Homonormativity in Peripheral Spaces: LBT Women's Processes of Becoming Political Subjects

Abstract

Homonormativity refers to the ratification and endorsement of heteronormative institutions and structures into lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) lives, culture and discourse. While homonormativity is commonly manifested in (relatively) privileged, White, able‐bodied gay men, this paper focuses on lesbian, bisexual and transgender (LBT) women's experiences in Israeli peripheral and rural spaces. As a concept, homonormativity has the potential of reducing lived experiences into a widely criticized category. Instead, we voice the geographical, temporal and gendered potential of homonormative processes to articulate varied ways for leading a queer life under capitalism. Based on 61 qualitative interviews with LBT women living in the Israeli peripheries, we argue that LBT women employ two major homonormative processes of becoming political subjects to negotiate their sexualities in a space fraught with LGBTphobia. These homonormative processes are comprised of assimilation and contestation, revealing a nuanced mode of political subjectivity, shaped by ongoing experiences of LGBTphobia.