Same-sex families in the voices of gay fathers, lesbian mothers and their children

In view of the sociocultural and political constitution of the family as an institution throughout the course of history, there is an increase in the visibility of the family arrangements made up of same-sex couples/gender and their children. Social acceptance and possible legal regulation that ensures the rights of members of same-sex/gender families are pressing issues today. Studies carried out in the Brazilian scenario have evidenced that these families coexist in the most varied relational contexts with strangeness and face barriers resulting from prejudice and discrimination. Given the need to understand this reality based on studies that contemplate and give voice to the members of same-sex/gender families, the relevance of knowing how couples formed by gays and lesbians and their children constitute their experiences in the private and social spheres. This study aimed to know the experiences of four same-sex/gender families from the voices of four couples consisting of two men and two women, and his/her four children. The instruments and techniques used with the couples were: The Sociodemographic Form, the Brazilian Economic Classification Criteria, the Open-ended Interview, the Genogram and the Network Map; with the children: The Sociodemographic Form, the Open-ended Interview and the Network Map. The Open Interview, defined as the main collection technique, was audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim and analysed in an articulated way with the data extracted from the other instruments applied, based on the theoretical and methodological framework of the Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA). The results showed that the couples shared their experiences related to being lesbian/gay in a society marked by homophobia, told the detailed stories of their love relationships, highlighted the relation of companionship as a basis for conjugal experience and reflected on the experiences of gender roles in the marital relationship, making a counterpoint between what is expected socially and what is actually experienced in their daily relationships. There was a plurality of conjugal and parental experiences, as well as ways of access to parenting, but the perception of personal transformation with the transition to motherhood/fatherhood and the care and concern regarding the education of the child permeate all family experiences. In spite of the difficulties faced in daily life, the experiences of social and family prejudice and the mishaps of acceptance by the families of origin, all the participants affirmed to live well with the family. It is understood that the experiences of being/living family constitute unique paths in the process of constructing the subjectivity of each member of the family and, in particular, for the spouses represent a fundamental landmark towards the appropriation of who each one is. The knowledge produced by this research provides support to deepen the understanding of the phenomenon investigated, offering subsidies for the planning of strategies that contribute to offer care to same-sex/gender families that promote conditions so that they can be recognized and respected in the society in where they are inserted. The production and dissemination of research in this area can provide elements for new reflections that contribute to transform prejudices and exclusionary postures in the face of the development and plurality of family organizations existing in the contemporary world (AU)