Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-jkksz Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-29T16:19:39.390Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Extending Rights to Marginalized Minorities: Same-Sex Relationship Recognition in Mexico and the United States

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  25 January 2021

Caroline Beer  and
Victor D. Cruz-Aceves
Caroline Beer*
Affiliation:
University of Vermont, Burlington, VT, USA
Victor D. Cruz-Aceves
Affiliation:
Kiel University, Kiel, Germany
*
Caroline Beer, University of Vermont, 94 University Place, Old Mill 533, Burlington, VT 05405, USA. Email: [email protected]
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

What explains the extension of greater rights to traditionally marginalized minorities? This article compares the extension of legal equality to lebian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people in Mexico and the United States with a focus on the legal recognition of same-sex relationships. A national-level comparison of gay rights in Mexico and the United States presents a theoretical puzzle: most theories predict that the United States would have more egalitarian policies than Mexico, but in fact, Mexico has provided greater legal equality for LGBT people for a longer time than the United States. A subnational analysis of equal relationship rights in the United States and Mexico provides evidence to support social movement and partisan theories of minority rights. We find that religion plays a different role in Mexico than in the United States. The different findings at the national and subnational levels suggest the importance of subnational comparative analysis in heterogeneous federal systems.

Keywords

politics of sexualityidentity/group politicssocial movementsgender policypublic policysame-sex marriagecomparative federalismfederalism
Type
Research Article
Information
State Politics & Policy Quarterly , Volume 18 , Issue 1 , March 2018 , pp. 3 - 26
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s) 2018

