Using photovoice as an arts-based method for grieving: LGBTQ + students and the pulse nightclub shooting

Abstract

Given the increase of gun violence in the United States, teachers are left with the added obligation of helping students process traumatic events. The present study seeks to address the following questions: What are some ways in which students process grief through arts-based methods? What can we observe through photovoice, a community-based method that uses photography, about the perceptions of six LGBTQ + students at a predominantly white institution after the Pulse Massacre? The study consisted of semi-structured focus group interviews with these students, all of whom spent a week creating photos in response to the tragedy. In order to understand the depth of how stories may have oppositional counter-stories, we look to narrative inquiry and find intersectionality and colorblind intersectionality at play. Implications for practice, policy, and research are included.

Keywords:

• Pulse
• queer
• LGBTQ
• photovoice
• narrative inquiry

Acknowledgments

Special thanks go to everyone who heard parts of this research through brown bag talks and at conferences, and provided us with generous feedback that helped shape this manuscript. Dr. Suárez would like to thank Dr. Luis Leyva for his exposure to various theories of intersectionality, as well as Dr. Cheryl Craig for feedback on narrative inquiry.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Department of Teaching, Learning and Culture at Texas A&M University under the Renew, Rebuild, and Reinvest Grant.

Notes on contributors

Mario I. Suárez

Mario I. Suárez is an Assistant Professor of Cultural Studies in the School of Teacher Education and Leadership at Utah State University.

Lobat Asadi

Lobat Asadi is a doctoral student at Texas A&M University in the Department of Teaching, Learning and Culture.

Peter Scaramuzzo

Peter Scaramuzzo is a doctoral student at Texas A&M University in the Department of Teaching, Learning and Culture.

Patrick Slattery

Patrick Slattery is Professor and Associate Department Head for Graduate Studies in the Department of Teaching, Learning and Culture at Texas A&M University.

Chad R. Mandala

Chad R. Mandala is a doctoral student in The Institute of Higher Education at the University of Georgia.