Rights and representations: querying the male-to-male sexual subject in India

Cult Health Sex. 2011 Jan;13(1):89-100. doi: 10.1080/13691058.2010.515317.

Abstract

Same-sex sexualities in India have been portrayed in research and activism as socially marginal and minoritarian. Whilst proceeding from a commitment to the political utility of such a view, this paper questions such a standpoint. Drawing on ethnographic research conducted in different sites, the paper considers male-to-male sexualities as enacted and implicated in the production of ostensibly heteronormative spaces. This, in turn, raises questions about the representation of the queer or same-sex sexual subject in law and HIV prevention, especially in the context of post-colonial perspectives on sexuality.

MeSH terms

  • Anthropology, Cultural
  • Gender Identity
  • Homosexuality, Male / psychology*
  • Human Rights / legislation & jurisprudence
  • Human Rights / psychology*
  • Humans
  • India
  • Male
  • Masculinity*
  • Politics
  • Power, Psychological
  • Prejudice*
  • Social Perception