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Alterio, Ana Micaela, and Ortega, Roberto Niembro. 2017. La Suprema Corte y el Matrimonio Igualitario en México (The Supreme Court and Marriage Equality in Mexico). Mexico: Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Instituto de Investigaciones Juridicas.Google Scholar
Aminzade, Ronald. 2001. Silence and Voice in the Study of Contentious Politics. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Andersen, Ellen Ann. 2005. Out of the Closets and into the Courts: Legal Opportunity Structure and Gay Rights Litigation. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press.Google Scholar
Arellano, Mely. 2014. “Avanza el matrimonio igualitario en todo México: Alex Ali Méndez (Marriage Equality Advances in all of Mexico: Alex Ali Mendez).” LadoB, March 7, http://ladobe.com.mx/2014/03/avanza-el-matrimonio-igualitario-en-todo-mexico-alex-ali-mendez/.Google Scholar
Barclay, Scott, and Fisher, Shauna. 2003. “The States and the Differing Impetus for Divergent Paths on Same-sex Marriage, 1990-2001.” Policy Studies Journal 31 (3): 331–52..CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Beck, Nathaniel, and Katz, Jonathan N.. 1998. “Taking Time Seriously: Time-series-cross-section Analysis with a Binary Dependent Variable.” American Journal of Political Science 42 (4): 1260–88..CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Beer, Caroline. C. 2003. Electoral Competition and Institutional Change in Mexico. Notre Dame: University of Notre Dame Press.Google Scholar
Beer, Caroline. 2016. “La Iglesia Católica y la Igualdad de Género en los Estados Mexicanos (The Catholic Church and Gender Equality in the Mexican States).” In Poderes y democracias: La política subnacional en Mexico, eds. Mendé, I., and Loza, N.. Mexico: FLACSCO-Mexico and Instituto Electoral del Distrito Federal, 283–302.Google Scholar
Beer, Caroline. C., and Mitchell, Nell. J.. 2006. “Comparing Nations and States.” Comparative Political Studies 38 (8): 996–1018..CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bernstein, Mary. 2002. “The Contradictions of Gay Ethnicity: Forging Identity in Vermont.” In Social Movements: Identity, Culture, and the State, eds. S., D., Meyer, N. Whittier, and Robnett, B.. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 85–104.Google Scholar
Berry, Frances Stokes., and Berry, William. D.. 1990. “State Lottery Adoptions as Policy Innovations: An Event History Analysis.” The American Political Science Review 84 (2): 395–415..CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Boehmke, Frederick J., and Paul, Skinner. “The Determinants of State Policy Innovativeness”. Paper prepared for presentation at the 2011 Midwest Political Science Association Meeting, Chicago, March 31-April 3, 2011.Google Scholar
Bryan, Frank. M. 1981. Politics in the Rural States: People, Parties, and Processes. Boulder: Westview Press.Google Scholar
Bryan, Frank. M. 2004. Real Democracy: The New England Town Meeting and How It Works. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press.Google Scholar
Camp, Roderic. Ai. 1997. Crossing Swords: Politics and Religion in Mexico. New York: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Clements, Ben. 2014. “Partisan Attachments and Attitudes towards Same-sex Marriage in Britain.” Parliamentary Affairs 67 (1): 232–44..CrossRefGoogle Scholar
de la Dehesa, Rafael. 2010. Queering the Public Sphere in Mexico and Brazil: Sexual Rights Movements in Emerging Democracies. Durham: Duke University Press.Google Scholar
de la Dehesa, Rafael. 2011. “The Road to Same-sex Marriage in Mexico City.” LASA Forum 42 (1): 2–4..Google Scholar
Diez, Jordi. 2010. “The Importance of Policy Frames in Contentious Politics: Mexico's National Antihomophobia Campaign.” Latin American Research Review 45 (1): 33–54..CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Diez, Jordi. 2011. “La trayectoria politica del movimiento Lésbico-Gay en México (The Political Trajectory of the Lesbian-Gay Movement in Mexico).” Estudios Sociológicos 29 (86): 687–712..Google Scholar
Diez, Jordi. 2015. The Politics of Gay Marriage in Latin America: Argentina, Chile, and Mexico. New York: Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dorf, Michael. C., and Tarrow, S.. 2014. “Strange Bedfellows: How an Anticipatory Countermovement Brought Same-sex Marriage into the Public Arena.” Law & Social Inquiry 39 (2): 449–73..CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ellison, Christopher G., Acevedo, Gabriel A., and Ramos-Wada, Aida I.. 2011. “Religion and Attitudes toward Same-sex Marriage among U.S. Latinos.” Social Science Quarterly 92 (1): 35–56..CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Encarnación, Omar. G. 2011. “Latin America's Gay Rights Revolution.” Journal of Democracy 22 (2): 104–18..CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Encarnación, Omar. G. 2013. “International Influence, Domestic Activism, and Gay Rights in Argentina.” Political Science Quarterly 128 (4): 687–716..CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fagan, Patricia. W. 1973. Exiles and Citizens: Spanish Republicans in Mexico. Austin: University of Texas Press.Google Scholar
