Hola Papi: ‘Is Space Gay?’

Contents:

• WHY AREN'T THERE ANY OPENLY GAY ASTRONTS?
• GAYS. IN. SPACE! BOWEN YANG EXPLAS THE FIRE ISLAND B AND HIS OBSSN WH THE SNL SKETCH
• GAY BOYS
• GAYS SPACE: 6 QUEER SCI-FI BOOKS YOU SHOULD READ
• ABOUT IJURRABOUT IJURREDORIAL BOARDAUTHOR GUILLATT NEWSJOURNAL CONTENTCURRENT ISSUEEARLY VIEWPAST ISSUINTERVENTNSBT ARTICLE PRIZEWEB CONTENTSPOTLIGHT ONBOOK REVIEWSVIRTUAL ISSUINTERVIEWSTHE URBAN NOWLECTUR & EVENTSARCHIVEDAUTHORS MEET CRICSSYMPOSIASEARCHTHE FRGHT NATURE OF EXCEPTNAL GAY SPACHOME   SPOTLIGHT ON   QUEERG URBAN STUDI   THE FRGHT NATURE OF EXCEPTNAL GAY SPACHOW DO WE GGE THE GAY AND QUEER POTENTIAL OF CI AND URBAN SPAC? WHAT DO SIGNATNS OF GAY-IENDLS DO, OR SET MOTN? IS GAY-IENDLS A EFUL AMEWORK FOR UNRSTANDG “GAY LIFE” CI? IN THIS PIECE, I DRAW OM MY REARCH ON EVERYDAY LIFE DISPTNS AND QUEER STRATEGI BEIT TO CHALLENGE HOW “GAY SPAC” HAVE BEEN ED TO PROVI EXCEPTNAL NARRATIV ABOUT CI. I OFFER MY NCEPT OF “ACTAL ORIENTALISM” OR ORIENTALISMS WH THE SO-LLED MIDDLE EAST, TO ADDRS HOW POPULAR MEDIA AND SOME AMIC STUDI REPRODUCE AMEWORKS THAT RELY ON NARROW ASSUMPTNS ABOUT WHAT GAY AND GAY-IENDLY SPAC ARE OR ENTAIL. AMIC STUDI AND JOURNALISTIC ACUNTS THAT ADDRS QUEER URBAN SPAC ALMOST EXCLIVELY EXPLORE GAY-MALE-DOMATED SPAC MAJOR CI AND METROPOLAN CENTERS. MOREOVER, EXISTG LERATURE PRIVILEG GAY SPAC THE GLOBAL NORTH, PARTICULARLY EURO-AMERIN CI, ALTHOUGH MORE RECENTLY THERE HAS BEEN A MOVE TO EXPLORE THE SPAC (OR THE POTENTIAL OF SUCH SPAC) THE GLOBAL SOUTH.MAR MIKHAEL DISTRICT, BEIT. PHOTO: GHASSAN MOSAWI.THE PROCS OF QUEERG URBAN SPACE THE GLOBAL SOUTH HAS OFTEN MEANT G SMOPOLAN URBAN CENTERS THE GLOBAL NORTH AS UNIVERSAL REFERENCE POTS. FOR EXAMPLE, BEIT HAS BEEN LLED THE PARIS OF THE MIDDLE EAST, THE SAN FRANCIS OF THE ARAB WORLD, AND MORE RECENTLY THE PROVCETOWN OF THE MIDDLE EAST. AS A JOURNALISTIC PRACTICE, CI THE GLOBAL SOUTH ARE MA TELLIGIBLE TO EURO-AMERIN DIENC BY PARG AND NTRASTG THEM TO EURO-AMERIN CI AND OTHER CI THE GLOBAL SOUTH. TO EXAME GAY SPAC, POPULAR MEDIA (AND SOME AMIC STUDI) OFTEN EXPLORE THE PRENCE OF GAYBORHOODS, GAY BARS, AND NIGHTLIFE THAT REMBLE THOSE EUROPE AND NORTH AMERI. IN ADDN, THEY LOOK FOR THE PRENCE OF “OUT” LGBT NGOS, MASTREAM GAY VISIBILY, AND LGBT-ANIZG STRATEGI THAT PRIMARILY FOC ON PRI AND G OUT. FOR EXAMPLE, THE TERNATNAL GAY TOUR-GUI SPARTAC INTERNATNAL, SCRIB BEIT AS GAY-IENDLY, BY CLAIMG THAT: “GAY BARS AND CLUBS OPERATE EELY AND AN LGBTQ CENTRE HAS BEEN CREATED TO TER TO ALL NEEDS OF THE [GAY] MUNY” (2016, 482).MANY JOURNALISTS AND SOME AMICS EUROPE AND NORTH AMERI APPEAR TO REGARD GAY SPAC THE GLOBAL SOUTH AS EXCEPTNAL BY VIRTUE OF BEG LOTED THE GLOBAL SOUTH. JOURNALISTS SEE THE GAY OR GAY-IENDLY SPAC AS EXCEPTNAL VIS-à-VIS SOME IMAGED TRANSREGNAL LANDSPE OF “GAY SPACE” EURO-AMERIN CI—WHICH THEY OFTEN REGARD AS THE NORM AND OTHERS AS THE EXCEPTN. TH, THEY EXPECT GAY SPAC THE GLOBAL SOUTH TO REMBLE THOSE THE GLOBAL NORTH (GAY BARS AND RABOW FLAGS), AND OFTEN IMPLY A UNILEAR