Women and the rhetoric of safety: The impact of policy framing on attitudes toward discriminatory policies

Abstract

The expansion of the rights for many in the LGBT community across the US along with the Obergefell v. Hodges Supreme Court ruling has created a backlash in many states against the LGBT community. This backlash has recently been furthered by even more restrictive policy, reflected in North Carolina's HB2 act in 2016 eliminating the power of localities to provide more inclusive environments for the LGBT community through multiple policy mechanisms. The rhetoric surrounding these policies focus on the safety of women and children. The purpose of this study is to analyze the relationship between gender and attitudes toward discriminatory policies. What impact does this framing have on a mother's attitudes toward LGBT policies? Utilizing US individual level survey data this study evaluates whether there are gender differences regarding attitudes toward restrictive gay and lesbian policy and a change in the success of these frames from 2008 to 2014.