Join the Department of Sociology in honoring this year's Alpha Kappa Delta national honor society inductees. This event is co-sponsored by the Department of Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies. The celebration will include a talk by Dr. Katie Acosta (Georgia State University). All are welcome to attend !
When: Tuesday November 16
Time: 5:30pm-7:00pm
Where: Klingenstein Lounge
Everyone Thinks We Look Alike: Seeking Recognition in LBTQ-Parented Stepfamilies
In this talk, Dr. Acosta explores the strategies that mixed-race (or racially minoritized) stepfamilies led by lesbian, bisexual, transgender and queer parents use to make themselves intelligible as family to others. Based on interview data with parents from more than 40 families before and after the SCOTUS Obergefell ruling, Dr. Acosta highlights how these families’ strategies varied not only based on their racial composition, but also on the legal landscape for LGBTQ families in their state of residence. At times, stepparents capitalized on others’ (mis)recognition of their family members as biologically related to each other in order to gain access to institutions reserved for biological and or legally-recognized parents (i.e. hospitals and schools). Further, Dr. Acosta explores parents’ different levels of commitment to racial/cultural literacy with their families. Some were intentional about raising children who are conscious and proud of their racial differences. Others were most comfortable ignoring race in their homes. Nonetheless, Dr. Acosta finds that race shaped the opportunities available to the respondents’ families in subtle and sometimes immeasurable ways.