MOL OF THE VELOPMENT OF “GAY SPACE”, WH CI THE SOUTH FOLLOWG THE EXAMPLE SET BY THOSE THE NORTH.FOR EXAMPLE, A NEW YORK TIM ARTICLE 2009, JOURNALIST PATRICK HEALY NAM BEIT “THE PROVCETOWN OF THE MIDDLE EAST,” FOR S SEEMGLY “NASCENT” GAY LIFE, WHILE DISTANCG OM OTHER (HOMOPHOBIC) CI THE ARAB WORLD. TO MARK “GAY LIFE” PARTS OF THE GLOBAL SOUTH AS “NEW” ERAS LOL HISTORI OF QUEER SPAC. IN ADDN, CENTERS WHE GAY FORMATNS EURO-AMERIN CI SUCH AS PROVCETOWN AS A METRIC TO MAKE CI THE GLOBAL SOUTH TELLIGIBLE TO EURO-AMERIN DIENC. THE NCEPT OF A PLACE BEG LABELED “GAY-IENDLY” OFTEN EXISTS THROUGH A RELATNAL PARISON TO SPAC PERCEIVED NOT TO BE GAY-IENDLY. BEIT IS HAILED AS “THE ARAB WORLD’S MOST GAY IENDLY CY,” “THE GAY PARADISE OF THE ARAB WORLD,” PROMISG TO “REPRENT A DIFFERENT MIDDLE EAST FOR SOME GAY AND LBIAN ARABS.” BEIT BE “GAY IENDLY,” AS IS SIMULTANEOLY PARED TO AND DISTANCED OM BOTH EURO-AMERIN CI, AND THE RT OF THE PRUMED HOMOPHOBIC ARAB AND MLIM WORLD. HEALY (2009: 3) CLAIMS, “BEIT REPRENTS A DIFFERENT MIDDLE EAST FOR SOME GAY AND LBIAN ARABS: THE ONLY PLACE THE REGN WHERE THEY N OPENLY ENJOY A SOCIAL LIFE NIED THEM AT HOME”. SPARTAC INTERNATNAL CLAIMS MORE EXPLICLY THAT BEIT IS “THE LARGT CY AND THE MOST LIBERAL URBAN CENTRE THE UNTRY, THE LAST BIG CY EUROPEAN TERMS BEFORE THE SERT” (2011, 578).SUCH AN APPROACH OVERLOOKS A NUMBER OF ISSU: FIRST, ASSUM A HOMOGENO SPATIAL FORMATN OF “GAY SPACE” THAT IS BASED ON AN IMAGED (WHE) EURO-AMERIN URBAN UNIVERSAL AND THAT LEAR NARRATIV OF PROGRS – WHERE EURO-AMERIN CI ARE SEEN AS “LIBERAL”. SEND, GLOSS OVER THE EXCLNARY NATURE OF WHE GAY SPAC EVERYWHERE – PECIALLY WHEN TO RACE, GENR, AND CLASS – AND MORE OFTEN THAN NOT ELIS THE POLIL ENOMI OF GAY SPACE. FALLY, THIS APPROACH LLAPS “GAY” AND “QUEER,” AND THEM TERCHANGEABLY.PRI PARA. PHOTO: QUO AL.ARE GAY SPAC REALLY EXCEPTNAL?DPE THE VAST LERATURE THAT HAS SHOWN THAT GAY SPAC EURO-AMERIN CI TEND TO BE EXCLNARY – WHE, MIDDLE-CLASS, AND GENR-NORMATIVE SPAC – WE STILL SEEK TO FD THEM URBAN SETTGS AND EMPLOY THEM AS SIGNS OF A SOCIETY’S “PROGRSIVENS.” THIS REPRODUC ASSUMPTNS THAT CI THEMSELV ARE PROGRSIVE, “OPEN,” AND “TOLERANT” TO DIFFERENCE. MOREOVER, MASTREAM GAY SPAC (SUCH AS BARS, PRI PARAS, ETC.) ARE TREATED AS SIGNS OF “PROGRS,” AND “EQUALY,” WHILE FACT, THEIR PRENCE IS ALWAYS NTTED BASED ON THE MULTIPLE EXCLNS THAT NSTUTE AND ARE NSTUTIVE OF THEM. GAY SPAC, AND OF THEMSELV, DO NOT TELL MUCH ABOUT “PROGRS.” WH EURO-AMERIN CI, QUEER PEOPLE OF LOR HAVE HISTORILLY CREATED – AND NTUE TO CREATE – THEIR OWN SPAC (SUCH AS DANCE PARTI AND ACTIVIST CIRCL) THAT DO NOT GET ACUNTED FOR WHEN WRG ABOUT “GAY SPAC,” OR THE “GAY IENDLS” OF CI. PERCEPTNS OF BEIT AND S GAY SPAC, SUCH AS THOSE REPRENTED BY HEALY AND OTHERS, PRENT A PRIME EXAMPLE OF THIS FLAWED LOGIC. IN MY FORTHG BOOK, DISPTIVE SUATNS: FRACTAL ORIENTALISM AND QUEER STRATEGI BEIT, I ARGUE THAT REPRENTATNS OF BEIT AS GAY-IENDLY ARE MA POSSIBLE THROUGH WHAT I LL “ACTAL ORIENTALISM.” UNLIKE CLASSIC ORIENTALISM, WHICH