No promo homo: The sedimentation of antigay discourse and the channeling effect of judicial review

Arguments against equal rights for gay men, lesbians, bisexuals, and transg endered people have shifted from, "Those are bad people who do sinful, sick acts," to "A progay reform would promote homosexuality." Professor Eskridg e's article presents a history of this rhetorical shift, tying it to the ri se of a politics of preservation by traditionalists seeking to counter gay people's politics of recognition. Eskridge also shows how modern antigay di scourse has become sedimented, as arguments are layered on top of (but neve r displace) each other. Evaluating the various forms no promo home argument s can take, he maintains that the most obvious versions are not plausible, and that the most plausible are not constitutional. This archaeology of no promo homo discourse has interesting ramifications for constitutional theor y and doctrine Among them, as Eskridge concludes, is the way in which the c hanneling function of law not only changes group rhetoric, but also group i dentity, and helps the state "manage" polarizing culture clashes.