Gaines, N. Susan., and Garand, James. C.. 2010. “Morality, Equality, or Locality: Analyzing the Determinants of Support for Same-sex Marriage.” Political Research Quarterly 63 (3): 553–67..CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Garcia, Jacobo. 2016. “Las Iglesias de México aumentan la presión contra el matrimonio gay (The Churches of Mexico Increase Pressure against Gay Marriage).” El Pais. Retrieved from: https://elpais.com/internacional/2016/06/08/mexico/1465341251_807120.htmlGoogle Scholar
Gilardi, Fabrizio, Füglister, Katharina, and Luyet, Stéphane. 2009. “Learning from Others: The Diffusion of Hospital Financing Reforms in OECD Countries.” Comparative Political Studies 42 (4): 549–73..CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gray, Virginia. 1973. “Innovation in the States: A Diffusion Study.” The American Political Science Review 67 (4): 1174–85..CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Haider-Markel, Donald. P. 2001. “Policy Diffusion as a Geographic Expansion of the Scope of Political Conflict: Same-sex Marriage Bans in the 1990s.” State Politics & Policy Quarterly 1 (5): 5–26..CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Haider-Markel, Donald. P., and Meier, K. J.. 1996. “The Politics of Gay and Lesbian Rights: Expanding the Scope of the Conflict.” The Journal of Politics 58 (2): 332–49..CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Haider-Markel, Donald. P., and Meier, K. J.. 2003. “Legislative Victory, Electoral Uncertainty: Explaining Outcomes in the Battles over Lesbian and Gay Civil Rights.” Review of Policy Research 20 (4): 671–90..CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hero, Rodney. E., and Tolbert, Caroline. J.. 1996. “A Racial/Ethnic Diversity Interpretation of Politics and Policy in the States of the U.S.” American Journal of Political Science 40 (3): 851–71..CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Holbrook, Thomas. M., and Van Dunk, Emily.. 1993. “Electoral Competition in the American States.” American Political Science Review 87:955–62.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Htun, Mala. 2003. Sex and the State: Abortion, Divorce, and the Family under Latin American Dictatorships and Democracies. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
INEGI. 2000. “XII Censo General De Población Y Vivienda. (XII General Census of Population and Housing.” Aguascalientes, Mexico: Instituto Nacional de Estadistica, Geografia e Informática.Google Scholar
INEGI. 2010. “Censo De Población Y Vivienda (Census of Population and Housing).” Aguascalientes, Mexico: Instituto Nacional de Estadistica, Geografia e Informática.Google Scholar
INEGI. 2011. Panorama de Las Religiones en México 2010 (Panorama of the Religions in Mexico 2010). Aguascalientes, Mexico: Instituto Nacional de Estadistica Geografia e Informática, Secretaria de Gobernación.Google Scholar
Inglehart, Ronald. 1997. Modernization and Postmodernization: Cultural, Economic, and Political Change in 43 Societies. Princeton: Princeton University Press.Google Scholar
Inglehart, Ronald., and Norris, P.. 2003. Rising Tide: Gender Equality and Cultural Change around the World. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Johnson, Tyler. 2012. “Equality, Morality, and the Impact of Media Framing: Explaining Opposition to Same-sex Marriage and Civil Unions.” Politics & Policy 40 (6): 1053–1080..CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jones, Dale E., Sherry, Doty, Clifford, Grammich, Horsch, James E., Richard, Houseal, Lynn, Mac, Marcum, John P., Sanchagrin, Kenneth M., and Taylor, Richard H. 2002. “Religious Congregations and Membership in the United States 2000: An Enumeration by Region, State and County Based on Data Reported for 149 Religious Bodies.” Glenmary Research Center: Nashville, TN.Google Scholar
Key, V. O. 1964. Politics, Parties, & Pressure Groups. New York: Crowell.Google Scholar
Klatwitter, Marieka, and Hammer, Brian. 1999. “Spatial and Temporal Diffusion of Local Antidiscrimination Policies for Sexual Orientation.” In Gays and Lesbians in the Democratic Process, eds. B., E. D., Riggle, , and Tadlock, B. L.. New York: Columbia University Press. 22-38.Google Scholar
