Drawing a line in the sand: the social impacts of an LGBTQI+ event in an Australian rural community

ABSTRACT

As a form of leisure, Pride events offer LGBTQI+ people a chance to gain visibility, advocate for their rights, and construct and express their identity. The benefits such events offer are particularly crucial within rural communities, often perceived to be heteronormative spaces that may exhibit greater levels of prejudice against sexually and gender-diverse individuals. This paper examines the perceived social impacts Pride events can have within a rural community by studying an inaugural Pride event hosted in the Australian township of Wagga Wagga. Informed by an interpretivist approach and using a mix of participant observation and semi-structured interviews, the study found the event had three key outcomes. First, the event challenged assumptions about how acceptance of diverse sexualities and gender identities were in the town. Second, it appeared to help build community acceptance by providing a public space/time for LGBTQI+ individuals to be acknowledged as legitimate citizens. Finally, it contributed to identity construction and created opportunities for connection with other LGBTQI+ residents and the rural community more broadly.

KEYWORDS:

• Rural Communities
• pride events
• rural LGBTQI+ communities
• LGBTQI+ identity
• social impacts
• LGBTQI+

Acknowledgement

The authors would like to acknowledge the contributions of Dr Felicity Small to the research design and data collection for this project.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

1. In this section, quotes are provided for illustration noting the gender, whether the interview took place pre or post the parade and interview number.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Clifford Lewis

Clifford Lewis is a Lecturer in Marketing at Charles Sturt University. His research focuses on inclusivity within a rural context – specifically considering the LGBTQI+ community. Before beginning his academic career, he was the Head of State (NSW) for a global market research company. In that role, he worked on projects related to regional tourism products, experience and campaign development as well as destination planning. His PhD focused on destination branding and meaning creation.

Kevin Markwell

Kevin Markwell is Professor of Tourism, Southern Cross University and Adjunct Professor, Faculty of Vocations, Universitas Airlangga, Indonesia. His research is situated within a leisure/tourism framework and focuses on LGBTQI+ identity construction; experiences of nature; and human-animal relations.