Thomas Glave (Universidade: Massachusetts Institute of Technology)
This paper will explore and explicate the ways in which Our Caribbean: A Gathering of Lesbian and Gay Writing from the Antilles (Thomas Glave, ed.; Duke University Press, 2008) originated, why it has been viewed by so many as such an “unprecedented” text (which it in fact is), and the ways in which its presence can contribute to – and significantly impact – the literary, intellectual, and political landscapes of the (black, brown, yellow, and white) Caribbean and its diasporas. Among the questions to be considered: in speaking of reconfiguring and reimagining the region known today as the “Caribbean,” what challenges can a queer Caribbean anthology present across cultural scenarios in which notions about “black”-ness as an identity have sometimes been (mis-)used as racial and cultural “authenticity” measures in nationalist, sometimes xenophobic movements? What challenges might this text present in Caribbean contexts in which extant queer theory (authored primarily by non-Caribbean scholars and writers), is infrequently invoked in discussion of the region’s lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender writers, such as Dionne Brand, Michelle Cliff, H. Nigel Thomas, Patricia Powell? What sort of reconfiguring and reimagining might occur, by way of this text, given the fact that silence about same-gender sexual pleasure in the Caribbean region obtains more often than open, non-shaming discussions about same-gender sexual expression in a region where both fundamentalist religions and fiercely monitored gender norms continue to weigh heavily in public discourse? Might this anthology engender entirely new ways of discussing and viewing gender and sexuality in the region? This paper will explore these questions and more.
