A couple of years ago, an interesting study was published, sponsored by Arcigay, exploring the condition of homosexual people with disabilities. It was edited by Priscilla Berardi and Raffaele Lelleri. Today, with them, we're trying to delve deeper into the specific issue of lesbian women with disabilities, which is still largely overlooked.
They say that above the black earth
the most beautiful thing is a row of knights,
or of hoplites, or of ships,
I say: what is loved
Sappho (Greek poet who lived around 640 BC)
At least in words our Constitution recognizes all citizens equal social dignity and equality before the law. In reality, however, being lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender (LGBT) can still be a source of derision, sarcasm, discrimination, and violence. Moreover, in our country, some civil rights are still denied to people with a sexual orientation other than heterosexuality. a virtual reality, this is also demonstrated (above all) by the failure of the many initiatives aimed at recognising and legally regulating the condition of de facto couples.
In July 2007 it was published Able at Heart. Homo-disability: What's the relationship between homosexuality and disability?, a research report by Priscilla Berardi And Raffaele Lelleri [the study was promoted by Arcigay, with the support of the Bologna Center for Family Therapy (CBTF), of the Documentation Center for the Disabled (CDH) of Bologna and of the Association Handygay of Rome. You can read it, also on our website, in the text available by clicking here, Editor's note].
The work, of great interest, presents the results of a qualitative investigation aimed at exploring the condition of the person with a disability and homosexuality.
The data were collected through interviews with 25 homosexual people with disabilities (22 males and 3 females), of heterogeneous ages (between 24 and 60 years old, with an average of 38 years old) and with medium-high educational qualifications.
These, in a very synthetic way, are some of the traits found: «the coexistence of homosexuality and disability is told by almost all the interviewees as an event that causes difficulties in daily life, private, work and social, both of a relational and practical nature» (op. cit., p. 27; in the original text there were some underlinings that have been omitted, Editor's note).
The interviewees' autonomy and self-acceptance are strongly influenced by their relationships with their family members and their attitudes toward disability and homosexuality. Only in very few cases is the coming out (“coming out”: that is, the decision to openly declare one's sexual orientation) it happened explicitly in all areas of the interviewees' lives. Often, when it comes to coming out, the group of friends proves to be the most welcoming context. Some of the interviewees have to face a double coming out: the one related to homosexuality and the one related to disability (when this is not evident), often encountering a double rejection. And again, the majority of the interviewees found in the homosexual world discrimination, disinterest and detachment due to one's disability. The rejection of disability and the presence of physical and environmental barriers that limit access to meeting places and exchanges mean that the search for emotional and sexual partners is often a source of disappointment and frustration. However, there are cases of people who are experiencing or have experienced satisfying experiences of relationships, both emotional and sexual. Finally, both disability and LGBT associations are little frequented and subjected to criticismThe former because they are considered to be insensitive to issues of sexuality and sexual identities, the latter because they are described as not very supportive.
Compared to the specifics of the woman with disabilities and lesbian It is striking that out of 25 interviewees only 3 are women and that all three reported "a greater degree of acceptance of their disability by the female world" (op. cit., p. 42); none of them, in essence, highlighted rejecting attitudes on the part of other women.
From the results of the research carried out by consulting the PsycINFO database, it is clear that of the 90 articles and scientific publications published in the field of homosexuality and disability between 1970 and 2006, only two address the issue of homosexuality among disabled women (op. cit., p. 16). This leads to data of little visibility of the condition of lesbian disabled women.
To better understand this reality we asked some questions to Priscilla Berardi, psychotherapist and operational coordinator of the investigation Skilled at heart, and Raffaele Lelleri, sociologist, who has dealt with health and diversity in relation to sexual minorities in Italy (www.lelleri.it). We thank them very much for their availability.
Why is there such difficulty in Italy in accepting the idea that two people (of the same or different sex) who choose each other, love each other, and share a part of their lives can be considered and treated as a family?
LelleriAs unfortunately happens in our country, the political class is far behind society. Polls show it: public opinion is ready and calls for a change. Moreover, many people and families already live in situations not covered by the law, without protection. But the government ignores this because, rather than engaging in dialogue and responding to its own base, it seems to favor contact with elites and centers of power, often not democratically constituted. This is a situation I find deeply worrying, as it further pushes our representatives out of touch with the real world, that of the aspirations and demands of citizens.
In addition to this, there are two unresolved issues that are typically Italian: double standards of many protagonists of the public scene (I proclaim one thing, but I do another), on the one hand, and the strongly ideological character of the discussion on these issues, which gives more space to ritual declarations of absolute fidelity to a certain truth rather than to dialogue, understanding and the proposal of solutions to the problems of everyday life.
In my opinion, finally, there is a great underlying falsehood: that the institution of the Italian family is sustained by the privilege that many cannot access. On the contrary, I believe that the more people are happy to fully realize their potential, beyond caste, the greater the national well-being, for all.
