The Political Construction of Anti-Transgender Policy: A Critical Policy Analysis of North Carolina State Legislators\u27 Discursive Strategies

Abstract

In recent year anti-LGBTQ policy has been cropping up at the state level across the United States. While these policies have been described as unprecedented, they signal a period of retrenchment for the rights of queer and transgender individuals in the United States. This critical policy analysis of North Carolina state legislation that is decidedly homophobic and transgender examines the discursive tactics of policy actors (i.e. North Carolina Legislators) as they argue these policies during legislative sessions. Through our analysis of legislators’ commentary during House of Representative sessions we identified discursive formations that were considered allied with the LGBTQ community or oppositional to it. This study provides an insight into the discursive tactics of anti-LGBTQ policy construction