Mémoire
| Résumé : | Croatian referendum on the constitutional definition of marriage as a life union between a woman and a man (2013) was among the most polarizing events since the country’s independence. It occurred only five months after Croatia’s EU accession, leaving room for the possibility that it was an attempt to halt the Europeanization of same-sex rights in the country. In this light, our work looks at analysing the relationship between the national and the European identity through the example of the marriage referendum. In doing so, we first offer a theoretical overview of the connection between nationalism, sexuality and Europeanization in Central and Eastern Europe, accompanied by an overview of the situation in Croatia. This is followed by the analytical part focusing on the discourse analysis of the referendum supporters and opponents. Throughout the analysis, we establish a connection between LGBT rights and European values in the discourse of both parties. We thus show that the extension of LGBT rights was seen as a threat to the traditional family model and the true Croatian nation to one side, and as a way of acquiring the long-awaited status of a modern and tolerant country to the other side. |