In recent years, there has been increased attention paid to the issue of homosexuality. Generally, both homosexuals and people with disabilities are "bearers" of disadvantage, the target of prejudice and marginalizing attitudes. Are there other commonalities between these two groups?
Berardi: I believe that, apart from the perception of feeling discriminated against that these two identities have in common, the type of prejudice and marginalization has a different connotation in the two groups: labels morals on the’homosexuality, labels aesthetic and functional on the disability.
Disability enjoys greater legal and institutional protection than homosexuality, even when this protection is flawed. For people with non-obvious disabilities—who must be declared to be known—there is a need for a coming out, which can sometimes be avoided or as difficult as coming out for homosexuality, because it's done out of fear of rejection. But even so, rejection still has its consequences. a different meaning in the two cases.
Are there differences between men and women in their journeys to self-acceptance of their homosexuality?
LelleriCertainly, also because, although homosexual and bisexual, gays and lesbians remain male and female and are therefore socialized into gender roles just like heterosexual people.
Two aspects must also be considered: the identity structuring and the social meaning of labels available to define themselves. Regarding the first aspect, psychological research shows how the female one is nowadays a more "fluid" and all-encompassing identity than the male one, that is, it develops less through internal barriers and conflicts with other social groups. For this reason, too, women appear less homophobic and closer to bisexuality—not necessarily practiced—than men.
With regards to the second aspect, the sociological investigation highlights how, differently from the term gay, which in Italy has been substantially cleared in the collective perception, the term lesbian It is still strongly undervalued and connoted negatively. For this reason too, especially among younger people, fewer women with homosexual behavior identify as lesbians than their male counterparts (see the research on this subject Ways Of, in www.salutegay.it/modidi).
Have there been different reactions towards lesbians and homosexual men in our society?
LelleriIt's not easy to draw conclusions on this matter, given that we don't have a consolidated detection system. Most cases of discrimination, in fact, remain unknown. In any case, it seems that the reactions are quite different.
First, lesbians are portrayed as sexually desirable by heterosexual men much more than gay men are by heterosexual women. In some situations, this has unfortunately led to cases of harassment and even rape.
More generally, homosexual women live more often in a social context of invisibility. Their identity and their lives are unknown to most people. And if on the one hand this reduced recognisability can actually protect them from targeted acts of violence, on the other hand it relegates them to a condition of greater loneliness in the development of one's identity (role models, culture).
Certainly, gays are more present in the public and mass media arena. According to some observers, this is a example of double discrimination: as women and as homosexuals.
From the 2007 research report Skilled at heart, it appears that only three of the 25 people with disabilities interviewed were women. How should this data be interpreted?
BerardiWe can hypothesize that, for reasons yet to be explored, only women with positive stories responded to the request to share their stories in the survey, or that the female sample is small because we were unable to find the right channel to inform the female world and convince more women to be interviewed.
All three homosexual women interviewed during the research Skilled at heart They demonstrate a greater willingness among women to embrace their disabilities. Are there other findings in this direction or to the contrary?
BerardiThe data are scanty, and large-scale investigations would be necessary to fully interpret them. With the information we have, we can only speculate, which would need to be verified with appropriate research.
We can think that women are more educated, from an early age, to welcome, to care, and therefore to the acceptance of differences, and that this manifests itself in both homosexual and heterosexual relationships. But there are no comprehensive studies even on heterosexual women and their partners with disabilities. A serious and broad study of homosexual and heterosexual couples is needed. where one of the partners has a disability.
What is known today about female homo-disability?
BerardiThere are no specific studies on the topic; it would be interesting to explore the topic further with a new, ad hoc survey.
Among the various initiatives undertaken in our country to raise awareness and improve the conditions of homosexual and disabled people, are there measures that take into account the specificity of women?
BerardiI'm not aware of any. I'm also not aware of any interventions to improve the conditions of homosexual people with disabilities, in general.
***
SIMONA LANCIONI, author of the article, is a member of the Coordination of the UILDM Women's Group
(Italian Union for the Fight against Muscular Dystrophy). Text created for that group's website and reprinted here with kind permission.
For those who want to learn more
– There is a forum on the subject, called ""June 17"" (click here) where gay/heterosexual people, disabled and non-disabled, virtually meet to discuss these issues and sometimes organize activities and initiatives. For proposals, requests, offers of
collaboration is possible by contacting the Association Arcigay.
– However, there is no actual association that brings together homosexual people with physical disabilities: in fact, despite the numerous proposals received through the open mailing list for the Abili di cuore survey, creating a national association poses numerous practical and financial difficulties.
– There is an association of deaf gays linked to the Arcigay of Milan, called "Silent Triangle" (click here) and a site of blind gays (click here). www.gaynonvedenti.it.
– As for the research report Skilled at heart, on which this service is based, it can be downloaded from Raffaele Lelleri's website, by clicking here.
– Finally, to read the speech given at the Public Inquiry on Policies for Overcoming Handicap of Municipality of Bologna in January 2008, click here.