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Unknowable Bodies, Unthinkable Sexualities: Lesbian and Transgender Legal Invisibility in the Toronto Women’s Bathhouse Raid

Lamble, Sarah (2009) Unknowable Bodies, Unthinkable Sexualities: Lesbian and Transgender Legal Invisibility in the Toronto Women’s Bathhouse Raid. Social and Legal Studies, 18 (1). pp. 111-130. ISSN 0964-6639. E-ISSN 1461-7390. (doi:10.1177/0964663908100336) (Access to this publication is currently restricted. You may be able to access a copy if URLs are provided) (KAR id:18251)

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Official URL:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0964663908100336

Abstract

Although litigation involving sexual orientation and gender identity discrimination claims has generated considerable public attention in recent years, lesbian and transgender bodies and sexualities still remain largely invisible in Anglo-American courts. While such invisibility is generally attributed to social norms that fail to recognize lesbian and transgender experiences, the capacity to ‘not see’ or ‘not know’ queer bodies and sexualities also involves wilful acts of ignorance. Drawing from R v Hornick (2002) a Canadian case involving the police raid of a women’s bathhouse, this paper explores how lesbian and transgender bodies and sexualities are actively rendered invisible via legal knowledge practises, norms and rationalities. I argue that limited knowledge and limited thinking not only regulate the borders of visibility and belonging, but play an active part in shaping identities, governing conduct and producing subjectivity.

Item Type: Article
DOI/Identification number: 10.1177/0964663908100336
Uncontrolled keywords: visibility; embodiment; intelligibility; governmentality; queer regulation
Subjects: J Political Science > JC Political theory
K Law > K Law (General)
H Social Sciences > HM Sociology
Divisions: Divisions > Division for the Study of Law, Society and Social Justice > Kent Law School
Funders: Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (https://ror.org/04j5jqy92)
Commonwealth Scholarship Commission (https://ror.org/051x4wh35)
Arts and Humanities Research Council (https://ror.org/0505m1554)
Depositing User: S.R. Lamble
Date Deposited: 27 Nov 2009 10:36 UTC
Last Modified: 12 Jul 2022 10:39 UTC
Resource URI: https://kar.kent.ac.uk/id/eprint/18251 (The current URI for this page, for reference purposes)

University of Kent Author Information

Lamble, Sarah.

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