The key role of digital and mobile media for refugees is increasingly acknowledged, but while the literature on the topic tends to celebrate the advantages of digital media, it is important to also ...acknowledge limitations. Thus, the focus on the creation and maintenance of connections through digital media may obscure experiences and practices of disconnection. This is certainly the case for forced migrants with non-normative sexual orientations, for whom experiences of homophobia within the family and ethno-cultural community in the country of origin may extend to fraught situations in the country of residence. As with digital media in general, it is important to consider the ‘offline’ social and cultural conditions determining online media uses. This article focuses on the specific challenges for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer refugees, both in general and in Belgium, drawing on desk research and expert interviews, as well as nine in-depth interviews with gay-identifying male refugees. While the refugees are relatively positive about the Belgian situation, they do identify a number of challenges. They use digital media to stay connected to family and other people in the country of origin, but often this connection has become difficult. Social media and dating sites also offer a way to connect to other gay men, but these connections can be equally fraught, particularly in the country of origin for danger of exposure but also in Belgium as social media transcend national boundaries. For this reason, some participants created new or parallel profiles, to keep their gay lives disconnected from their family lives. Overall, then, digital media are a tool not only of connection but also of strategic disconnection for gay refugees.
Background: This paper proposes a generational approach to better understand the specific position and perspectives of older GBTQ (Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer) men. Generational theory and ...empirical research demonstrate that experiences and social contexts in adolescence and early adulthood are formative for sexual identity formation while also informing perspectives later in life. Methods: The paper discusses the findings of a qualitative project based on in-depth interviews with sixteen Flemish men belonging to the so-called “Baby Boomer” generation, i.e., born between 1945 and 1964. They came of age before “gay liberation”, exploring and establishing their sexual identities in a period of social invisibility. Results: First, the analysis focuses on the past, in particular the period of sexual exploration and identity formation, reporting findings on formative, often difficult experiences such as the first realization of same-sex attraction, first sexual explorations, coming out, first contact with other LGBTQ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer) individuals, participation in the LGBTQ scene and associations, and HIV/AIDS. Then, the focus shifts to the present, to discuss the progress the participants observe but also the problems they (still) experience, including the way they perceive intergenerational differences. Conclusions: Older GBTQ men came of age in a radically different context, struggling to embrace their sexuality, which also informs their current position in LGBTQ culture. These insights are relevant for LGBTQ associations, policy makers and (mental) health practitioners, who could do more to address the specific position and needs of this older demographic.
While research on migration and diasporas tends to be heteronormative, research on sexual minorities tends to ignore migrants and ethnic minorities. The current paper aims to problematize both ...tendencies by taking a queer perspective on migration and a diasporic perspective on sexuality. As part of a larger project on diasporic LGBTQs living in Belgium, this paper discusses the social positions and identifications of six non-heterosexual women with a migration background, as narrated in individual in-depth interviews. Drawing on intersectionality theory, the relative importance and mutual interplay between their sexual and ethno-cultural identifications are analysed. This analysis discloses the irreducible individuality of each narrative, where the balance and interaction between ethno-cultural and sexual identifications is part of an intricate interplay of social positions and contexts. The participants’ migration background is a key structuring element, leading to a combination of geographic and/or social distance from their family and ethno-cultural community in which religious, family and gender norms lead to a range of expectations and pressures. Sexual identifications tend to be more salient when they are strongly rejected, in which case they lead to more social and often also geographic distancing. This is further modulated by race, as non-white participants tend to identify more strongly along racial lines because they are continuously reminded of their otherness.
Jasbir Puar introduced the notion of ‘homonationalism’ to describe the increasing acceptance of sexual minorities in Western nations, leading to their incorporation in the national in-group which is ...increasingly opposed to homophobic ‘others’. While Muslims constitute the main out-group, other groups and nations are also targeted, in particular Russia and related countries in Central and Eastern Europe. Such discourses create a binary opposition between two homogenized parties, the uniformly LGBTQ-friendly in-group versus the uniformly homophobic ‘other’. While the literature on homonationalism mostly discusses politics in the U.S. and a number of other nation-states, this article explores homonationalism in a smaller sub-national region in Western Europe, Flanders, focusing on the press as a tool for spreading homonationalist discourse. Exploring three months of Flemish newspapers, this article identifies some instances of explicit homonationalism but more implicit homonationalism which does not explicitly mention the in-group but does paint a one-sided picture of Russia and related countries as homophobic.
