Rethinking the heteronormative foundations of kinship: the reification of the heterosexual nuclear family unit in Singapore’s COVID-19 circuit-breaker restrictions

Abstract

The COVID-19 global pandemic necessitated nationwide lockdowns in many countries and Singapore was no different, announcing an eight-week 'circuit-breaker' in the beginning of April 2020. When it ended, the Singaporean government announced that restrictions on physical interactions would be eased in three phases. In Phase 1, all physical interactions between households continued to be disallowed with exceptions made for visits to parents and grandparents so that families could provide mutual support to one another. This article argues the permissibility of certain interactions hierarchised social ties according to a heteronormative logic where heteronormative kinship structures were elevated above othersthus excluding multiple constituencies that either did not have access to these kinship structures or for whom they did not provide support. Reading this instantiation as part of a larger reification of the heterosexual nuclear family unit in Singapore, this article posits that the demonstrable inability of heteronormative kinship to fulfil everyone's support needs signals the urgency of rethinking extant heteronormative foundations of kinship in Singapore. Queering kinship in this way extends the existing body of queer studies scholarship in Singapore which has largely focussed on the effects of heteronormativity on LGBT lives by demonstrating how heteronormativity shapes non-LGBT lives as well.

Studying Gender While ‘Studying Up’

“…baby bonuses and other tax incentives for heterosexual couples). A variety of scholarship also highlights the pervasiveness of heteronormativity, often promoted by government policies, in Singaporean kinship, housing, policy and even in norms of queer communities (Devan 2010;Mano 2021;Oswin 2010;Phillips 2014;Tang and Quah 2018). Until January 2016, there was also government funding for student groups and activities, such as orientation camps, that 'maximise opportunities for undergraduates to meet and interact with the opposite gender' as part of the 'FamilyMatters@School' programme.…”

The influence of a hostile environment on a syndemic of depression, stress and chronic limiting illness among LGBTQ+ people during the COVID‐19 pandemic

“…Pandemic‐related restrictions on contact with social networks are thought to have been particularly problematic among LGBTQ+ people who may have found themselves sheltering in unsupportive and hostile households (Fish et al., 2021), where they were unable to access supportive and identity‐affirming networks (Gato et al., 2021). The risk of loneliness and isolation during the lockdown was likely to be higher among LGBTQ+ people, who were not only more likely to have been living alone pre‐pandemic (for example Bécares, 2020) but may have felt a heightened sense of alienation during the pandemic when public health messaging appeared to elevate the importance of heteronormative kin structures (Mano, 2021). The lockdown and reductions in social and health services also resulted in specific challenges for LGBTQ+ people, for example, interruptions in accessing gender affirming care (Jarrett et al., 2020).…”