Everyone (not) invited : gender, family, and childhood in Greek parliamentary debates on civil partnerships for same-sex couples

Abstract

From 'vulnerable' children and women to queers that put Greek society 'at risk', and from 'normal' families to the 'erosion' of tradition, public discourse in Greece between 2008 and 2024 has been saturated with contested meanings around gender, family, and childhood. Public debates were often triggered by proposed bills related to the basic demands of the Greek LGBTQ+ community, which directly concerned the institution of the family, kinship, and the rights of minors in relation to stigmatized identities.

Such bills included civil partnership legislation (2008 & 2015), legal gender recognition (2017), foster parenthood (2018), the ban on conversion therapies (2022), the ban on intersex genital mutilation (2022), and marriage equality (2024). Based on the analysis of two fundamental parliamentary discussions — the introduction of a civil partnership bill that excluded same-sex couples (2008) and the expansion of civil partnerships to include same-sex couples (2015) — this paper examines how Greek politicians construct, negotiate and weaponize these meanings.

What does a 'real' family look like and what is at stake when discussing diverse forms of kinship? What concerns surface when queerness is discussed in relation to children, whose figure functions as a central symbol of the future of the nation? And how are these issues complicated by dominant meanings of national identity? Through a thematic analysis of the parliamentary minutes and the discourse articulated by political parties, this research traces the convergence of heteronormativity, nationalism and moral panics. Furthermore, it contributes to broader discussions on the intersections of politics, religion, childhood, gender, and sexuality in contemporary Europe.