Call for Contributors: “Recovering Queer Histories in Unexpected Places”

The Activist History Review invites proposals for our May 2019 issue, “Recovering Queer Histories in Unexpected Places.”

Queer lives are not new. Trans, queer, and other sexually deviant or gender bending folks have existed in rural, as well as urban areas, in pre-colonial, as well as after the European invasion of indigenous lands, in very well-documented and open ways, as well as living hidden and closeted lives. However, most queer histories have been eclipsed by politically-motivated attempts to conceal and obscure these lives. Lately, there has been an increasing interest in ‘recovering’ past queer ways of existing, as well as exploring and documenting the oral histories of present LGBTQIA+ folks. In response to scholars’ and NGO-organizations’ focus on the lives of white LGBTQ folks (emphasizing LG) in urban areas, marginalized folks from the academy and activist networks have begun to delve into queer lives in contemporary and historically ‘unexpected’ places. These individuals have attempted to center the marginalized voices of trans, poor, BPOC, rural, and disabled folks at the heart of their exploration of queer lives.

The Activist History Review seeks to build on that activist-inspired scholarship and invites proposals that examine queer histories that have historically been ignored, displaced, or actively hidden. We welcome submissions that not only focus on geographically unexpected areas, but also histories of the most marginalized queer communities that are often overlooked. Proposals from LGBTQIA+ writers, especially QTPOC, will be prioritized, however any historian or activist with an interest in unexpected and unexplored queerness is invited to submit.

Potential topics include, but are certainly not limited to:

• Queer lives in the Bible Belt, Appalachia, or rural spaces.
• Uplifting the stories of queer lives that are often written over, such as QTBPOC, disabled queer people, intersex and asexual folks, two-spirit indigenous individuals, sex worker narratives, and poor LGBT communities.
• Recovering the histories of queer folks in various social movements and other political conflicts, estrangements, and upheavals.
• Queer identity and radical politics

Proposals should be no more than 250 words for articles from 1250-2000 words, and should be emailed to Michael Barry at michael.barry@student.american.edu by Saturday, April 27th at 11:59 PM. Please also include a short bio of no more than 100 words.