SIMPLE BARI OF EAST AND WT, ACTAL ORIENTALISM IS MULTI-SLAR AND EMPLOYS NTED BARI TO SIMULTANEOLY PRODUCE THE SAME DISTCTNS OF WT/EAST ON MULTIPLE LEVELS. FRACTALS OR “NTED DICHOTOMI” AS ANALYTICS ARE MULTI-SLAR. TH, ACTAL ORIENTALISM SIMULTANEOLY OPERAT ON MULTIPLE SL OF HEMISPHERE, NATN/STATE, URBAN/RAL, AND NEIGHBORHOOD. FOR EXAMPLE, REPRENTS THE WT AS MORE PROGRSIVE THAN THE MIDDLE EAST, EVEN AS REPRENTS LEBANON AS MORE “PROGRSIVE” THAN OTHER ARAB MIDDLE EASTERN UNTRI, AND BEIT AS MORE “GAY-IENDLY” THAN THE RT OF LEBANON. THE DISTCTNS EXTEND TO CLASSIFY DIFFERENT AREAS WH BEIT, REPRENTG NEIGHBORHOODS THAT ARE PREDOMANTLY MLIM AS LS OPEN THAN THEIR CHRISTIAN UNTERPARTS. MOREOVER, REGARDS SECULARISTS AND CHRISTIANS AS MORE “APPROPRIATE GAY SUBJECTS” THAN MLIMS. APPLIED ELSEWHERE, ACTALS DISTGUISH BETWEEN RAL AND URBAN SPATIAL FORMATNS, REPRENTG GAY-IENDLS AS UNIQUE TO CERTA URBAN SPAC.FRACTAL ORIENTALISM REVEALS HOW CI ARE OFTEN PARED AND NTRASTED TO ONE OTHER WHEN SIGNATG GAY SPAC. AS A PRACTICE, DISTANC BEIT OM BOTH S EURO-AMERIN AND ARAB UNTERPARTS—S GAY LIFE IS NOT EXACTLY THAT OF PARIS, YET IS NOT AMMAN NOR DAMASC. FOR EXAMPLE, DUTCH REPORTER JURRIAAN TUELGS (2010) CLAIMS: “AT THE CY’S TWO MA GAY CLUBS, MILK AND ACID, A MIX OF LEBANE, SYRIAN, JORDANIAN, KUWAI AND EVEN SOME IRAQI MEN DISPROVE ANY REMAG THEORY OF CULTURAL RELATIVISM. THAT IS TO SAY, ONCE SI PEOPLE DON’T BEHAVE DIFFERENTLY OM ANY OTHER GAY CLUB THE WORLD – WH THE POSSIBLE EXCEPTN OF THE OCSNAL MALE BELLY DANCE. BUT THIS BEG THE MIDDLE EAST, MOST OF THE MEN ARE CLOSETED” (103, EMPHASIS ADD). LEAVG GEOGRAPHIL NTEXT ASI, BEIT MIGHT NOT BE AS EXCEPTNAL AS IS REPRENTED.WHEN JOURNALISTS ASSUME THAT THE EXISTENCE OF “GAY-IENDLY” SPAC IS SYNONYMO WH SOCIETAL OPENNS AND PROGRS, THEY RISK ERASG OR IGNORG EXCLNARY STATE PRACTIC AROUND NON-NORMATIVE AND MORIZED POPULATNS. FOR EXAMPLE, WHEN THEY SCRIBE BEIT AS OPEN AND “TOLERANT” TO DIFFERENCE, THEY DO NOT ACUNT FOR S RACIST, SEXIST, AND XENOPHOBIC REALI AND POLICI – PARTICULARLY AGAST SYRIAN AND PALTIAN REFUGE, WORKG-CLASS DIVIDUALS, AND GENR NON-NORMATIVE AND TRANS PEOPLE. THIS FLATTENED PERCEPTN OF BEIT’S OPENNS TO “DIVERSY” OBSCUR THE POLIL ENOMY OF GAY SPAC. APPROACHG GAY SPAC THROUGH THE LENS OF POLIL ENOMY CENTRALIZ WHO HAS ACCS TO SUCH SPAC, SUCH AS THOSE WHO N PAY. IN ADDN, PAYS ATTENTN TO WHICH POPULATNS ARE UALLY TARGETED BY THE STATE. FOR EXAMPLE, THE 2013 POLICE RAID AND CLOSG OF THE GAY CLUB GHOST BEIT, POLICE TAED, HUIATED, AND VERBALLY AND PHYSILLY ABED SEVERAL GAY AND TRANS DIVIDUALS: MOST NOTABLY WORKG-CLASS AND GENR-NONNORMATIVE DIVIDUALS, AND SYRIAN NATNALS AND REFUGE. SUCH ACUNTS GET ERASED TALKG ABOUT “GAY BEIT,” TO THE EXTENT THAT BEIT’S “OPENNS” TO WHE GAY TRAVELERS IS MA POSSIBLE BY SUCH EXCLNARY PRACTIC AGAST UNSIRABLE GENRED, RACIALIZED, AND CLASSED OTHERS.BEIT SKYLE CY VIEW. PHOTO: GE AUFFARTH.VISIBLY GAY SPACE VS QUEERG SPACE
• ‘IS SPACE GAY?’
• LONDON'S LANDMARK BUILDG DOTTED WH STRIP CLUBS, GAY VENU TO TURN TO MOSQUE

