In Sorting Sexualities, Stefan Vogler deftly unpacks the politics of the techno-legal classification of sexuality in the United States. His study focuses specifically on state classification practices around LGBTQ people seeking asylum in the United States and sexual offenders being evaluated for carceral placement—two situations where state actors must determine individuals’ sexualities. Though these legal settings are diametrically opposed—one a punitive assessment, the other a protective one—they present the same question: how do we know someone’s sexuality?
In this rich ethnographic study, Vogler reveals how different legal arenas take dramatically different approaches to classifying sexuality and use those classifications to legitimate different forms of social control. By delving into the histories behind these diverging classification practices and analyzing their contemporary reverberations, Vogler shows how the science of sexuality is far more central to state power than we realize.
About the author: Stefan Vogler is a research scientist at NORC at the University of Chicago. His research focuses on the interrelationships of gender and sexuality, law and crime, and science and technology. Vogler's work has appeared in outlets including Gender & Society, the Journal of Homosexuality, and Law & Society Review.
This event is free and open to the public, but registration is required.
Date: October 13, 2021
Time: 4:30 PM - 5:30 PM
Date: October 13, 2021
Time: 4:30 PM - 5:30 PM