CPF: Queer Transnationalities: Towards a History of LGBTQ+ Rights in the Post-Soviet Space

Elena Dundovich (University of Pisa) and Simone A. Bellezza (University of Naples Federico II) are seeking chapter proposals for an edited volume on the transnational history of LGBTQ+ rights in the post-Soviet space. Proposals are due by September 30, 2021.

The book aims at adding the perspective of historical and transnational studies to the field of queer studies in Eastern Europe.

Chapters shall address the hybridity of queer issues, possibly including not only the point of view of gender studies, but also that of transnational studies. We aim to explore how state and non-state actors contributed to the evolution of the question of LGBTQ+ rights as one of the primary contact zones between the global and the local (glocality), greatly contributing to the reformulation of the asymmetrical relationship between the Euro-American and the non-Euro-American nations. Editors are seeking contributions that address (but are not limited to) the following topics:

• LGBTQ+ activism in the post-Soviet space.
• Anti-LGBTQ+ activism and propaganda of homophobic bias.
• State initiatives to expand and defend or limit and hinder LGBTQ+ rights.
• Transnational cooperation and initiatives of both LGBTQ+ and Anti-LGBTQ+ organizations.
• LGBTQ+ persecutions in post-Soviet countries and international solidarity initiatives.
• Art and cultural initiatives of the LGBTQ+ communities or individuals.
• LGBTQ+ and queer issues in the international cooperation among post-Soviet countries and between them and other actors (Western countries, EU, etc.).
• The construction of national belongings after 1991 and the definition of sexualities in the post-Soviet space.

Chapters shall not exceed 5,000 words including footnotes. Those interested should send a 250-word chapter proposal to the editors at [email protected] by September 30, 2021. Proposals will be reviewed and the outcomes will be notified by October 31, 2021. Full manuscripts are due by January 1, 2022.