and sexual rights, neoliberalism has bene-
fited some far more than others as sexual subjects and
citizens, particularly men and cultural elites. Women
and members of the popular classes in general have

experienced diminished possibilities and greater
hardship in the post-Sandinista years, even if they
have also found new ways of organizing collectively.
The mass mobilization of the population brought
about by the Nicaraguan Revolution provided an
opportunity for young women and men to explore
and redefine their exuality. During their years in
power, the Sandinistas began to provide a space for
more open discussion of gender and sexual relations
and of personal life and politics, though they were
ambivalent about the new desires expressed as a
result of those spaces. ln the post-Sandinista neolib-
eral era, the FSLN leadership has faced its own cri-
sis, signaling that there is much left unresolved in
Nicaragua's machista political culture. Thus it is all
the more remarkable that lesbians and gay men in
this small Central American nation have been at
the forefront in charting a politics of sexuality in
Latin America. •
NACI.A REPORT ON THE AMERICAS
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North American
Congress on Latin America and its content may not be copied or
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