Publication
Title
"A community… sounds like communism": notions of gay community and "community belonging contradiction" among Bulgarian non-heterosexual males
Author
Abstract
The term "gay community" has been criticized for its inability to explain the pluralities in a specific cultural and political context. Based on in-depth interviews with 63 non-heterosexual males in Bulgaria, this study aims to revisit the theories of gay communities in a non-Western, post-communist context. The data from this study suggest that (1) the idea of a "gay community" is often rejected due to anti-communist notions and explicit engagement with individualism as anti-communitarianism; (2) belonging to a gay community is subjective, and initial verbal detachment from gay communities does not indicate a lack of factual belonging to such communities; (3) the concepts of "personal communities" and "family of choice" remain relatively irrelevant in the Bulgarian context; (4) the most significant factor for attachment to a gay community is the notion of "gay culture" and "gay scene"; (5) recent forms of "sexual attachments" have led to a certain political involvement; and (6) the "anti-gender campaigns" have revitalized the importance of gay communities and have brought an increasing number of respondents to certain involvement in gay communities and networks, challenging the theories of "post-gay" societies.
Language
English
Source (journal)
Journal of homosexuality. - New York, N.Y., 1974, currens
Publication
Abingdon : Routledge journals, taylor & francis ltd , 2023
ISSN
0091-8369 [print]
1540-3602 [online]
DOI
10.1080/00918369.2023.2275302
Volume/pages
(2023) , p. 1-26
ISI
001095012100001
Pubmed ID
37921787
Full text (Publisher's DOI)
Full text (open access)
UAntwerpen
Faculty/Department
Research group
Publication type
Subject
Affiliation
Publications with a UAntwerp address
External links
Web of Science
Record
Identifier
Creation 04.12.2023
Last edited 07.12.2023
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