Kollman, Kelly. 2007. “Same-sex Unions: The Globalization of an Idea.” International Studies Quarterly 51 (2): 329–57..CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kranz, Rachel, and Cusick, Tim. 2005. Gay Rights. New York: Facts on File.Google Scholar
Lax, Jeffrey R., and Phillips, Justin H.. 2009. “Gay Rights in the States: Public Opinion and Policy Responsiveness.” The American Political Science Review 103 (3): 367–86..CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lockard, Duane. 1959. New England State Politics. Princeton: Princeton University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lodola, Germán, and Corral, Margarita. 2010. AmericasBarometer Insights: Support for Same Sex Marriage in Latin America. Number 44. Nashville: Latin American Public Opinion Project.Google Scholar
Loza, Nicolás, and Méndez, Irma. 2014. Encuesta a expertos en política estatal en México 2001-2012 (Survey of Experts in Mexican State Politics, 2001-2012). ed. PNUD FLACSO, y CONACYT. http://podesualflacso.wordpress.com.Google Scholar
Lozano, Genaro. 2010. “Same-sex Relationship Equality in Mexico.” In Same-sex Marriage in the Americas, eds. Pierceson, J., Piatti-Crocker, A., and Schulenberg, S.. Lanham: Lexington Books. 129-160.Google Scholar
Lozano, Genaro. 2013. “The Battle for Marriage Equality in Mexico, 2001-2011.” In Same-sex Marriage in Latin America: Promise and Resistance, eds. Pierceson, J., Piatti-Crocker, A., and Schulenberg, S.. Lanham: Lexington Books, 151–66.Google Scholar
Marsiaj, Juan. 2006. “Social Movements and Political Parties: Gays, Lesbians, and Travestis and the Struggle for Inclusion in Brazil.” Canadian Journal of Latin America and Caribbean Studies 31 (62): 167–96..Google Scholar
Marsiaj, Juan. 2012. “Federalism, Advocacy Networks, and Sexual Diversity Politics in Brazil.” In Comparative Public Policy in Latin America, eds. Diez, J., and Franceschet, S.. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 126–49.Google Scholar
McAdam, Doug, McCarthy, John D., and Zald, Mayer N.. 1996. Comparative Perspectives on Social Movements: Political Opportunities, Mobilizing Structures, and Cultural Framings. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mintrom, Michael, and Vergari, Sandra. 1998. “Policy Networks and Innovation Diffusion: The Case of State Education Reforms.” The Journal of Politics 60 (1): 126–48..CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mooney, Christopher Z. 2000. “The Decline of Federalism and the Rise of Morality-policy Conflict in the United States.” Publius 30 (1): 171–88..CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Mooney, Christopher Z., and Lee, M.-H.. 1995. “Legislative Morality in the American States: The Case of Pre-roe Abortion Regulation Reform.” American Journal of Political Science 39 (3): 599–627..CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Movement Advancement Project. 2017. “Marriage and Relationship Recognition.” http://www.lgbtmap.org/.Google Scholar
Mucciaroni, Gary. 2008. Same Sex, Different Politics: Success and Failure in the Struggles over Gay Rights. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Muñoz, Maria L. O. 2016. Stand up and Fight: Participatory Indigenismo, Populism, and Mobilization in Mexico, 1970-1984. Tuscon: University of Arizona Press.Google Scholar
Muro, Victor Gabriel. 1997. “Catholic Church: Mexico.” In Encyclopedia of Mexico: History, Society, & Culture, ed. S., M., Werner, . Chicago: Fitzroy Dearborn Publishers, 219–22.Google Scholar
Negroni, Mirka J. 2004. “From Movement Demands to Legislation: Organizing in the LGBT Community in Mexico City.” Journal of Gay & Lesbian Social Services 16 (3/4): 207–218.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ogland, Curtis P., and Verona, A. P.. 2014. “Religion and the Rainbow Struggle: Does Religion Factor into Attitudes toward Homosexuality and Same-sex Civil Unions in Brazil?” Journal of Homosexuality 61 (9): 1334–49..CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Olson, Laura R., Cadge, Wendy, and Harrison, James T.. 2006. “Religion and Public Opinion about Same-sex Marriage.” Social Science Quarterly 87 (2): 340–60..CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pettinicchio, David. 2012. “Current Explanations for the Variation in Same-sex Marriage Policies in Western Countries.” Comparative Sociology 11 (4): 526–57..CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pew Research Center. 2015. “America's Changing Religious Landscape.” May 12. http://www.pewforum.org/2015/05/12/americas-changing-religious-landscape/Google Scholar
