Queer nationalism is a phenomenon related both to the gay and lesbian liberation movement and

nationalism Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a group of people), Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: T ...

. Adherents of this movement support the notion that the

LGBT ' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity. The LGBT term is ...

community forms a distinct people due to their unique culture and customs.

Queer Nation

The homophobic aspect of many cultures has led to increasing frustration and a wish to separate from a perceived hostile heterosexual majority. These feelings found their expression in 1990 with the establishment of

Queer Nation Queer Nation is an LGBTQ activist organization founded in March 1990 in New York City, by HIV/AIDS activists from ACT UP. The four founders were outraged at the escalation of anti-gay violence on the streets and prejudice in the arts and media ...

, a radical organization best known for its slogan "We're here. We're queer. Get used to it". In 1969, gay activist Don Jackson from California proposed to take over

Alpine County, California , other_name = , settlement_type = County , image_skyline = , image_flag = Flag of Alpine County, California.svg , flag_size = , image_seal = Seal of Alpine Co ...

—a project also known as Stonewall Nation. The first attempt to make territorial claims was made in 2004 by a group of Australian gay activists who declared the tiny islands of

Cato Reef Cato Reef, a part of Cato Bank, is an area in the Coral Sea off the central coast of Queensland, Australia. Geography Cato Bank measures approximately with an area of . Water depth is typically less than . As part of Cato Bank, Cato Reef ...

to be the

Gay and Lesbian Kingdom of the Coral Sea Islands The Gay and Lesbian Kingdom of the Coral Sea Islands (also known as The Gay Kingdom of the Coral Sea) was a putative micronation established as a symbolic political protest by a group of gay rights activists based in Australia. Declared in 2004 ...

and Dale Parker Anderson to be the Emperor. Following the 2005 disagreements within the group, the Gay and Lesbian Commonwealth Kingdom and Unified Gay Tribe have cancelled their affiliation to Anderson. Some other groups with similar causes exist, e.g. the Gay Homeland Foundation and a

micronation A micronation is a political entity whose members claim that they belong to an independent nation or sovereign state, but which lacks legal recognition by world governments or major international organizations. Micronations are classified ...

called Gay Parallel Republic. In 2007, Garrett Graham published a plan and constitution for a gay state, connected to

Theodor Herzl Theodor Herzl; hu, Herzl Tivadar; Hebrew name given at his brit milah: Binyamin Ze'ev (2 May 1860 – 3 July 1904) was an Austro-Hungarian Jewish lawyer, journalist, playwright, political activist, and writer who was the father of modern p ...

Jewish state In world politics, Jewish state is a characterization of Israel as the nation-state and sovereign homeland of the Jewish people. Modern Israel came into existence on 14 May 1948 as a polity to serve as the homeland for the Jewish people. It ...

("Herzl's words, messages and concepts live on in ... The Gay State").

The Pink Panthers Movement

The gay rights activist group the Pink Panthers Movement (PPM) in Denver, Colorado, as well as their charters/chapters throughout the United States, including a large group located in Fresno, California, have identified themselves not only as radical and militant but also as queer nationalists. These formed several small parties throughout the United States and Canada that stand in solidarity only to those that identify as supporters of the old Queer Nation.

Research on queer nationalism

An advanced analysis was published 1996 by Brian Walker. In his article "Social Movements as Nationalisms, or, On the Very Idea of a Queer Nation", Walker points out that several features of the nationalistic creation of

cultural identity Cultural identity is a part of a person's identity, or their self-conception and self-perception, and is related to nationality, ethnicity, religion, social class, generation, locality or any kind of social group that has its own distinct cultur ...

apply to the LGBT national movement as well. Walker classifies queer nationalism as one of the new cultural forms of nationalism which are distinct from the old ethnic and religious types of nationalism and concludes that the gay and lesbian community fulfils many criteria to be regarded as a people for the following reasons: * All forms of nationalism began as social movements, which queer nationalism is—a group of people set apart from those around them by in-group attitudes and discrimination from others. * The gay community has a

culture Culture () is an umbrella term which encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, customs, capabilities, and habits of the individuals in these groups.Ty ...

, with distinct discussion groups, book stores, magazines, bars, cabarets and other such features. * It possesses a shared

history History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as we ...

and

literature Literature is any collection of written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially prose fiction, drama, and poetry. In recent centuries, the definition has expanded to includ ...

. Walker regards modern communication technologies such as the

Internet The Internet (or internet) is the global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a '' network of networks'' that consists of private, p ...

as offering a chance for the LGBT community to further integrate as a non-territorial nation. This thesis is supported by Paul Treanor, who considers an alternative (non-nationalist) world order possible. In this context, Treanor mentions the LGBT community as a "non-territorial nationalist movement".

Will Kymlicka William Kymlicka (; born 1962) is a Canadian political philosopher best known for his work on multiculturalism and animal ethics. He is currently Professor of Philosophy and Canada Research Chair in Political Philosophy at Queen's University ...

acknowledges that LGBT people have developed a group identity and group culture similar to those of ethnocultural groups, but he argues in favor of integration instead of separatism.Will Kymlicka: ''Can Multiculturalism Be Extended to Non-Ethnic Groups?'' in ''Finding our way: rethinking ethnocultural relations in Canada'' (Toronto: Oxford University Press, 1998), S. 90–101.

References

External links

Rethinking Nationalism
()

Gay Homeland Foundation
{{DEFAULTSORT:Queer Nationalism LGBT rights Independence movements Nationalism and gender Queer culture fr:Homonationalisme

Queer Nation

The Pink Panthers Movement

Research on queer nationalism

See also

References

Further reading

External links