The de-gaying and re-gaying of AIDS:contested homophobias in lesbian and gay awareness training

From the first recognition of AIDS as a disease, it was publicly conceptualized as a 'gay plague'. In response, health education and diversity training sought to counter this association claiming that AIDS is an 'equal opportunity' virus - that it can affect anyone. In this article, we analyse talk about HIV/AIDS within a data corpus of 13 tape-recorded lesbian and gay awareness training sessions. Counter to the way in which interactions are described in the lesbian and gay awareness training literature, we found that it was trainees, rather than trainers, who pursued discussions about HIV/AIDS, and who did so in order to claim the 'de-gaying' of AIDS, which they treated as representing a 'non-prejudiced' position. By contrast, and in response to trainees' insistence on de-gaying AIDS, trainers were 're-gaying' AIDS. Our analysis highlights that in these sessions - designed explicitly to counter homophobic attitudes - apparently 'factual' claims and counter-claims about infection rates and risk groups are underpinned by essentially contested definitions of what constitutes a 'homophobic' attitude. We conclude by pointing to the value of detailed analysis of talk-in-interaction for understanding professional practices, and suggest strategies for improving the pedagogic value of training. Copyright © 2005 SAGE Publications.

Strategizing networks of power and influence:the internet and the struggle over contested space

Whilst some authors have portrayed the Internet as a powerful tool for business and political institutions, others have highlighted the potential of this technology for those vying to constrain or counter-balance the power of organizations, through e-collectivism and on-line action. What appears to be emerging is a contested space that has the potential to simultaneously enhance the power of organizations, whilst also acting as an enabling technology for the empowerment of grass-root networks. In this struggle, organizations are fighting for the retention of “old economy” positions, as well as the development of “new economy” power-bases. In realizing these positions, organizations and institutions are strategizing and manoeuvering in order to shape on-line networks and communications. For example, the on-line activities of individuals can be contained through various technological means, such as surveillance, and the structuring of the virtual world through the use of portals and “walled gardens”. However, loose groupings of individuals are also strategizing to ensure there is a liberation of their communication paths and practices, and to maintain the potential for mobilization within and across traditional boundaries. In this article, the unique nature and potential of the Internet are evaluated, and the struggle over this contested virtual space is explored.

Queer enough? Contested terrains of identity deployment in the context of gay and lesbian public activism in Poland

Gay and lesbian prides and marches are of crucial relevance to the way in which non-heterosexual lives are imagined internationally despite regional and national differences. Quite often, these events are connected not only with increased activist mobilisation, but also with great controversy, which is the case of Poland, where gay and lesbian marches have been attacked by right-wing protesters and cancelled by right-wing city authorities on a number of occasions. Overall, the scholars analysing these events have largely focused on the macro-context of the marches, paying less attention to the movement actors behind these events. The contribution of this thesis lies not only in filling a gap when it comes to research on sexual minorities in Eastern Europe/Poland, but also in its focus on micro-level movement processes and engagement with theories of collective identity and citizenship. Furthermore, this thesis challenges the inscription of Eastern European/Polish movements into the narrative of victimhood and delayed development when compared to LGBT movements in the Global North. This thesis is grounded in qualitative research including participant observation of public activist events as well as forty semi-structured interviews with the key organisers of gay and lesbian marches in Warsaw, Poznan and Krakow between 2001 and 2007, and five of these interviews were further accompanied by photo-elicitation (self-directed photography) methods. Starting from the processes whereby from 2001 onwards, marches, pride parades and demonstrations became the most visible and contested activity of the Polish lesbian and gay movement, this thesis examines how the activists redefined the meanings of citizenship in the post-transformation context, by incorporating the theme of sexual minorities' rights. Using Bernstein's (1997, 2002, 2005, 2008) concept of identity deployment, I show how and when movement actors use identity tactically, depending on their goals. Specifically, in the context of movement-media interactions, I examine the ways in which the activists use marches to challenge the negative representations of sexual minorities in Poland. I also broaden Bernstein's framework to include the discussion of emotion work as relevant to public LGBT activism in Poland. Later, I discuss how the emotions of protests allowed the activists to inscribe their efforts into the "revolutionary" narrative of the Polish Solidarity movement and by extension, the frame of citizenship. Finally, this thesis engages with the dilemmas of identity deployment strategies, and seeks to problematise the dichotomy between identity-based gay and lesbian assimilationist strategies and the anti-identity queer politics.

