Queering development: institutionalized heterosexuality in development theory practice and politics in Latin America.

Because of heterosexist biases in practice and theory lesbians and other queer women who struggle for political visibility and rights must address both heterosexism within the womens movement as well as sexism in maledominated gay" struggles in Latin America. In each of these arenas - womens movements and LGBT movements - activists must contend with Western biases in development frameworks and generally speaking with the contradictory effects of Westernization on/within Third World political movements. We cannot address all of these issues in this chapter; however we provide a precursory analysis of two important aspects of this discussion. First we propose to "queer" the development field through conducting an analysis of institutionalized heterosexuality (or heteronormativity) in development theory and practice and its effects on lesbians bisexual and heterosexual women. Second we discuss Latin American LGBT political responses to institutionalized heterosexuality in the development field and elsewhere. We approach the topic of development from an interdisciplinary perspective. Rather than providing an economistic explanation of development and of LGBT political responses to it we examine the economic as well as the political cultural social and ideological dimensions of development theory practice and politics. (excerpt)