Enacting intimate citizenship
The couple migrations of East European queers
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 24226283 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Francesca Stella (0000-0003-2384-0435, University of Glasgow) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Pages | 1-20 |
| Publication date | 2026-08-31 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | New Community (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0047-9586 • E-ISSN: 1469-9451 |
| Publisher | Informa UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/1369183x.2026.2708440 |
| OpenAlex | W7204783399 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 3 |
| References cited | 32 |
The topic of how uneven legal recognition for queer couples across international borders relates to migration remains underexplored in the literature. Existing work pays limited attention to how uneven geographical access to LGBTQIA+ family rights may shape mobility patterns and aspirations for queer migrant couples. The article explores these issues in the context of intra-European migration, drawing on research with East Europeans living in Scotland, UK prior to Brexit. It foregrounds the role of migration status and social class in how access to LGBTQIA+ family rights shapes mobility patterns and aspirations. While gaining access to LGBTQIA+ family rights through migration was important for many queer couples, the article argues that migrants’ legal status mediates possibilities for intimate citizenship. Mixed-status couples experienced borders as hard and had to ‘labour to become legal’, while EU migrant couples did not face the same struggles because of their privileged mobility rights. By exploring the experiences of queer migrants from diverse class backgrounds and foregrounding the complexities of class in migration processes, the article also interrogates the association between LGBTQIA+ family rights and class privilege foregrounded in most of the literature on queer couple migration.
Brexit · Eastern European migrants · intimate citizenship · intra-European migration · legal recognition of same-sex unions · migration status · right to mobility · Scotland · Social class · Diaspora, migration, transnational identity · Gender and Feminist Studies · Migration, Refugees, and Integration
Queer marriage migration beyond the couple
Fragmented identities
Same-sex marriage and migration
The New Homonormativity
Ambivalent Homonationalisms
Intimate citizenship
A lesbian, gay and bisexual migration tale
Family‐related migration
Social Class and International Migration
Lesbian and gay parents' sexual citizenship
Sexualities and class in transnational family practices of LGB migrants in Belgium and the Netherlands
II. ‘Marriage-Like’ or Married? Lesbian and Gay Marriage, Partnership and Migration
Sexuality and immigration
Jigsaw Migration
The Square of Intimate Citizenship
Social networks, language and identity negotiations among queer migrants in Scotland
Like a Bomb in the Gasoline Station
Sexuality, Migration, and the Shifting Line Between Legal and Illegal Status
Migration and queer mobilisations
Class, mobility and inequality in the lives of same-sex couples with mixed legal statuses
Homing desires
Non-Heteronormative Reproductive Tactics in Poland
Migration, immigration controls and the fashioning of precarious workers
Global Multiple Migration
Transnational spaces of class
| Citations per year | 3 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2026 - 2026 (1) |
| Highly cited | No |