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Foreword (in video format)
No full textBefore reading the ‘Editorial’ and the articles that follow in this Special Section, please watch the “Foreword” recorded by Graeme Reid, the United Nations Independent Expert on Protection Against Violence and Discrimination Based on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity
Love without Veil or Garland: A Critical Reading of the Judgment on Same-Sex Civil Unions in Brazil
Full text linkThis article offers a critical reading of the 2011 Brazilian Supreme Federal Court decision recognizing same-sex civil unions as family units. While celebrated as a landmark for sexual minorities’ rights, the judgment operates through an affective grammar that disciplines as much as it includes. Drawing on critical perspectives on law and sexuality, I argue that the decision mobilizes a heteronormative framework of conjugality, in which the very term “homoaffective subject” functions to produce a domesticated and respectable figure, while silencing more radical forms of kinship, desire, and care. The article advances the notion of “affective coloniality” as a key to understanding the normative costs of recognition.
Keywords: same-sex civil union; Brazilian constitutional law; legal recognition; homoaffective; affective colonization
Bridging Participation: Child-led Advocacy and the Transition to Adulthood in an Era of Polycrisis
Full text linkThe transition from childhood to adulthood is a critical stage in child-led advocacy initiatives, offering opportunities to reflect on how young people can continue to engage meaningfully in addressing the world’s most pressing challenges. This article draws on insights from Dialogue Works,1 a global campaign that supports working children in shaping policy dialogues, to explore the actions children, young people, and adults—particularly in the so-called Global South—are taking in the face of overlapping global crises. It examines the experiences of Children’s Advisory Committee members as they navigate the shift from child advocates to mentors and resource people, reflecting on what makes intergenerational partnerships “successful” amidst intersecting forms of marginalization and discrimination. The article also addresses the challenges of sustaining intergenerational advocacy, including strategies to overcome barriers, such as pervasive adult-centrism, and the critical role of those who have “aged out” of childhood in nurturing advocacy efforts. By anchoring participation in sustainable and inclusive platforms, the article envisions a future where intergenerational collaboration amplifies children and young people’s voices and strengthens the collective resilience needed to promote children’s rights in an era of polycrisis.
Keywords: children’s participation; child-led advocacy; aging out; adult-centrism; transition; childhood youth; adulthood; mentor; intergenerational partnership
Surrogacy and Consent under Irish Law: A Problematic Copy and Paste from the UK
Full text linkIn July 2024 Ireland enacted detailed legislation regulating both domestic and international surrogacy arrangements, in the form of the Health (Assisted Human Reproduction) Act 2024. This article will discuss the model for regulating domestic surrogacy in Part 7 of the 2024 Act and critique the court’s inability to dispense with the surrogate’s consent to a post-birth parental order except in the most unusual circumstances. The consent provisions in Part 7 of the 2024 Act are very similar to those in the UK’s Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 2008. The article demonstrates how the 2024 Act accords a gestational surrogate remarkable weight in determining a genetically unrelated child’s legal parentage, and how this may be detrimental to intended parents and their surrogate-born children. Further, the approach in the 2024 Act may conflict with the provisions on children’s rights, and familial rights, and the state’s concomitant obligations in relation to same, in the Constitution of Ireland, and international surrogacy-related best practice in the Verona Principles. The article concludes by suggesting amendments to the 2024 Act to better balance the rights of all parties to a domestic surrogacy.
Keywords: surrogacy; consent; parentage; parental order; best practice; Verona Principles; Constitution of Ireland; law reform
Cultural Connections: How Dance Fosters Integration and Unity
Full text linkWith increasing migration, integration has become a critical priority for host countries. This article discusses the findings of the research project titled “All the Same with Dance”, which examines the role of cultural activities, specifically dance, in the integration process of migrants. Migration often involves challenges such as xenophobia, which hinder social cohesion. Employing qualitative methods, including semi-structured interviews, content analysis and focus group discussions, “All the Same with Dance” explored how dance influences perceptions of similarity and reduces prejudices. Findings reveal a shift from nationalistic sentiments before the event to a focus on shared experiences afterward, demonstrating the positive impact of dance. This article contributes to the academic discourse by highlighting the transformative role of cultural exchange in fostering migrant integration.
Keywords: dance; integration; xenophobia; cultural biases; migrants
The Undue Importance of Marriage in India’s Current Surrogacy Legislation: Why Single Women Cannot Aspire to Motherhood
Full text linkFocusing specifically on the marginalization of “single”, unmarried women in the Indian Surrogacy (Regulation) Act 2021, we highlight the socio-cultural biases that centre on the notion of marriage in the legislation. Drawing on insights from legislative mobilization (Kothari 2024) post 2021, we suggest that the current surrogacy legislation in India only selectively empowers certain women’s reproductive autonomy. This defies the constitutional “right to family” of especially single women and discriminates against their equality of citizenship. The barriers presented by patriarchal concepts which frame the contexts in which the law is enacted must be recognized to remove the intentional and unintentional gender biases through which the law is implemented and experienced.
Keywords: surrogacy; marriage; singlism; gender bias; discrimination