Part of: Queer Places and Spaces
Abstract:
Rusty Barrett asserts that ‘queerness’ is defined in terms of its ‘otherness’, characterised ‘not in terms of who belongs but in terms of what queers react against’ (Barret 2006, pp.822-3). This paper outlines the use of the term ‘queer’ in a local, situated context, to describe identity and to designate space. I argue that such situated uses of ‘queer’ evidence more than ‘a new sexual fluidity’ (Coleman-Fountain 2014, p.802) and are used instead to indicate alignment with specific political principles and social causes. In this way, I argue that queer spaces embody both belonging and dis-belonging, a phenomenon exemplified by the subtle politics of the language used by speakers in these spaces. I frame ‘queer’ as a contemporary Keyword (after Raymond Williams), my focus being on its multiaccentuality and the contexts of its uses within queer spaces. Using long-form, semi-structured interview perspectives from situated queer subjects in Leeds, I interrogate how its many simultaneous uses contribute to both the inclusivity and exclusivity embodied within the term. Participant perspectives highlight the significance of current gender politics in their alignment with, and use of ‘queer’, where, at least locally, the term seems to be used as deliberately trans-inclusive sexual identity label. I find that ‘queer’ is a label which is viewed by speakers as distinct from ‘gay’, and consequently that ‘queer’ spaces are viewed differently from ‘gay’ spaces by those who attend them. I will examine how participants navigate identification with a term ‘understood as both reclaimed and stigmatized’ (Worthen 2023, p.5) and explore the levels of awareness participants demonstrate of the privileged and deprivileged aspects of their own identities within intersectional queer spaces. I answer questions on the complexities of specific identity relations within a queer space through transcripts of participant examples. I conclude that the specific political program associated with identification with ‘queer’ in Leeds involves both local and global politics, and that these politics are consistently represented within the queer space I examine.
Barrett, R., 2006. Queer talk. Encyclopedia of Language & Linguistics. Ámsterdam: Elsevier.
Coleman-Fountain E., 2014. Lesbian and gay youth and the question of labels. Sexualities. 17(7)
Worthen, M.G., 2023. Queer identities in the 21st century: Reclamation and stigma. Current Opinion in Psychology. 49.
Williams, R., 1976. Keywords: A vocabulary of culture and society. Oxford university press.
