Queer Sinophone Malaysia

Language, Transnational Activism, and the Role of Taiwan

Bibliographic Data

ID3636670
AuthorsT F Yu (0000-0001-5236-1893, Monash University Malaysia, Subang Jaya, Malaysia, corresponding author), Ting-Fai Yu
Year2022
Volume43
Issue3
Pages303-318
Publication date2022-05-04
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournal of Intercultural Studies (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0725-6868 • E-ISSN: 1469-9540
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/07256868.2022.2010681
OpenAlexW4200345981
LanguageEN
Citations received5
References cited46

Unlike the queer formations resulting from racialised organising especially those in the Global North, this paper demonstrates the ways in which language, especially Chinese, is often a more functional identity marker than race or ethnicity in the community lives of LGBT Malaysians. This is evident in how queer advocacy groups are publicised as language-specific entities, calling themselves ‘Chinese-speaking’, ‘English-speaking’, or ‘Malay-speaking’, in urban cities such as Kuala Lumpur. One might see this use of language as a proxy of an existing racial configuration (the state-endorsed categories of Malay, Chinese, Indian, and Other), simply accommodating participants’ linguistic preferences. However, my findings suggest the opposite is true. Drawing on interviews with Chinese-speaking queer Malaysian activists in Malaysia and Taiwan, this paper argues for the significance of Chinese in pushing forward their agendas in the illiberal setting locally and in mobilising LGBT Malaysians across the Chinese-speaking world. In doing so, it works towards an articulation of queer Sinophone Malaysia, highlighting the multiple trajectories of queer development locally as well as Malaysia’s place in the global circuit of queer cultural formations. Methodologically, it overcomes the humanities bias of Sinophone research by demonstrating how qualitative methods can effectively capture the present localisation of Chinese languages

Ethnic group · Linguistics · Malay · Political science · Politics · Queer · Sociology · Anthropology · Asian Studies and History · Gender Studies · Hong Kong and Taiwan Politics · Law · Multilingual Education and Policy

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