Global civil society as shepherd: Global sexualities and the limits of solidarity from a distance

Abstract

This paper critically argues that in the debates on international sexuality rights, global civil society actors assume leadership to represent the voices of those who are seen as marginalized or voiceless due to diverse injustices. This process, however, itself creates a layer of power relations within civil society which in turn leads to an under-representation of the voices and demands of people who don’t appear in the global register of sexuality politics. The paper unpacks the nature of global civil society actors’ claim to represent others and the implications of these claims for those who are being represented. The particular focus here is the ongoing debates on the position of sexual minorities in Africa with special reference to Uganda and Malawi. An analytical framework is also developed to understand the underlying mechanisms of global civil society advocacy. This is done by considering Michel Foucault’s work on pastoral power and Gayatri C. Spivak’s work on post-colonialism.