Exploring queer people of colour’s perceptions of pride in Sydney

Abstract

Pride events in majority-White contexts reflect social structures and power relations which privilege individuals from that group. The normative Whiteness that shapes these societies influence the dominance of Whiteness in queer spaces and Pride events which take place in them. This paper focused on queer people of colour (QPoC), in Australia, to understand how their intersectional identities shape perceptions of the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras. Drawing on intersectionality as a framework, the study analysed interviews with 12 individuals. Results indicate participants feel a disjuncture between their queer identities and ethnicities and that queer spaces in Australia are premised on a normative Whiteness. While Mardi Gras is a meaningful and positive experience for respondents, the findings suggest the event perpetuates a narrow understanding of what it means to be queer by centring a White subjectivity and stereotypical queer representations. Findings suggest greater inclusivity can be achieved by ‘inviting in’ QPoC, meaningfully supporting more diverse expressions of ‘queerness’, including QPoC in all stages of the event, and being sensitive to the diverse needs of different groups.

Keywords:

• Pride events
• Mardi Gras
• queer
• people of colour
• LGBTQ+
• intersectionality

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Clifford Lewis

Shiva Chandra (he/him) is a research fellow at the Sydney Centre for Healthy Societies, at the University of Sydney. He uses creative and innovative methods to investigate subjectivity and how individuals relate to their social worlds. His work explores personal life, youth, sexuality, gender, race, decolonisation, and wellbeing. Shiva is particularly interested in how individuals conceptualise and live out attachments. His scholarship occupies the intersection of academia and community development, with the aim of improving people’s lives. Shiva believes academic work carries a social responsibility to give back to others.

Shiva Chandra

Kevin Markwell is adjunct professor in tourism at Southern Cross University, NSW, Australia. As a geographer, he has predominantly been interested in the intersections of leisure and tourism spaces and LGBT identities. He has had a particular focus on festivals and events as sites of social transgression and has written extensively about aspects of the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras.

Kevin Markwell

Clifford Lewis (he/him/his) is a marketing academic at Charles Sturt. His research focuses on inclusion and belonging, specifically exploring the experiences of LGBTQ + people. He is passionate about using research to make the world more inclusive. Prior to academia, Clifford worked in senior roles in the market research industry, consulting on projects for State and Federal Government departments in Australia.