WHY AREN'T THERE ANY OPENLY GAY ASTRONTS?

Only one is publicly known to have been gay or bisexual — Sally Ri — and she kept private until her ath, yterday (July 23), when her obuary on the Sally Ri Science anizatn's webse stated that Ri was survived by Tam O'Shghnsy, her "partner of 27 years.

GAYS. IN. SPACE! BOWEN YANG EXPLAS THE FIRE ISLAND B AND HIS OBSSN WH THE SNL SKETCH

"I hope mak easier for kids growg up gay that they know that another one of their hero was like them, " Bear Ri, who intifi as gay, told Buzzfeed Rights Campaign print Chad Griff ncurred, tellg Buzzfeed, "The fact that Sally Ri was a lbian will further help round out Amerins' unrstandg of the ntributns of LGBT Amerins to our untry. But the lack of even one openly gay or lbian astront the history of Amerin spaceflight may reflect the culture at the NASA astront office. Still, the fact remas that no astronts have ever e out as gay or lbian, while many astronts clu mentn of their hbands, wiv or children on their NASA official bgraphy pag.

)Cassutt said even though he spects there are or have been some other gay or lbian astronts, and spe of the progrs ma on LGBT issu, "I don't expect anyone the current rps to be 'out' any time soon, assumg anyone is gay. ' While there are a great many more people who are openly gay today, we are not yet to a pot of universal acceptance, " he is also the fact that 219 of the 330 current and former astronts served the ary, acrdg to NASA. Ary operated unr a "don't ask, don't tell" (DADT) policy om 1993 until 2011, unr which gay and lbian servicemen and women had to rema closeted or risk expulsn.

GAY BOYS

The repeal of DADT last year allowed gays and lbians to serve openly the U.

Gays. One of Bowen Yang's favore Saturday Night Live sketch of all time to this day is Gays Space, the recurrg b wrten by Jam Anrson that started 2005 as a fake sci-fi show on the Tr work.

A glzed-out Maya Rudolph would perform the openg theme song before each stallment, focg on the adventur of a gay spachip crew, ptaed by the host of the week.

GAYS SPACE: 6 QUEER SCI-FI BOOKS YOU SHOULD READ

It's not a cince that Fire Island, the new rom- Yang stars wh creator Joel Kim Booster, referenc Gays Space.

" FIRE ISLAND, SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE Joel Kim Booster and Bowen Yang discs the "Gays Space" b 'Fire Island. Yang's Howie falls for a doctor named Charlie (Jam Scully), and the two fd themselv flirtg poolsi at a hoe party while Howie explas Gays Space to him as Booster's Noah arriv on the scene. "There's an even more extend versn where we talk pth about Gays Space.

