{"id":{"repo_id":"cambridge","oai_identifier":"oai:www.repository.cam.ac.uk:1810/393378"},"canonical_url":"https://search.dev.ndltd.org/etd/cambridge/oai:www.repository.cam.ac.uk:1810/393378","repository":{"repo_id":"cambridge","name":"Cambridge University","base_url":"https://api.repository.cam.ac.uk/server/oai/request"},"display":{"title":"Political Liberalism and LGBTQ+ Citizens","abstract":"The key contention of this thesis is that freedom and equality have still not been secured for LGBTQ+ citizens in liberal societies. This thesis identifies several areas in which LGBTQ+ citizens still face injustice, in both the law and the family. It leverages the theoretical resources of political liberalism – a substantive normative ideal of freedom and equality – to diagnose those injustices and justify measures to secure the free and equal standing of LGBTQ+ citizens. Where those theoretical resources do not exist, this thesis develops them. The Introduction motivates the thesis’s focus on LGBTQ+ citizens in liberal societies and justifies the choice of political liberalism as the appropriate normative framework by which to analyse the injustice LGBTQ+ citizens in those societies still face. Chapters 1 and 2 critically examine the morality of denials of service to LGBTQ+ customers in the marketplace for same-sex wedding cakes. Chapter 3 identifies an expressive harm of conversion therapy and suggests a liberal approach for regulating conversion therapy on the basis of that harm. Chapter 4 develops a political liberal conception of self-respect. Chapter 5 uses that conception to argue for a duty on parents to refrain from expressing heterosexist beliefs to their children. The Afterword identifies that political liberalism, correctly understood, is not a formal doctrine of equality but a strongly expressive doctrine of equality. It also warns liberals that the future of LGBTQ+ rights is under threat amid rising homophobia and transphobia in liberal societies.","abstract_html":"The key contention of this thesis is that freedom and equality have still not been secured for LGBTQ+ citizens in liberal societies. This thesis identifies several areas in which LGBTQ+ citizens still face injustice, in both the law and the family. It leverages the theoretical resources of political liberalism – a substantive normative ideal of freedom and equality – to diagnose those injustices and justify measures to secure the free and equal standing of LGBTQ+ citizens. Where those theoretical resources do not exist, this thesis develops them. The Introduction motivates the thesis’s focus on LGBTQ+ citizens in liberal societies and justifies the choice of political liberalism as the appropriate normative framework by which to analyse the injustice LGBTQ+ citizens in those societies still face. Chapters 1 and 2 critically examine the morality of denials of service to LGBTQ+ customers in the marketplace for same-sex wedding cakes. Chapter 3 identifies an expressive harm of conversion therapy and suggests a liberal approach for regulating conversion therapy on the basis of that harm. Chapter 4 develops a political liberal conception of self-respect. Chapter 5 uses that conception to argue for a duty on parents to refrain from expressing heterosexist beliefs to their children. The Afterword identifies that political liberalism, correctly understood, is not a formal doctrine of equality but a strongly expressive doctrine of equality. It also warns liberals that the future of LGBTQ+ rights is under threat amid rising homophobia and transphobia in liberal societies.","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Cole, Samuel"],"institution":"University of Cambridge","degree_name":"Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)","degree_level":"Doctoral","degree_discipline":null,"degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":[],"advisors":["Chambers, Clare"],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2025,"date_issued":"2025-09-01","date_published":"2025-09-01","updated_at":"2026-07-22T22:24:08Z","subjects":["political philosophy","equality","liberalism","LGBTQ+ rights"],"languages":["eng"],"rights":[],"rights_urls":["https://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/bitstreams/ec33c869-df41-4a4a-85b5-48a73a89a5bd/download","http://purl.org/NET/rdflicense/allrightsreserved"],"identifier_entries":[{"key":"dc:creator.authoridentifier","label":"Author Identifier","values":["0000000231997486"],"render_values":[{"text":"0000-0002-3199-7486","href":"https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3199-7486","code":true}]}]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://doi.org/10.17863/CAM.123728","outbound_label":"DOI","outbound_source":"dc:identifier.doi"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor.advisor","label":"Advisor","values":["Chambers, Clare"]},{"key":"dc:contributor.sponsor","label":"Sponsor","values":["D. H. Mellor Studentship provided by Cambridge Trust and Faculty of Philosophy, University of Cambridge"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Cole, Samuel"]},{"key":"dc:creator.authoridentifier","label":"Author Identifier","values":["0000000231997486"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.issued","label":"Date","values":["2025-09-01"]},{"key":"dc:publisher.institution","label":"Dc Publisher Institution","values":["University of Cambridge"]},{"key":"dc:relation.isreferencedby.uri","label":"Dc Relation Isreferencedby URI","values":["https://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/handle/1810/393378"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"dc:type.qualificationlevel","label":"Dc Type