Divine Queer Sorrow, or Beyond Mythical Reparations
Publication: TOPIA: Canadian Journal of Cultural Studies
Volume 46
Abstract
Abstract
This article focuses on the culture and politics of apology for injustice against LGBTQ+ people in the context of Anglo-European, liberal democratic nation-states. I examine the circumstances and limits of Justin Trudeau’s apology for the gay purge and related initiatives since November 2017. I contend that while the normative affective structure of liberal apology mandates a move from mythical homo sorrow to mythical reparation, jettisoned affects, experiences and activism from below exceed the state’s directive for reparation and forgetting. I name such excesses divine queer sorrow. More specifically, I trace the remaindered and peripheral affect of testimonies and activism to think about not only a queer affective structure of forgiveness but also a transformative future stemming from activist sensibilities.
Résumé
Cet article porte sur la culture et la politique des excuses pour les injustices commises contre les personnes LGBTQ+ dans les États-nations démocratiques et libéraux de culture anglo-européenne. J’examine les circonstances et les limites des excuses présentées par Justin Trudeau depuis novembre 2017 au sujet de la purge des personnes LGBTQ+ dans la fonction publique et des politiques connexes. Je soutiens que si la structure affective normative des excuses libérales impose le passage du mythique chagrin homo à la mythique réparation, les affects, les expériences et l’activisme rejetés par la base vont au-delà de la directive de l’État concernant la réparation et l’oubli. J’appelle ces excès le « divin chagrin queer ». Plus précisément, je trace les contours de l’affect bradé et périphérique des témoignages et de l’activisme pour réfléchir non seulement à une structure affective queer du pardon, mais aussi à un avenir transformateur découlant des sensibilités militantes.
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Published In
TOPIA: Canadian Journal of Cultural Studies
Volume 46 • March 2023
Pages: 260 - 279
Copyright
© University of Toronto Press.
History
Received: 13 August 2022
Revision received: 24 January 2023
Accepted: 24 January 2023
Published in print: March 2023
Published online: 2 May 2023
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