Ghost Marriage: Posthumous Marriage, Ritual, and Family Tradition
Ghost marriage is a cultural or ritual marriage involving one or more deceased people, often connected to family lineage, ancestor beliefs, inheritance, or social tradition.
Courtship Ritual: Romantic Customs, Dating, and Relationship Formation
A courtship ritual is a customary pattern of behavior used to express romantic interest and develop a relationship, often shaped by culture, gender roles, family, and social expectations.
Free Love Movement: Relationship Freedom, Autonomy, and Reform
The free love movement challenged restrictive marriage and sexual norms and promoted greater freedom in consensual relationships, divorce, reproduction, and intimate life.
Amatonormativity: Romance as a Social Expectation
Amatonormativity is the assumption that everyone should want and prioritize a central romantic relationship, often treating couplehood as necessary for a complete adult life.
Family Rejection: LGBTQ+ Identity, Minority Stress, and Support
Family rejection is the withdrawal of acceptance, support, or belonging because of a person’s identity, relationships, or self-expression, including LGBTQ+ identities.
Family Affirmation: LGBTQ+ Support, Acceptance, and Belonging
Family affirmation means actively supporting and respecting a person’s identity, relationships, privacy, and self-expression through acceptance, care, and inclusive behavior.
Chosen Community: Belonging, Support, and LGBTQ+ Connection
A chosen community is a voluntarily formed network of people who provide belonging, support, identity affirmation, friendship, and mutual care beyond traditional family structures.
Queer Kinship: Chosen Family, Care, and LGBTQ+ Belonging
Queer kinship describes family-like bonds and care networks created through friendship, partnership, community, co-parenting, and chosen family beyond traditional family structures.
Right to Choose a Partner: Consent, Autonomy, and Relationship Freedom
The right to choose a partner protects voluntary decisions about dating, marriage, and intimate relationships while rejecting coercion, forced marriage, and discrimination.
Right to Form a Family: Marriage, Parenthood, and Equality
The right to form a family concerns fair access to marriage, partnership, parenthood, adoption, reproductive choices, and legal recognition without unjust discrimination.