Qualificationlevel","values":["Doctoral"]},{"key":"dc:type.qualificationname","label":"Dc Type Qualificationname","values":["Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["political philosophy","equality","liberalism","LGBTQ+ rights"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:language","label":"Dc Language","values":["eng"]},{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["https://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/bitstreams/ec33c869-df41-4a4a-85b5-48a73a89a5bd/download","http://purl.org/NET/rdflicense/allrightsreserved"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier.doi","label":"DOI","values":["https://doi.org/10.17863/CAM.123728"]},{"key":"dc:identifier.uri","label":"Identifier URI","values":["https://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/bitstreams/dacdea4c-f6f0-4999-9d10-7adee4a31d8a/download"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["The key contention of this thesis is that freedom and equality have still not been secured for LGBTQ+ citizens in liberal societies. This thesis identifies several areas in which LGBTQ+ citizens still face injustice, in both the law and the family. It leverages the theoretical resources of political liberalism – a substantive normative ideal of freedom and equality – to diagnose those injustices and justify measures to secure the free and equal standing of LGBTQ+ citizens. Where those theoretical resources do not exist, this thesis develops them. The Introduction motivates the thesis’s focus on LGBTQ+ citizens in liberal societies and justifies the choice of political liberalism as the appropriate normative framework by which to analyse the injustice LGBTQ+ citizens in those societies still face. Chapters 1 and 2 critically examine the morality of denials of service to LGBTQ+ customers in the marketplace for same-sex wedding cakes. Chapter 3 identifies an expressive harm of conversion therapy and suggests a liberal approach for regulating conversion therapy on the basis of that harm. Chapter 4 develops a political liberal conception of self-respect. Chapter 5 uses that conception to argue for a duty on parents to refrain from expressing heterosexist beliefs to their children. The Afterword identifies that political liberalism, correctly understood, is not a formal doctrine of equality but a strongly expressive doctrine of equality. It also warns liberals that the future of LGBTQ+ rights is under threat amid rising homophobia and transphobia in liberal societies."]},{"key":"dc:format.checksum.md5","label":"Dc Format Checksum Md5","values":["487d75999e895f18662283b38a12f39e","87eda9de84448d1f82354d60eee3eb5f"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Political Liberalism and LGBTQ+ Citizens"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor.advisor":["Chambers, Clare"],"dc:contributor.sponsor":["D. H. Mellor Studentship provided by Cambridge Trust and Faculty of Philosophy, University of Cambridge"],"dc:creator":["Cole, Samuel"],"dc:creator.authoridentifier":["0000000231997486"],"dc:date.issued":["2025-09-01"],"dc:description.abstract":["The key contention of this thesis is that freedom and equality have still not been secured for LGBTQ+ citizens in liberal societies. This thesis identifies several areas in which LGBTQ+ citizens still face injustice, in both the law and the family. It leverages the theoretical resources of political liberalism – a substantive normative ideal of freedom and equality – to diagnose those injustices and justify measures to secure the free and equal standing of LGBTQ+ citizens. Where those theoretical resources do not exist, this thesis develops them. The Introduction motivates the thesis’s focus on LGBTQ+ citizens in liberal societies and justifies the choice of political liberalism as the appropriate normative framework by which to analyse the injustice LGBTQ+ citizens in those societies still face. Chapters 1 and 2 critically examine the morality of denials of service to LGBTQ+ customers in the marketplace for same-sex wedding cakes. Chapter 3 identifies an expressive harm of conversion therapy and suggests a liberal approach for regulating conversion therapy on the basis of that harm. Chapter 4 develops a political liberal conception of self-respect. Chapter 5 uses that conception to argue for a duty on parents to refrain from expressing heterosexist beliefs to their children. The Afterword identifies that political liberalism, correctly understood, is not a formal doctrine of equality but a strongly expressive doctrine of equality. It also warns liberals that the future of LGBTQ+ rights is under threat amid rising homophobia and transphobia in liberal societies."],"dc:format.checksum.md5":["487d75999e895f18662283b38a12f39e","87eda9de84448d1f82354d60eee3eb5f"],"dc:identifier.doi":["https://doi.org/10.17863/CAM.123728"],"dc:identifier.uri":["https://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/bitstreams/dacdea4c-f6f0-4999-9d10-7adee4a31d8a/download"],"dc:language":["eng"],"dc:publisher.institution":["University of Cambridge"],"dc:relation.isreferencedby.uri":["https://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/handle/1810/393378"],"dc:rights":["https://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/bitstreams/ec33c869-df41-4a4a-85b5-48a73a89a5bd/download","http://purl.org/NET/rdflicense/allrightsreserved"],"dc:subject":["political philosophy","equality","liberalism","LGBTQ+ rights"],"dc:title":["Political Liberalism and LGBTQ+ Citizens"],"dc:type":["Thesis"],"dc:type.qualificationlevel":["Doctoral"],"dc:type.qualificationname":["Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-22T22:24:08Z"}