Stories of lesbians joined in a “queer confraternity” in the city of Belo Horizonte, Brazil

Authors

Keywords:

Entendidas, estigma, gueto, heteronormatividade, invisibilidade.

Abstract

This article presents stories of a fraternity of lesbians now elderly who lived their youth in the city of Belo Horizonte, Brazil. The objective here is to describe how a group of lesbians formed a fraternity from the late 70’s and early 80’s, and departing from their experiences, reflect on lesbian invisibility in the light of heteronormativity. We use the concept of stigma to capture the elements that kept the generation of homosexual women between the ghetto, the closet and invisibility, as well as to learn about the alternatives adopted by them to establish amorous relationships with other women. The data collected in the in-depth interviews bring to light the strategies adopted by to construct their identities and safe territories that allowed them to experience their homoerotic desires and socialize among equals. The ghettos found or built by them provided the experience of their forbidden affections and the creation of long-lived and persistent bonds of friendship that ended up consolidated in a powerful support network among them in old age.

Author Biography

Janice De Souza De Souza, Universidade do Estado de Minas Gerais (UEMG)

Doutoranda do Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências Sociais

Professora da Universidade do Estado de Minas Gerais (UEMG)

Published

2023-08-30

Issue

Section

Articles