Exploring the value of queer archives in queer criminology

Interrogating narratives of incarceration and offending

Bibliographic Data

ID7174140
AuthorsMatthew Ball (0000-0002-2326-5752, Queensland University of Technology, corresponding author)
Year2025
Volume21
Issue4
Pages548-561
Publication date2025-01-15
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueCrime Media Culture An International Journal (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1741-6590 • E-ISSN: 1741-6604
PublisherSAGE Publishing (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1177/17416590241312167
OpenAlexW4406481977
LanguageEN
Citations received1
References cited26

This article explores the potential of queer archival material to disrupt and nuance dominant criminological narratives on a range of criminal justice-related issues in the lives of queer people. It does so in two contexts: regarding narratives focused on queer experiences of incarceration; and narratives focused on queer offending. Research on queer experiences of incarceration suggests that queer people are particularly at risk of homophobic and transphobic abuse and assault in prison, and that they must repress their sexuality and gender in prison. And research on queer pathways to offending highlights the interconnections between criminal justice contact, offending, and forms of inequality that characterise queer lives, positioning queer offending as largely driven by those inequalities and their resulting harms. By engaging with a unique collection of queer archival materials, specifically the correspondence of incarcerated queer people, this article queers those dominant narratives. It does so by paying particular attention to the experiences of the only transgender correspondent in this collection. That person’s experiences very clearly illustrate the complex intersections between queer lives and criminal justice and the subsequent need to queer the dominant narratives in this space. Additionally, their experiences illuminate how archival materials in queer criminology foster the emergence of complexity and nuance in our analyses and offer new directions for queer political reform and activism in crime and justice contexts

Art · Criminology · Literature · Narrative · Queer · Queer theory · Sociology · Value (mathematics · African Sexualities and LGBTQ+ Issues · Computer Science · Gender Studies · LGBTQ Health, Identity, and Policy · Sexuality, Behavior, and Technology

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