More poly em Português

Jornal de Notícias (Portugal)

Several articles on polyamory have appeared in Portugal in the last year, such as this one:

Polyamory is a new model of relationship

By Helena Norte

Multiple relationships, simultaneous and consensual. Not just sex. Sex and affection. Multiple loves. Polyamory. A new concept for a practice that has always existed and that challenges one of the greatest taboos of our society: monogamy.

It's a new form of marriage partnership without emotional and sexual exclusivity, and with equal rights. This means that there is no room for betrayal, illusions or infidelities. Because nobody is being fooled.

It's not just sex, like swinging or agreed-upon sexual infidelity in which emotional involvement is prohibited. In polyamory, the affection is the most important dimension.

"Polyamory takes the excessive weight off of sex," argues Ana, or Antidote as she is known among nonmonogamy activists. She adds, "The commandment of monogamy — exclusivity — is replaced by the commandment of honesty."...

It's unknown how many polyamorists exist in Portugal. The concept was introduced to our country relatively recently. The "poly portugal" [Yahoo group] has about 60 participants, a number that does not reflect the real size of the community, explains Ana, one of the moderators.

Five years ago Lara created the site www.poliamor.pt.to, which gets about 170 visits per month. More recently, weekly meetings have started in Lisbon for people interested in this lifestyle.

To Gabriela Moita, a clinical psychologist specializing in sexuality, "Man is not monogamous or polygamous by nature. Socialization teaches us how to think and choose feelings, leading us to punish or allow certain types of emotions."...

Read the whole article (October 19, 2008). And the sidebar: "Relações em "V" e em triângulo". Or read a .pdf image of the printed pages, with pictures.

Two weeks later, a bemused elderly columnist expressed skepticism:

Is "Polyamory" the solution?

By António Freitas Cruz

I think readers have given deserved honors to the comprehensive work that Helena Norte published in the Sunday edition two weeks ago. I refer to the report on "polyamory," presented as a "new concept" that "defies one of the greatest taboos of our society: monogamy"... a brand new phenomenon, a "unique form of nonexclusive conjugality with equal rights."

In the scholarly opinion of a sociologist, "polyamory" signifies "a strategy of democratization of intimacy" — a statement that will be enough to accredit it to a broad layer of the political world, especially the youth faction, always eager for excuses to break down the barriers of values and principles....

Read the whole column (Nov. 2, 2008).

------------------------------------

Also: Antidote writes the Portuguese poly blog Our Laundry List. She tells us, "We have now a group of more people who tomorrow (June 28, 2009) will start a new poly blog, again in Portuguese. You can aim your feeder to PolyPortugal. As for me, I will continue with the Laundry List blog as before, writing in parallel on both projects."

Description of the new site: "É um grupo de discussão e apoio para pessoas que se interessam por e/ou praticam o Poliamor. Alguns dos membros interessam-se também por tornar activamente a sociedade mais amistosa para com o Poliamor em particular e para com a diversidade em geral."

Also: at Poliamor (www.poliamor.pt.to) is this roundup of other print articles and radio programs, most of which were new to me.

[Permalink]