We would watch Gays Space on a slow, borg night when we would jt hang out. " Booster now stars on Apple TV+ s Loot wh Rudolph, and he says they bond over Gays Space. He nsirs her "a gay in.

ABOUT IJURRABOUT IJURREDORIAL BOARDAUTHOR GUILLATT NEWSJOURNAL CONTENTCURRENT ISSUEEARLY VIEWPAST ISSUINTERVENTNSBT ARTICLE PRIZEWEB CONTENTSPOTLIGHT ONBOOK REVIEWSVIRTUAL ISSUINTERVIEWSTHE URBAN NOWLECTUR & EVENTSARCHIVEDAUTHORS MEET CRICSSYMPOSIASEARCHTHE FRGHT NATURE OF EXCEPTNAL GAY SPACHOME   SPOTLIGHT ON   QUEERG URBAN STUDI   THE FRGHT NATURE OF EXCEPTNAL GAY SPACHOW DO WE GGE THE GAY AND QUEER POTENTIAL OF CI AND URBAN SPAC? WHAT DO SIGNATNS OF GAY-IENDLS DO, OR SET MOTN? IS GAY-IENDLS A EFUL AMEWORK FOR UNRSTANDG “GAY LIFE” CI? IN THIS PIECE, I DRAW OM MY REARCH ON EVERYDAY LIFE DISPTNS AND QUEER STRATEGI BEIT TO CHALLENGE HOW “GAY SPAC” HAVE BEEN ED TO PROVI EXCEPTNAL NARRATIV ABOUT CI. I OFFER MY NCEPT OF “ACTAL ORIENTALISM” OR ORIENTALISMS WH THE SO-LLED MIDDLE EAST, TO ADDRS HOW POPULAR MEDIA AND SOME AMIC STUDI REPRODUCE AMEWORKS THAT RELY ON NARROW ASSUMPTNS ABOUT WHAT GAY AND GAY-IENDLY SPAC ARE OR ENTAIL. AMIC STUDI AND JOURNALISTIC ACUNTS THAT ADDRS QUEER URBAN SPAC ALMOST EXCLIVELY EXPLORE GAY-MALE-DOMATED SPAC MAJOR CI AND METROPOLAN CENTERS. MOREOVER, EXISTG LERATURE PRIVILEG GAY SPAC THE GLOBAL NORTH, PARTICULARLY EURO-AMERIN CI, ALTHOUGH MORE RECENTLY THERE HAS BEEN A MOVE TO EXPLORE THE SPAC (OR THE POTENTIAL OF SUCH SPAC) THE GLOBAL SOUTH.MAR MIKHAEL DISTRICT, BEIT. PHOTO: GHASSAN MOSAWI.THE PROCS OF QUEERG URBAN SPACE THE GLOBAL SOUTH HAS OFTEN MEANT G SMOPOLAN URBAN CENTERS THE GLOBAL NORTH AS UNIVERSAL REFERENCE POTS. FOR EXAMPLE, BEIT HAS BEEN LLED THE PARIS OF THE MIDDLE EAST, THE SAN FRANCIS OF THE ARAB WORLD, AND MORE RECENTLY THE PROVCETOWN OF THE MIDDLE EAST. AS A JOURNALISTIC PRACTICE, CI THE GLOBAL SOUTH ARE MA TELLIGIBLE TO EURO-AMERIN DIENC BY PARG AND NTRASTG THEM TO EURO-AMERIN CI AND OTHER CI THE GLOBAL SOUTH. TO EXAME GAY SPAC, POPULAR MEDIA (AND SOME AMIC STUDI) OFTEN EXPLORE THE PRENCE OF GAYBORHOODS, GAY BARS, AND NIGHTLIFE THAT REMBLE THOSE EUROPE AND NORTH AMERI. IN ADDN, THEY LOOK FOR THE PRENCE OF “OUT” LGBT NGOS, MASTREAM GAY VISIBILY, AND LGBT-ANIZG STRATEGI THAT PRIMARILY FOC ON PRI AND G OUT. FOR EXAMPLE, THE TERNATNAL GAY TOUR-GUI SPARTAC INTERNATNAL, SCRIB BEIT AS GAY-IENDLY, BY CLAIMG THAT: “GAY BARS AND CLUBS OPERATE EELY AND AN LGBTQ CENTRE HAS BEEN CREATED TO TER TO ALL NEEDS OF THE [GAY] MUNY” (2016, 482).MANY JOURNALISTS AND SOME AMICS EUROPE AND NORTH AMERI APPEAR TO REGARD GAY SPAC THE GLOBAL SOUTH AS EXCEPTNAL BY VIRTUE OF BEG LOTED THE GLOBAL SOUTH. JOURNALISTS SEE THE GAY OR GAY-IENDLY SPAC AS EXCEPTNAL VIS-à-VIS SOME IMAGED TRANSREGNAL LANDSPE OF “GAY SPACE” EURO-AMERIN CI—WHICH THEY OFTEN REGARD AS THE NORM AND OTHERS AS THE EXCEPTN. TH, THEY EXPECT GAY SPAC THE GLOBAL SOUTH TO REMBLE THOSE THE GLOBAL NORTH (GAY BARS AND RABOW FLAGS), AND OFTEN IMPLY A