Piatti-Crocker, Adriana. 2010. “Constructing Policy Innovation in Argentina: From Gender Quotas to Same-sex Marriage.” In Same-sex Marriage in the Americas: Policy Innovations for Same-sex Relationships, eds. Pierceson, J., Piatti-Crocker, A., and Schulenberg, S.. Lanham: Lexington Books, 37–72.Google Scholar
Rayside, David M. 2008. Queer Inclusions, Continental Divisions: Public Recognition of Sexual Diversity in Canada and the United States. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rimmerman, Craig A., Wald, Kenneth D., and Wilcox, Clyde. 2000. The Politics of Gay Rights. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press.Google Scholar
Robinson, Beth. 2001. “The Road to Inclusion for Same Sex Couples: Lessons from Vermont.” Seton Hall Constitutional Law Journal 11:237–57.Google Scholar
Robinson, Beth. 2009. “Same-sex Marriage in Law and Society: Dartmouth College's Law Day Program 2009: Introduction.” Vermont Law Review 34(231).Google Scholar
Schreiber, Rebecca Mina. 2008. Cold War Exiles in Mexico: U.S. Dissidents and the Culture of Critical Resistance. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.Google Scholar
Schulenberg, Shawn. 2012. “The Construction and Enactment of Same-sex Marriage in Argentina.” Journal of Human Rights 11 (1): 106–25..CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sempol, Diego. 2013. “The Creation of Civil Partnerships in Uruguay.” In Same-sex Marriage in Latin America: Promise and Resistance, eds. Pierceson, J., Piatti-Crocker, A., and Schulenberg, S.. Lanham: Lexington Books, 89–110.Google Scholar
Sherkat, Darren E., Vries, Kylan Mattias de, and Creek, Stacia. 2010. “Race, Religion, and Opposition to Same-sex Marriage.” Social Science Quarterly 91 (1): 80–98..CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Smith, Miriam. 2007. “Framing Same-sex Marriage in Canada and the United States: Goodridge, Halpern and the National Boundaries of Political Discourse.” Social & Legal Studies 16 (1): 5–26..CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Snyder, Richard. 2001. “Scaling down: The Subnational Comparative Method.” Studies in Comparative International Development 36:93–110.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Tarrow, Sidney G. 1994. Power in Movement: Social Movements, Collective Action, and Politics. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Taylor, Jami K., Lewis, Daniel C., Jacobsmeier, Matthew L., and DiSarro, Brian. 2012. “Content and Complexity in Policy Reinvention and Diffusion: Gay and Transgender-inclusive Laws against Discrimination.” State Politics & Policy Quarterly 12 (1): 75–98..CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Thomas, Susan L. 2005. “In Search of a More Perfect Heteroarchy: Vermont, Civil Unions and the Harm of ‘Separate-but-equal’.” Journal of Homosexuality 50 (1): 27–51..CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Trejo, Guillermo. 2009. “Religious Competition and Ethnic Mobilization in Latin America: Why the Catholic Church Promotes Indigenous Movements in Mexico.” American Political Science Review 103 (3): 323–42..CrossRefGoogle Scholar
van den Akker, Hanneke, Ploeg, Rozemarijn van der, and Scheepers, Peer. 2013. “Disapproval of Homosexuality: Comparative Research on Individual and National Determinants of Disapproval of Homosexuality in 20 European Countries.” International Journal of Public Opinion Research 25 (1): 64–86..CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Velasco Murillo, Dana. 2016. Urban Indians in a Silver City: Zacatecas, Mexico, 1546-1810. Stanford: Stanford University Press.Google Scholar
Wald, Kenneth D., Button, James W., and Rienzo, Barbara A.. 1996. “The Politics of Gay Rights in American Communities: Explaining Antidiscrimination Ordinances and Policies.” American Journal of Political Science 40 (4): 1152–78..CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Walker, Jack L. 1969. “The Diffusion of Innovations among the American States.” The American Political Science Review 63 (3): 880–99..CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Whitehead, Andrew L. 2010. “Sacred Rites and Civil Rights: Religion's Effect on Attitudes toward Same-sex Unions and the Perceived Cause of Homosexuality.” Social Science Quarterly 91 (1): 63–79..CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Whitehead, Andrew L., and Perry, Samuel L.. 2015. “A More Perfect Union? Christian Nationalism and Support for Same-sex Unions.” Sociological Perspectives 58 (3): 422–40..CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Supplementary material: File

Beer and Cruz-Aceves supplementary material

Table A1- Table A6

Download Beer and Cruz-Aceves supplementary material(File)
File 23.9 KB