The Age of Consent and the Ending of Queer Theory

Abstract

This article uses the debates surrounding the age of consent as a broad umbrella to question the continued usefulness of Queer Theory. The debates surrounding the age of consent illustrate that Queer Theory has not fulfilled its original promise and that it is not (and possibly never been), "fit for purpose". Towards the end of 2013, the topic of lowering the age of consent in England and Wales was once again much in the news. This article suggests that much of that debate focused expressly or impliedly on the age of which men and boys have sexual intercourse (whether gay or straight), rather than when people have sexual intercourse. Queer Theory (originating from feminism), was intended to be a liberating phenomenon, but contrary to these hopes and intentions, Queer Theory evolved to become synonymous with white gay men, thus denying its origins and becoming distinctly anti-feminist. Those who argue for a reduction in the age of consent have used (whether knowingly or not) an approach which is consistent with this evolved version of Queer Theory. Consequently, the debate on the age of consent has ignored, or given insufficient attention to, the effect(s) a lowering of the age of consent will have on girls and women. This article, therefore, seeks to question, disrupt and unsettle, what Queer Theory has become, suggesting that, in several significant aspects, it fails to fully acknowledge patriarchy; render (lesbian) women visible; acknowledge and accommodate the lived experiences of women.

The Convolutions of the Concept of Age of Consent amongst Primary School Teachers in Zimbabwe

“…Thus, the study concurs with and adopts Waites's (2005) conceptualisation that age of consent is about prohibiting the involvement of young people in any sexual behaviours below a certain age. This conceptualisation is strengthened by Beresford (2014) who raises two aspects about age of consent: (a) that the age of consent should be understood as the age at which individual young persons can legally engage in sexual activities, and (b) that it is the age at which the law deems those individuals to be capable of giving genuinely informed consent, which requires a requisite level of cognitive and emotional understanding. Thus, the position of this study on age of consent is that young people below a certain prescribed age have insufficient judgement and lack the psychological maturity that enable them to give sufficiently informed consent to many issues including sexual acts.…”

What to do about #MeToo? Consent, autonomy, and restorative justice: A case study

“…“Queering consent” was introduced several times in these discussions with particular attention paid to how “queering” as a verb and epistemological tool can be positively used to destabilize the boundaries of heteronormative sex (Beresford 20142014). However, one participant noted the very real danger that “queering” could (or perhaps has) become the new term de jure used to characterise the practice of mild interrogation rather than deconstructive and situated acts that involves a “heightened reflexivity…,” the turning “against [one's own] implicit foundational assumptions and metanarratives” such that “sexual differences and meanings” come to be understood as “a constitutive part of social organization and change” (Seidman, 1997, xi).…”

The Historical Development of the Laws Relating to Child Sexual Exploitation Prior to the Passing of the UNCRC in 1989

“…It was during this period when the "Maiden Tribute campaign" was highlighted in the Pall Mall Gazette, an evening newspaper founded in London. A series of articles have exposed the trade and prostitution involving children and it was argued that young girls were "too young, in fact, to understand the nature of the crime of which they are the unwilling victims" (Beresford, 2014). The campaign led to the passing of the Criminal Law Amendment Act 1885, which increased the age of consent for girls to sixteen years old in in England.…”