UNILEAR MOL OF THE VELOPMENT OF “GAY SPACE”, WH CI THE SOUTH FOLLOWG THE EXAMPLE SET BY THOSE THE NORTH.FOR EXAMPLE, A NEW YORK TIM ARTICLE 2009, JOURNALIST PATRICK HEALY NAM BEIT “THE PROVCETOWN OF THE MIDDLE EAST,” FOR S SEEMGLY “NASCENT” GAY LIFE, WHILE DISTANCG OM OTHER (HOMOPHOBIC) CI THE ARAB WORLD. TO MARK “GAY LIFE” PARTS OF THE GLOBAL SOUTH AS “NEW” ERAS LOL HISTORI OF QUEER SPAC. IN ADDN, CENTERS WHE GAY FORMATNS EURO-AMERIN CI SUCH AS PROVCETOWN AS A METRIC TO MAKE CI THE GLOBAL SOUTH TELLIGIBLE TO EURO-AMERIN DIENC. THE NCEPT OF A PLACE BEG LABELED “GAY-IENDLY” OFTEN EXISTS THROUGH A RELATNAL PARISON TO SPAC PERCEIVED NOT TO BE GAY-IENDLY. BEIT IS HAILED AS “THE ARAB WORLD’S MOST GAY IENDLY CY,” “THE GAY PARADISE OF THE ARAB WORLD,” PROMISG TO “REPRENT A DIFFERENT MIDDLE EAST FOR SOME GAY AND LBIAN ARABS.” BEIT BE “GAY IENDLY,” AS IS SIMULTANEOLY PARED TO AND DISTANCED OM BOTH EURO-AMERIN CI, AND THE RT OF THE PRUMED HOMOPHOBIC ARAB AND MLIM WORLD. HEALY (2009: 3) CLAIMS, “BEIT REPRENTS A DIFFERENT MIDDLE EAST FOR SOME GAY AND LBIAN ARABS: THE ONLY PLACE THE REGN WHERE THEY N OPENLY ENJOY A SOCIAL LIFE NIED THEM AT HOME”. SPARTAC INTERNATNAL CLAIMS MORE EXPLICLY THAT BEIT IS “THE LARGT CY AND THE MOST LIBERAL URBAN CENTRE THE UNTRY, THE LAST BIG CY EUROPEAN TERMS BEFORE THE SERT” (2011, 578).SUCH AN APPROACH OVERLOOKS A NUMBER OF ISSU: FIRST, ASSUM A HOMOGENO SPATIAL FORMATN OF “GAY SPACE” THAT IS BASED ON AN IMAGED (WHE) EURO-AMERIN URBAN UNIVERSAL AND THAT LEAR NARRATIV OF PROGRS – WHERE EURO-AMERIN CI ARE SEEN AS “LIBERAL”. SEND, GLOSS OVER THE EXCLNARY NATURE OF WHE GAY SPAC EVERYWHERE – PECIALLY WHEN TO RACE, GENR, AND CLASS – AND MORE OFTEN THAN NOT ELIS THE POLIL ENOMI OF GAY SPACE. FALLY, THIS APPROACH LLAPS “GAY” AND “QUEER,” AND THEM TERCHANGEABLY.PRI PARA. PHOTO: QUO AL.ARE GAY SPAC REALLY EXCEPTNAL?DPE THE VAST LERATURE THAT HAS SHOWN THAT GAY SPAC EURO-AMERIN CI TEND TO BE EXCLNARY – WHE, MIDDLE-CLASS, AND GENR-NORMATIVE SPAC – WE STILL SEEK TO FD THEM URBAN SETTGS AND EMPLOY THEM AS SIGNS OF A SOCIETY’S “PROGRSIVENS.” THIS REPRODUC ASSUMPTNS THAT CI THEMSELV ARE PROGRSIVE, “OPEN,” AND “TOLERANT” TO DIFFERENCE. MOREOVER, MASTREAM GAY SPAC (SUCH AS BARS, PRI PARAS, ETC.) ARE TREATED AS SIGNS OF “PROGRS,” AND “EQUALY,” WHILE FACT, THEIR PRENCE IS ALWAYS NTTED BASED ON THE MULTIPLE EXCLNS THAT NSTUTE AND ARE NSTUTIVE OF THEM. GAY SPAC, AND OF THEMSELV, DO NOT TELL MUCH ABOUT “PROGRS.” WH EURO-AMERIN CI, QUEER PEOPLE OF LOR HAVE HISTORILLY CREATED – AND NTUE TO CREATE – THEIR OWN SPAC (SUCH AS DANCE PARTI AND ACTIVIST CIRCL) THAT DO NOT GET ACUNTED FOR WHEN WRG ABOUT “GAY SPAC,” OR THE “GAY IENDLS” OF CI. PERCEPTNS OF BEIT AND S GAY SPAC, SUCH AS THOSE REPRENTED BY HEALY AND OTHERS, PRENT A PRIME EXAMPLE OF THIS FLAWED LOGIC. IN MY FORTHG BOOK, DISPTIVE SUATNS: FRACTAL ORIENTALISM AND QUEER STRATEGI BEIT, I ARGUE THAT REPRENTATNS OF BEIT AS GAY-IENDLY ARE MA POSSIBLE THROUGH WHAT I LL “ACTAL