Paper Series: On Belonging in Europe
This series constitutes our first exploration of different elements of belonging in Europe. Without pretending to be exhaustive, these essays bring together diverse voices that illuminate what othering and belonging mean—and how they manifest—within the European context. In both exploring dimensions of othering and practices of belonging in the region, these papers seek to expose the areas that most urgently demand our attention—where othering & marginalization are growing—as well as offer valuable insights from those already working towards belonging in Europe, with concrete learnings for those in North America and beyond.
Belonging despite the state of exception: the LGBTQ+ counterpublics in Poland after 2015
“Othering'' in this context, against LGBTQ+ persons and groups, basically reduces people to some abstract, undefined “ideology.” Belonging, on the other hand, is formed in solidarity practices – in the discussions and support actions around the “Atlas of Hate," in various queer and LGBTQ+ marches in big and small towns of Poland, and in legal and media support. In some municipalities, like those of Poznań, Warsaw, and Gdańsk, the solidarity of opening the “LGBTQ+ - zones” was emphasized with actions like the huge Palace of Culture in Warsaw bearing the rainbow colors in the Pride month and on other occasions.