PRRI Affiliated Scholar Kelsy Burke (they/she) is a Professor of sociology at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, the editor of Contemporary Sociology, and an award-winning researcher of religion, sexuality, and culture. Burke’s research has examined a wide range of topics, including religious freedom laws and LGBTQ rights, evangelical women’s ministries, public debates over pornography, and the Christian sex advice industry. They are currently writing a book (forthcoming with Pantheon) on the origins and evolutions of the anti-transgender movement in the United States. They are also the author of Christians under Covers: Evangelicals and Sexual Pleasure on the Internet (University of California Press, 2016) and The Pornography Wars: The Past, Present, and Future of America’s Obscene Obsession (Bloomsbury, 2023). Burke’s research has been supported by multiple grants and fellowships, including from the National Science Foundation, and has been published by top academic journals and popular outlets, including The Guardian, Newsweek, Slate, and The Washington Post. As a former PRRI Public Fellow, they examined Americans’ attitudes about LGBTQ rights alongside attitudes about religious liberty.
Writing by Kelsy Burke:
- Medium: LGBT Adults Remain Hopeful for the Future of LGBT People in the US
- Slate: Godly Men
- The Hill: LGBTQ-U and the myth of the woke university
- The Washington Post: Feminists have long supported trans rights
- The Washington Post: Americans’ support for transgender rights has declined. Here’s why.
- The Conversation: What’s going on with the wave of GOP bills about trans teens? Utah provides clues
- Slate: The Deep Down Truth of Why Evangelical Christians Can’t Stand Drag
- Religion News Service: LGBTQ+ Americans are more religious than our Supreme Court battles let on
