The Family-Friends of Older Gay Men and Lesbians
The Family-Friends of Older Gay Men and Lesbians
This chapter inquires into the social subjectivity of older generations of gay and lesbian communities, which have been marred by these individuals being “labeled as sick by doctors, immoral by clergy, unfit by the military, and a menace by the police.” These individuals have survived AIDS, both as a disease and as a community stigma. In context of the spectrum of discrimination and stigma withstood by these individuals, their social relations have come in prominent relief. The convoluted and suppressed social subjectivity attributed to these individuals reinforced their mutual identification and invigorated a strong sense of solidarity. The chapter focuses on the dynamics of such consequential relationships among gay and lesbian individuals. Research in this field generally tends to take a commodity view of friendship, focusing more on friends that individuals have rather than the ones that are. Other elements researched are frequency of contact and proximity.
Keywords: military, police, community stigma, commodity view, proximity, friends
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