The Ukrainian presidential elections of 2010

Ukrainians went to the polls in 2010 to elect a president for the fifth time since independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, electing Viktor Yanukovych with a narrow majority over Yulia Tymoshenko in the second round run-off on 7 February. This article provides a contextual introduction to the 2010 presidential election, an analysis of the campaign and the results and concludes with a discussion of post-election coalition building and what the election means for the consolidation of Ukrainian democracy and Ukraine’s European integration process.

Support for Le Pen in France:two elections in trompe l’oeil

There is a comforting consensus among political commentators that the 2007 presidential election marked the end of Jean-Marie Le Pen as a force in French politics. The shock election of the Front National leader to the presidential run-off in 2002, by contrast, is explained as a surge in the Le Pen vote specific to the prevailing electoral conditions. This article challenges that interpretation of both elections. It shows that, despite Le Pen’s unforeseen success in 2002, there was no surge of support for him, and that despite Le Pen’s supposed collapse in 2007, he won close to 4 million votes while popular agreement with his ideas rose to its highest recorded level. The article concludes that Le Pen remains a powerful presence in French politics and that his supporters continue to constitute a large and highly influential constituency.

Popular politics and the Ukrainian presidential elections of 2005

Ukraine's Orange Revolution in 2004 upset the consensus amongst political scientists about Ukrainian voter behaviour, challenging the notion of voter passivity. Careful pre-election planning that anticipated falsification of the ballot brought protesters to Kyiv rapidly. Sustained and overwhelming pressure from protesters eventually forced through constitutional and electoral reforms that led to the democratic resolution of the crisis.

Invalid ballots and the “crisis of representative democracy”:re-inventing protest at the 2012 Serbian elections

This article examines the ways in which invalidated electoral ballots may be articulated as acts of protest. We argue that some instances of ballot invalidation can be understood as protest and as a reaction to the broader “crises of democracy” which have also spurred on movements such as Occupy. We focus on Serbia’s 2012 elections as a case study, given the high increases in invalid ballots and calls for collective action calling for ballot invalidation. We discuss protest movements which coalesced around this election, calling for electoral ballot invalidation and using social media to frame this activity as protest. Through our case study, we explore the ways in which the ballot can become a tool of contention, and how protest can be expressed through an engagement with extant structures and institutions.

Environmental governance in a contested state:the influence of European Union and other external actors on energy sector regulation in Kosovo

This article examines environmental governance in Kosovo, with a particular focus on the energy sector. The article considers the degree to which the emerging model of environmental governance is characterised by hierarchical and non-hierarchical modes of coordination. We examine the roles of a number of domestic institutions and actors – ministries, agencies, and regulatory bodies– and the influence of external actors, including the EU, the US, and Serbia. The EU is building Kosovo’s own hierarchical governance capacity by strengthening domestic institutions, whilst the US focuses primarily on market liberalization, whilst simultaneously supporting EU efforts. Moreover, environmental policy change is not wholly or predominantly driven by domestic actors, which can partly be attributed to Kosovo’s limited domestic sovereignty. We conclude that the emerging model of environmental governance in Kosovo is characterized by a weak hierarchy, partly as a result of external actor involvement, which disincentivises the government from responding to domestic non-state actor pressure.

The new institutionalism in the context of Kosovo's transition:regulatory institutions in contested states

This article explores the new institutionalist literature in political economy in the context of Kosovo's contested statehood, focusing on institutional arbitrage and legitimacy. This article considers both the consequences of institutions for actors' behaviour and the norms that shape this, as well as the factors determining the legitimacy of institutions. In doing so, it combines the new institutionalist theory with documentary and interview material collected during research on energy regulation in one contested state, Kosovo. Rather than singling out one particular variety of "new institutionalism", the article attempts to blend insights from historical (or "political"), rational choice, and sociological institutionalism. © 2014 © 2014 Taylor & Francis.

The Front National at the polls:transformational elections or the status quo reaffirmed?

There is a widespread sense that the Front National (FN) came of age in 2014 as a challenger for power in France. The municipal and European elections appeared to herald a transformation in the party's development and prospects, demonstrating its capacity to compete as a major player at subnational and supranational levels following strong performances at the national level in the presidential and legislative elections of 2012. This article takes a critical view of that assessment. It argues that the FN in 2014 made significant progress but that the apparent surge of support for the party in these elections belies fundamental weaknesses in the depth and range of its electoral capacities and in its prospects for transforming itself into a party of government. These weaknesses were again evident in the departmental elections of 2015, confirming that the FN has not succeeded in ending bipolarisation and imposing a genuinely tripartite structure on French politics. Far from being the 'first party of France' and 'at the gates of power', the FN is still consigned primarily to a role of spoiler, with its progression stalled by institutional obstacles, electoral limitations and a political containment which it remains powerless to overcome.