Embodied spaces: religion, sex and nationalism in public and in court: a response to Sallie A. Marston

In response to Sallie Marston, this paper reads her case study in terms of religion and nationalism in order to explore the ways that culture is implicated in the state. To comprehend fully the contradictory decisions of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court and the U.S. Supreme Court with regard to a lesbian and gay contingent in the Boston St. Patrickʹs Day Parade, it is necessary to interpret the decisions in light of the Protestant-inspired seperation of speech and action in the U.S. Constitution. This separation allows both Courts to disembody speech and separate it from the spatial context of action, which creates opposing decisions that do not adequately address the issues at hand. Understanding the role of religious nationalsim allows us to see how the final decision of U.S. Supreme Court enforces Protestant sexual regulation in the guise of protecting freedom.