ORIENTALISM.” UNLIKE CLASSIC ORIENTALISM, WHICH SIMPLE BARI OF EAST AND WT, ACTAL ORIENTALISM IS MULTI-SLAR AND EMPLOYS NTED BARI TO SIMULTANEOLY PRODUCE THE SAME DISTCTNS OF WT/EAST ON MULTIPLE LEVELS. FRACTALS OR “NTED DICHOTOMI” AS ANALYTICS ARE MULTI-SLAR. TH, ACTAL ORIENTALISM SIMULTANEOLY OPERAT ON MULTIPLE SL OF HEMISPHERE, NATN/STATE, URBAN/RAL, AND NEIGHBORHOOD. FOR EXAMPLE, REPRENTS THE WT AS MORE PROGRSIVE THAN THE MIDDLE EAST, EVEN AS REPRENTS LEBANON AS MORE “PROGRSIVE” THAN OTHER ARAB MIDDLE EASTERN UNTRI, AND BEIT AS MORE “GAY-IENDLY” THAN THE RT OF LEBANON. THE DISTCTNS EXTEND TO CLASSIFY DIFFERENT AREAS WH BEIT, REPRENTG NEIGHBORHOODS THAT ARE PREDOMANTLY MLIM AS LS OPEN THAN THEIR CHRISTIAN UNTERPARTS. MOREOVER, REGARDS SECULARISTS AND CHRISTIANS AS MORE “APPROPRIATE GAY SUBJECTS” THAN MLIMS. APPLIED ELSEWHERE, ACTALS DISTGUISH BETWEEN RAL AND URBAN SPATIAL FORMATNS, REPRENTG GAY-IENDLS AS UNIQUE TO CERTA URBAN SPAC.FRACTAL ORIENTALISM REVEALS HOW CI ARE OFTEN PARED AND NTRASTED TO ONE OTHER WHEN SIGNATG GAY SPAC. AS A PRACTICE, DISTANC BEIT OM BOTH S EURO-AMERIN AND ARAB UNTERPARTS—S GAY LIFE IS NOT EXACTLY THAT OF PARIS, YET IS NOT AMMAN NOR DAMASC. FOR EXAMPLE, DUTCH REPORTER JURRIAAN TUELGS (2010) CLAIMS: “AT THE CY’S TWO MA GAY CLUBS, MILK AND ACID, A MIX OF LEBANE, SYRIAN, JORDANIAN, KUWAI AND EVEN SOME IRAQI MEN DISPROVE ANY REMAG THEORY OF CULTURAL RELATIVISM. THAT IS TO SAY, ONCE SI PEOPLE DON’T BEHAVE DIFFERENTLY OM ANY OTHER GAY CLUB THE WORLD – WH THE POSSIBLE EXCEPTN OF THE OCSNAL MALE BELLY DANCE. BUT THIS BEG THE MIDDLE EAST, MOST OF THE MEN ARE CLOSETED” (103, EMPHASIS ADD). LEAVG GEOGRAPHIL NTEXT ASI, BEIT MIGHT NOT BE AS EXCEPTNAL AS IS REPRENTED.WHEN JOURNALISTS ASSUME THAT THE EXISTENCE OF “GAY-IENDLY” SPAC IS SYNONYMO WH SOCIETAL OPENNS AND PROGRS, THEY RISK ERASG OR IGNORG EXCLNARY STATE PRACTIC AROUND NON-NORMATIVE AND MORIZED POPULATNS. FOR EXAMPLE, WHEN THEY SCRIBE BEIT AS OPEN AND “TOLERANT” TO DIFFERENCE, THEY DO NOT ACUNT FOR S RACIST, SEXIST, AND XENOPHOBIC REALI AND POLICI – PARTICULARLY AGAST SYRIAN AND PALTIAN REFUGE, WORKG-CLASS DIVIDUALS, AND GENR NON-NORMATIVE AND TRANS PEOPLE. THIS FLATTENED PERCEPTN OF BEIT’S OPENNS TO “DIVERSY” OBSCUR THE POLIL ENOMY OF GAY SPAC. APPROACHG GAY SPAC THROUGH THE LENS OF POLIL ENOMY CENTRALIZ WHO HAS ACCS TO SUCH SPAC, SUCH AS THOSE WHO N PAY. IN ADDN, PAYS ATTENTN TO WHICH POPULATNS ARE UALLY TARGETED BY THE STATE. FOR EXAMPLE, THE 2013 POLICE RAID AND CLOSG OF THE GAY CLUB GHOST BEIT, POLICE TAED, HUIATED, AND VERBALLY AND PHYSILLY ABED SEVERAL GAY AND TRANS DIVIDUALS: MOST NOTABLY WORKG-CLASS AND GENR-NONNORMATIVE DIVIDUALS, AND SYRIAN NATNALS AND REFUGE. SUCH ACUNTS GET ERASED TALKG ABOUT “GAY BEIT,” TO THE EXTENT THAT BEIT’S “OPENNS” TO WHE GAY TRAVELERS IS MA POSSIBLE BY SUCH EXCLNARY PRACTIC AGAST UNSIRABLE GENRED, RACIALIZED, AND CLASSED OTHERS.BEIT SKYLE CY VIEW. PHOTO: GE AUFFARTH.VISIBLY GAY SPACE VS QUEERG SPACE

