LGBTQ+ Life in Interstitial European Overseas Territories

Start date: 1 September 2020
End date: Ongoing
Funder: Instituto de Estudios Ceutíes, Spain (Institute of Ceutan Studies)l School of Languages, Cultures and Societies (internal)
Primary investigator: Dr Hendrik Jan Kraetzschmar
Co-investigators: Dr Andrew Delatolla, Professor Richard Cleminson

A view of the city of Ceuta

Description

Interdisciplinary in scope, this project explores LGBTQ+ life in European Overseas Territories. These territories are of particular interest due to their peripheral status and geographic disconnection from the European mainland, as well as their inherently interstitial nature, marked by a unique confluence of, and at times tension between, European/colonial and local histories, traditions, cultures, languages, laws, and politics.

The research team seeks to understand the imprint these interstitial conditions leave on local LGBTQ+ communities, and how individuals identifying as LGBTQ+ navigate the complex intersections of national identity, subjectivity, religion, and sexuality within these contexts.

As part of this initiative, the team secured funding in 2021 from the Institute of Ceutan Studies to investigate LGBTQ+ life in the Spanish enclave of Ceuta, followed by support from the School of Languages, Cultures and Societies at the University of Leeds to conduct fieldwork in Melilla in 2023.

Building on insights gained from Ceuta and Melilla, the team now aims to develop a larger external funding bid to expand the project to include European overseas territories in the Caribbean and the Indian Ocean.

Publications and outputs

Our research on LGBTQ+ life in Ceuta has been presented so far at workshops in Ceuta and the University of Leeds as well as at the annual British Society of Middle Eastern Studies (BRISMES) conference.

Other key project outputs so far include:

A project report for the Instituto Estudios Ceutíes, detailing key findings from field research in Ceuta in 2022. The report is available in both Spanish and English.
A forthcoming journal article in the International Journal of Iberian Studies entitled ‘Between Morocco and the Mainland: The Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Communities of Spanish Ceuta’. The article is scheduled for publication in winter 2025/26.

The project team are currently working on a comparative piece, exploring the experiences of the LGBTQ+ communities in Ceuta and Melilla.

Downloads

Project report: ‘Exploring Diversity in an Interstitial Urban Locale: The LGBTQ+ Communities of Spanish Ceuta’