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Alusine Kabba
Professor Rodrick
QS 115 2:00
18 October 2016
Queering up your space
Every individual categorized in the queer community has a certain comfort zone in which
they are willing to exceed their space or personally stay within it. Our queerer identities are
defined by how comfortable we are within our own space and how comfortable we are with
expressing our real personalities and actions. Society has made it a bit easier to come out and be
socially accepted; even though they're still hills to climb we are slowly making a change in the
views and opinions of society. With in our space we the individuals of the community have to
figure out to what extent are space is, whether it being as willing to perform and be ourselves or
us conforming to society. Space has given queer people in the area to either be who they really
are or take their time to adjust into coming out. It has shaped queer identity in the way of helping
people get comfortable and it really just depends on the comfortability of the individual to realize
how their space effects them.
"Queering space that involves a potentially extraordinary variety of events of
appropriation and transformation of straight, hierarchal spaces and the creation for the
proliferation of the new pleasures desires, subjectivities."(Gavroche, Oct. 3 2016). Creating your
own space is totally up to the individual who desires the space. It really depends on how the
individual feels to express who they are or hide their true selves. Once we realize how we feel
about our space we can then create, build, and as Gavroche stated, we could then begin to "queer
up or space". He explains how people misinterpret what is queer space and queer identity, which

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is wrong, but they work together. Identity refers to figuring out who you are while our space
refers to you after you have figured out who you are; you can get comfortable and situated with
it. That is why queer space and queer identity is interrelated because they work together to help
make the individual as comfortable to be him/herself as they can. Gavroche continues to say how
once you enter your space there should be no such thing as identity because you are with in your
own zone when it comes to your space. The picture to the left describes
me exactly in societies eyes but I know who I am and especially in my
own space I am just me. You shouldn't have to feel nervous or
uncomfortable in your space because it was organized originally for
you and no one else. "Gender, and the perspective, can be seen as "A stable identity or locus of
agency for which various ask proceed". It is instead " an Identity tenuously constituted in timeand identity instituted through a stylized repetition of act" ((Butler, 1988 p.519) Gavroche,2016).
But in your space you can escape the struggles or embrace yourself with identity. (Picture
by:isawheaveninhiseyes)
Though the community as a whole could be a space for some people, the community
exceeds the shaping of identity. We the community already have struggled with figuring out who
we are, but once we do find out who we are we then get categorized by our own LGBTQ
community. I have already been kind of forced in to a category based on appearance. I am
considered as a bisexual jock because I am not your "stereotypical gay". I am a bit more
masculine compared to everyone else. I have even had occurrences when people would tell me
what " type of gay" I was, because of my appearance. There are even other categories for gay
men based on appearance and I think that is so because we have been labeled by other people in
society our whole lives so I believe the need to finally label yourself is a big accomplishment

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because you then dont have other people trying to tell you who you are. Then issues of label
others in your own community comes up such as a stereotypical gay man would be called a
twink because of his small slim figure and his strong flamboyance. Or a very large/muscular,
hairy, gay/bisexual man would be called a bear or a smaller version of a bear would be called an
otter. Now a nerd is just your stereotypical nerd but he happens to be gay/bisexual and obsessed
with Pokemon or any other anime show. With all of these stupid categories we you can see how
certain spaces even the one that was meant for us has been corrupted by identity. Your space is
supposed to embrace the idea of identity but not enforce it for you to label yourself or others. We
are still trying to be accepted by society and its a bit struggling when your own people who are
supposed to be in your space to support your every decision and help you through your journey,
are not doing that and focusing on labeling or get mad when you dont even understand who you
are yet. Within the community I believe the only way you will be able to fit in; even though it is
quite ironic, you will need to conform to the area you are in to fit in and not get judged. I have
had to do that in some ways to. I have noticed that when I am around more females or my queer
friends I act a bit more flamboyant but when I am not I will act like my true self in which I
believe is just Junie. So I guess opinions and beliefs of ourselves or others have been shaped by
our own space.
In Matthew D. Kullisch Queering Spaces Where you Are he tells his story and
experience of discovering his space. He explains how it was a simple bench where his boyfriend
and him would sit together and just be in there own world. He explained how creating your own
space doesnt necessarily mean it has to be a spot to conform and adjust. It just needs to be a
space where you need to feel the most yourself weather it be your true self or not you would
have a spot to yourself. For Kullisch his space was his space because he and his boyfriend

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were together in that space and they felt the most comfortable together. He even explained how
not being in your space was a lot harder for him to be comfortable, Away from our bench, we
had to talk in code (143 for I-love-you, my bird to speak about him to the friends who knew
at school), like a warzone.(Kullisch 2016) Being in your space make it a lot easier to perform
and slowly move out of your space to perform and be you. He also explains
how his queer space Is queer only because he and his boyfriend make it
queer, not because of appearance. He brings up a theorist by the name of
Kathryn Bond Stockton who explains in The Queer Child, or Growing
Sideways in the Twentieth Century that we the creator of the space are the ones in charge of
organizing our space. We make space Queer every time we enter it and that is what makes it our
space. Queer spaces are experiences of moving suspension.
As the title suggest, you move, grow outward-not up. (Kullisch) The picture to the right
symbolizes how your space is really up to you so create as long as you feel the most comfortably
in it; it is all up to you. (Davilemao)
Queer space is not physical, it is a field of possibility in a social space.(Jasper, 2009)
Our space doesnt define us, so why should we. Our space is the one mental area where no one
should be defined or labeled with any identity. Your identity is supposed to be figured out in your
space, but not enforced and once you do figure out who you are you will be free to choose
weather to perform or conform. Space has made it easier to do either or but I believe with your
space in hand you can easily perform and be who you are because it was mad for you to be well,
YOU. Conforming is for those who are not yet comfortable with themselves or dont even know
who they are yet and that is why it would be mainly used for outside of your space when you are
less comfortable. Your space is for whatever you intend it to be for but I strongly believe it

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makes it easier to feel comfortable to perform. Once you get out of your space I think you will
slowly adjust and be able to perform as much as you want because you will have then found and
accept yourself. Your queer identity has been revealed and concealed by your space and once you
believe you are ready to exceed your space, you will be able to be your true self completely.

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Works Cited
Davilemao. "Menu." TURN OFF. N.p., 22 Dec. 2014. Web. 21 Oct. 2016.
Gavroche, Julius. "Struggles for Space: Queering Straight Space:
Thinking towards a Queer Architecture (4)." Autonomies. N.p., 03
Oct. 2016. Web. 18 Oct. 2016.
Isawheaveninhiseyes. ".logo.filled .inner, .logo:hover .inner { Opacity: 1;
Fill: Url(#rollover); }." Gay Black Muslim. Tumnlr, n.d. Web. 21 Oct.
2016.
Jasper. "What Is Queer Space?" Jaspers Wardrobe. N.p., 24 Jan. 2009. Web.
21 Oct. 2016.
Kullisch, Matthew D. "Backwords Blog." Backwords Blog. N.p., 22 June 2016. Web. 18 Oct.
2016.