Queer Feminist Perspectives on Political Homophobia and Anti-Feminism in the Middle East and Europe

This two-day digital conference aims to bring together researchers, activists, and community organizers to discuss how discourses on gender and sexuality have evolved in the Middle East and Europe amid the rise of far-right and authoritarian movements.

Our conference has three objectives. First, to situate far-right and authoritarian actors in their respective socio-historical contexts, and second, to discuss how political homophobia and anti-feminism have developed as core ideological elements of the far right in a local transregional framework.

Finally, the conference aims to shed light on local, transregional, and global responses to homophobia and anti-feminism in the respective regions. Queer and feminist paradigms will significantly contribute to our conversation about the far right and social justice.

By adopting this lens, we bring an intersectional perspective to the study of sex, sexuality, gender, and intimacy: one that builds on the awareness of diverse context boundaries while focusing on the non-normative expressions, practices, identities, and desires at a time of a resurgence of far-right nationalisms.

The conference will take place on September 24 – 25, 2021, as a two-day digital event. The papers presented will be considered for publication, and we encourage participants to submit original and unpublished work.