This paper explores the role of media among different generations of non-straight men. Based on generational theory, combining the notions of “queer generations” and “media generations,” it ...empirically explores the role of both legacy and digital media in the processes of sexual identity formation in four post-war generations (Baby Boomers, Generation X, Millennials, and Generation Z). A mixed-method approach was used, combining a quantitative survey (N = 684) to measure the importance of different media with in-depth interviews (N = 80) to better understand the role of media in relation to sexual identity. The results show significant generational differences in the importance of media used at the time of sexual identity exploration as well as in the past year. Digital media became increasingly important for the younger generations but also play a key role in the sexual lives of older participants, while film and television remain important sources of representation, across all generations.
This article analyses othering discourses in the news media coverage of an alleged homophobic murder in Belgium. The case study is based on a critical discourse analysis of news articles published in ...Dutch-speaking Belgian news media. Using the framework of homonationalism, this analysis finds that Belgium's LGBTI-friendly status is deeply anchored in the national identity. Discourses in mainstream news media following the murder appeal to a unified imagined community of Belgians based on the assumed shared value of tolerance. This LGBTI-friendly status spills over in the exclusionary discourse in right-wing alternative media towards groups that are represented as a homophobic threat outside the nation (Central and Eastern Europe) and within it (Muslims and migrants).
This article provides insight on the perceived importance Flemish producers attach to including sexual and gender diversity in their productions targeting children. Drawing on the frameworks of the ...‘production ecology’, ‘cultures of production’ and ‘queer production studies’, this article considers the different internal and external influences that might impact why and how producers depict these LGBT+ narratives. Through qualitative in-depth interviews with different involved parties of these production processes, this article first and foremost demonstrates a unanimous, strong advocacy for diversified representations by all the participants. The formative role of television in informing and evoking empathy among children, as well as parents as an implicit secondary audience, are primary objectives when creating these narratives. However, the approach to this didactic premise differs for the public broadcaster compared with the commercial channels and is further nuanced in relation to the perceived cognitive abilities of children as an audience. In particular, sexual diversity is approached differently compared with non-normative gender expressions (e.g. transgender characters), the latter being perceived as (too) complex within a child’s frame of reference. The current production ecology has thus facilitated the recurrence of certain storylines and characters, while others remain underrepresented.
Building on the extensive literature highlighting the key role digital and social media play in the lives of LGBTQ people, this article adds a generational perspective by studying the importance of ...the internet and social media for different generations of men who have sex with men (MSM). Focusing on issues of identity exploration and the search for information as well as social connection, two periods are distinguished: the time of sexual identity exploration, and the present. Based on a mixed-method design, a survey (n = 684) was used to measure the perceived importance of online platforms (particularly Facebook, Instagram, Tumblr, YouTube, and TikTok), while in-depth interviews (n = 80) helped to better understand how digital media are embedded in the context of everyday life and society. The results show an ever-shifting range of digital media which subsequent generations come across at different times in their lives, fulfilling similar needs with the tools available at that time. This study contributes to the literature by adopting a life course approach to the study of media use among MSM of various generations, which allows to disentangle the respective roles of age and generation.
Plain Language Summary
Digital and social media use across generations of non-straight men
This paper explores the respective role of age and generation in the internet and social media use of MSM (men who have sex with men) in Flanders. Existing research shows that online media play an important role in the identity formation of sexual minorities, particularly to find information and to connect with others. Most of this research focuses on younger users, while this paper reports on a project studying a broader age range. An exploratory online survey (n = 684) was used to measure the perceived importance of online platforms at different times in life. In-depth interviews (n = 80) were used to gain a deeper understanding of media use as situated in evolving biographical and social context. The results show an ever-shifting range of digital media which subsequent generations come across at different times in their lives, fulfilling similar needs with the tools available at that time. This study contributes to the literature by adopting a life course approach to the study of media use among MSM of various generations. This allows us to disentangle the respective roles of age and generation.
Social media not only create new opportunities but also pose new challenges for the ways people navigate their online selves. As noted by boyd, social media are characterized by unique dynamics such ...as collapsed contexts, implying that one’s distinct offline social worlds meet online. This creates particular challenges for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) people, at least those who find it crucial to maintain distinct contexts in which they disclose or conceal their gender and/or sexual selves. However, the existing scholarship on social media use by LGBTQs is predominantly anchored in English-language Western contexts and tends to lose sight of the cultural specificities of Internet use. Therefore, in this article, we build on the scholarship to further investigate the role of context for disclosing or concealing gender and/or sexual selves online. More specifically, we ask, “How do social, cultural, and material contexts affect the ways LGBTQs navigate their selves on social media?” To investigate this question, we analyze in-depth face-to-face interviews with gay men who themselves, or whose parents, migrated to Belgium. Because their migration background forces them to negotiate different social, cultural, and material contexts, our focus on diasporic gay men helps to bring out the issue of context in social media use.
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