The Natural Order and the Legal Recognition of Same-sex Relationships in Italy

Diego Lasio

;Francesco Serri

2017-01-01

---

Abstract

Whereas over the last decades positive changes have happened in terms of recognition of same-sex couples and their children in European countries (Roseneil et al., 2013; Seidman, 2002; Weeks, 2007), sexual orientations outside the heterosexual order are still seen as a social problem, especially where the legacy of Catholicism is significant (Santos, 2013). After years of heated debate, Italy recognized same-sex civil unions only in 2016. Objections to the law were raised both by opposition parties and members of the government majority; moreover, outside parliament, leading figures of the Catholic Church took a stand in defence of the ‘traditional family’. The political and social controversies have resulted in a law that represents a compromise between opposite ideological demands and if on one side it recognizes to same-sex couples similar rights as heterosexual married couples have, on the other side it reinforces the distinction between heterosexual couples and non-heterosexual ones, drawing a veil of silence over lesbian and gay parenting. This paper presents a critical discourse analysis (Fairclough 2001, 2003) of the public debate that happened in Italy while the parliament was discussing the regulation of the rights of same-sex couples and their children. Empirical material is composed of the speeches of Italian stakeholders and official pronouncements from Italian institutions that contributed to the construction of the discourse on same-sex unions and gay and lesbian parenting. The analysis shows that the discourse of ‘nature’, along with the irreducible differences between heterosexual marriage and same-sex couples, emerges as the leitmotifs for perpetuating the heteronormative view of family and excluding lesbians and gays from kinship. By analysing the arguments opposed to the recognition of same-sex couples and their children, this paper contributes to the advancement of understanding of the general politics and regimes of truth that reproduce heteronormativity in the contemporary Italian context.