Related ntent: The rise of the gay rom-: Fire Island's Joel Kim Booster & Bros' Billy Eichner refe the genreFire Island review: Pri and Prejudice go to the P a lively gay updatePolaroids om the set of gay rom- Fire Island are a nnectn to the beach getaway's past Episo Reps Fire Island (screen grab) CR: Logo TV S1 E7 Rep Fire Island fale rep: 'New Day, New Rosé' By Brian Moylan Fire Island Episo 106 (screen grab) CR: Logo TV S1 E6 Rep Fire Island rep: 'Mercury Is Retrogra' By Brian Moylan Fire Island Episo 105 (screen grab) CR: Logo TV S1 E5 Rep Fire Island rep: 'I Love My Boys' By Brian Moylan Fire Island CR: Logo TV S1 E4 Rep Fire Island rep: 'Let's Go to Tea' By Brian Moylan Fire Island Season 1 Ep 3 (screen grab) CR: Logo TV S1 E3 Rep Fire Island rep: 'Not the Face' By Brian Moylan Fire Island Ep. The Cal State Fullerton assistant profsor of Amerin studi is the -primary vtigator and ntent manager of the newly lnched Mappg the Gay Guis project, which plots gay spac listed Bob Damron’s Addrs Books on a digal map.

The Damron books are a seri of travel guis for gay and queer travelers datg back to the 1960s.

‘IS SPACE GAY?’

Listgs clu bars, cktail loung, bookstor, rtrants, bathho, cemas and other tablishments that ter to gays. “When we thk about gay history, we often thk of San Francis or New York. But there’s plenty of amazg gay history outsi those ci, ” said Gonzaba, notg that even a Waffle Hoe his home state of Indiana is listed as a former gay space.

Ameri’s ‘Collapsg Gay Geography’.

LONDON'S LANDMARK BUILDG DOTTED WH STRIP CLUBS, GAY VENU TO TURN TO MOSQUE

“Gayborhoods have long been thought of as dyg, ” said Gonzaba, who personally observed this while a doctoral stunt at Gee Mason Universy.

Was losg gay bars right and left. Do that mean that there’s no more gay culture?

“Perhaps this kd of physil space isn’t need anymore, whereas the ’60s and ’70s, was really important for gay men to have a bar their neighborhood or to vis a cy that had a space jt for them. Mappg the Gay Guis, wh s tent of offerg sight to the queer world, is fund by a Rearch, Scholarship and Creative Activy Incentive Grant om the California State Universy Chancellor’s Office.

The rearchers pot out that the Damron addrs books are not a perfect source — they largely unrstand the gay world om the perspective of a San Francisn, whe gay man — but they are perhaps the most prolific set of listgs spanng six s.

“But they give a platform to beg havg nversatns about this llapsg gay geography. For example, the rearch team was surprised to fd more than 7, 000 listgs for gay spac the South, between 1965 to 1980.

“We’re shocked by the sheer number of listgs the South, which people thk of as herently homophobic. Damron’s guis suggt there was plenty of gay culture the South, even before Stonewall.