Queer trans-Tasman mobility, then and now

Abstract

This article situates queer mobility within wider historical geographies of trans-Tasman flows of goods, people and ideas. Using case studies of women's and men's experiences during the early twentieth century and the twenty-first century, it shows that same-sex desire is a constituent part of these flows and, conversely, Antipodean mobility has fostered particular forms of desire, sexual identity, and queer community and politics. Particular landscapes, rural and urban, in both New Zealand and Australia, have shaped queer desire in a range of diverging and converging ways. Shifting political, legal and social landscapes across New Zealand and Australia have wrought changes in trans-Tasman travel over time. This investigation into the circuits of queer trans-Tasman mobility both underscores and urges wider examinations of the significance of trans-Tasman crossings in queer lives, both historically and in contemporary society.

Stretched kinship: Queer female university students negotiating family and identity

“…Recent research conducted in North America and Europe suggests that the chosen family often comes into being around three themes: emotional support, mutual understanding and identity affirmation (Kaufman and Johnson, 2004;Levin et al, 2020;Nelson, 2020). Other scholars have argued that the university setting is often the first point of intimate peer contact for many queer people (Brickell et al, 2018;Lewis, 2014;Rhoads, 1995;Ueno et al, 2014), potentially leading to improved self-perceptions and general health and wellbeing through peer support that may not be available at home (see Blockett, 2017;Braithwaite et al, 2010;Petrocchi et al, 2020). Adjusting to tertiary education, independent living and identity construction can be greatly assisted through peer support groups (Brandon-Friedman and Kim, 2016;Schmitz and Tyler, 2018b).…”