Fragile subjectivities: constructing queer safe spaces

Hartal, Gilly

doi:10.1080/14649365.2017.1335877

Cited by 48 publications

(51 citation statements)

References 45 publications

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“…The concept of “safe space” represents what one participant called a “false sense of safety.” College Town’s geographic location leads to an overwhelming desire to construct safe space discourses. Yet, scholars argue that safe spaces are abstract iterations that conflate “safety” with “comfort” (Hartal, 2018). In other words, gay bars embody a paradox: They seek to communicatively construct comfortable spaces for LGBTQ+ people to “be yourself” while also constructing material places that can potentially emerge as targets for violence and hate.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In rejecting the post-gay discourse, we demonstrate how the gay bar brand of “safe space” capitalizes on (1) the emotional experiences of fear, shame, stigma and violence within the queer/straight relationship, and (2) the affective labor of patrons and staff to promote gay bars as spaces to be your “authentic” sexual self. Such framing reifies LGBTQ+ bodies as “fragile subjects” requiring protection from the possibility of violence (Hartal, 2018, p. 1069).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Historically, the emergence of gay spaces developed out of persistent social, legal, and sexual persecution of lesbian, gay, trans*, 1 intersex, non-binary, bisexual, and queer bodies. Heteronormativity, or the hegemonic centering and privileging of heterosexuality (Yep, 2003), forced gays and lesbians to cultivate spaces that remained hidden from police crackdowns and continued regulation (Hartal, 2018). Gay bars represented some of the first spaces for collective organizing and political engagement (Moran et al, 2003).…”

Section: Queer Spatialitymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The notion that LGBTQ+ people have physically and communicatively constructed gay bars in response to the social, political, and physical violence of heteronormativity relies on an essentialist discourse to gay identity (Nash, 2013). However, gay bars, like identities, are not incontestable (see Hartal, 2018; Mattson, 2014). This framing backgrounds spatiality, negates intersectionality, and suggests that LGBTQ+ people are “beyond normativity and the spaces they appropriate as heroic and liberating” (Oswin, 2008, p. 91).…”

Section: Queer Spatialitymentioning

confidence: 99%

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There’s No Such Thing as a Gay Bar: Co-Sexuality and the Neoliberal Branding of Queer Spaces

Branton

Compton

2020

Management Communication Quarterly

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Gay bars have historically functioned as communal spaces for the LGBTQ+ community. Because of neoliberalism, LGBTQ+ acceptance continues to rise as “post-gay’’ discourses, coupled with the inclusion of heterosexual audiences, have repositioned gay bars as inclusive spaces. In this study, we explore how the meaning of “gay bar” is communicatively negotiated. Specifically, we employed a co-sexuality lens with spatiality to understand how the “gay bar brand” is constructed and perceived. We used ethnographic methods including observation, 25 semi-structured interviews, and documents at two gay bars in a Midwestern college town. We demonstrate how gay bars, through neoliberal branding, reopened the meaning of gay bars as spaces for “all” sexualities. Three tensions emerged: (1) who gay bars are for (queer or general communities); (2) sexual autonomy (contested meanings around “safety” and “being yourself”); and (3) viable marketing (tension between “community” and “commodification”). This study contributes to the literature on sexuality, space, and branding by moving beyond utopian depictions of gay bars. Instead, it encourages scholars to understand the bars as destabilized and contested queer spaces.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Queer Spatialitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Queer Spatialitymentioning

confidence: 99%

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There’s No Such Thing as a Gay Bar: Co-Sexuality and the Neoliberal Branding of Queer Spaces

Branton

Compton

2020

Management Communication Quarterly

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“…Whilst the programme is conceived of as being LGBT-inclusive, the space is not completely void of heterosexism and homophobia. Homophobia and sexism ‘are direct manifestations of patriarchy’ (Msibi, 2012: 526); thus, there is a need for ‘queer’ safe spaces (Hartal, 2018), given the high rates of violence, rates of suicide and alienation that continue to affect the lives of LGBT people in Brazil. Furthermore, raising the question of sexual diversity resulted in unexpected consequences outside the SDP space associated with misinterpretations, suspicions and a rejection of the initiatives.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

‘You’re going to teach my son to be viado’: From ‘girling’ to queering sport for development?

Válková

2020

International Review for the Sociology of Sport

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This paper critically explores how queer youth experience sport for development programmes in Brazil. Whilst the Sport for Development and Peace (SDP) field is not void of discussions that touch upon heteronormativity and sexuality, the ‘sensitive’ stories of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) individuals within SDP initiatives remain rather unheard. Drawing on ethnographic methodology and queer theory, this paper aims to understand the impact of two different SDP programmes located in Sao Paulo, Brazil, that use sport to address sexuality and gender issues as part of their mission. The findings of this study indicate that delivery of sexuality-focused projects is a complex, problematic and contested process. Whilst the programme is conceived of as and committed to being LGBT-inclusive, the space is not completely void of heterosexism and homophobia. The queer lens here allowed for the revelation that whilst the SDP initiative provided a relatively supportive environment regarding the free expression of queer desires, it creates rather ‘safe(r)’ spaces, as the conventional norms of mainstream hetero-patriarchal society permeate these spaces. Furthermore, initiatives led to new means of exclusion and alienating experiences for its non-queer beneficiaries. Ultimately, raising the question of sexual diversity resulted in unexpected consequences outside the SDP space associated with misinterpretations, suspicions and a rejection of the initiatives. The conclusion consists of overall reflections regarding the use of the queer approach within SDP research and suggests possible directions for future studies of this topic.

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Welcoming and Generative Local Welfare as an Agent for Territorial Development: A Case Study from Southern Italy

Lomonaco

Bergamaschi

Musarò

et al. 2023

Int. Migration & Integration

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In Italy, shrinking regions cover more than 60% of the national territory. Although these areas are in demographic and economic decline (Accordo di Partenariato, 2014), many resilient initiatives have been developed over the years (Moss, 1996; Meloni, 2015). Among these experiences, several are aimed at welcoming the migrant population (Corrado, 2013), becoming privileged spaces for more equitable and inclusive modes of territorial regeneration (Van der Ploeg et al., 2003; Oostindie et al., 2010). Drawing upon these premises, the paper intends to reflect on the presence of non-EU migrants in shrinking Italian areas and on their role in local sustainable development. The contribution presents some of the first results of the Horizon 2020 project “WELCOMING SPACES”, with a specific focus on the municipality of Camini, one of the most shrinking areas in Southern Italy, to highlight how migration can lead to local development and rural regeneration processes. Camini is a good case study, as the reception centre managed by the social cooperative ‘JungiMundu’ hosts 118 migrants out of a total population of 810. Thanks to the presence of this number of people, several public services (i.e., post office, school, etc.) have been (re)activated. In the first part of this article, we introduce the case study, while in the second part, we reflect on how the reception of migrants contributes to the implementation of collective and public services for the whole community. The increase in population, both in terms of newcomers and Italian returnees, has also allowed for the regeneration of the village, economically and socially, creating connections between different cultures and traditions that had almost disappeared.

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Fragile subjectivities: constructing queer safe spaces

Cited by 48 publications

References 45 publications

There’s No Such Thing as a Gay Bar: Co-Sexuality and the Neoliberal Branding of Queer Spaces

There’s No Such Thing as a Gay Bar: Co-Sexuality and the Neoliberal Branding of Queer Spaces

‘You’re going to teach my son to be viado’: From ‘girling’ to queering sport for development?

Welcoming and Generative Local Welfare as an Agent for Territorial Development: A Case Study from Southern Italy

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