‘Like a piece of meat in a pack of wolves’ : gay/bisexual men and sexual racialization

Ale’s doctoral research was generously supported by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC). Cesare’s research was generously supported by the European Commission, MSCA-IF-EF-ST Action, grant number: 747110.Human geographers have analyzed the co-constitutive relationship between race, gender and sexualities across different spaces and social contexts and have called for intersectional approaches in discussions of identities, power and space. This article applies an intersectional framework to the processes of sexualization, racialization and exoticization that shape the daily lives and erotic/romantic encounters experienced and narrated by participants to two different projects: gay and bisexual men from a North African background living in Belgium; Italian gay men living in England; non-White gay men living in Italy. By discussing qualitative data collected during interviews with these men, and through a continued dialogue about this data between the authors, the paper explores both the effects of these processes on the lives of participants, and the strategies they enact to navigate their social worlds. The focus is on two elements, central to participants’ narratives: the specificity of the intersectional experience of encountering men who expect a specifically gendered and racialized performance based on ‘roughness’ and ‘wildness’, and the capitalization on these exoticizing and racializing images to increase one’s desirability on the dating/hook-up scene and everyday social and work life. By highlighting these elements, this paper shows the importance of applying an intersectional approach to analyses of the entanglements of racialization and sexualization in order to complicate linear accounts of these processes.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

On the Politics of Evolutionary Thought

This commentary on Elvin Wyly's paper, ‘The Evolution of Geographic Thought’, aims at stimulating a reflection on the possibilities offered by the politics of evolutionary thought as envisaged in the paper and its use by critical scholars. Through the analysis of the paper's ambivalences towards the politics of evolution and its history, the commentary discusses the limits and the potential of Wyly's effort to destabilise the linearity and unity of evolution

(Un)Ethical Boundaries: Critical Reflections on What We Are (Not) Supposed to Do

Building on critical readings of the rationalities behind ethical committees and their guidelines, this article analyzes how their positivist, biomedical conception of the research process can have a negative impact on research participants who might perceive their voices erased by these institutional practices. Using examples from my recent research with gay men living with HIV in England and Italy, I show how research participants have contested the General Data Protection Regulation guidelines I was following in relation to the use of pseudonyms and the depersonalization of data and the sharing of interview transcripts. Questioning the fixity of the position of the researcher and the research participants assumed in ethical guidelines, the article explores the impact of the encounter with research participants on the researcher’s life course well beyond data collection and analysis, emphasizing the need for a different care ethics

Ovarian function during hormonal contraception assessed by endocrine and sonographic markers: a systematic review

This systematic review focuses on the literature evidence for residual ovarian function during treatment with hormonal contraceptives. We reviewed all papers which assessed residual ovarian activity during hormonal contraceptive use, using endocrine markers such as serum anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) concentrations, FSH, LH, oestradiol, progesterone and sonographic markers such as antral follicle count (AFC), ovarian volume and vascular indices. We considered every type (oestroprogestin or only progestin) and dosage of hormonal contraceptive and every mode of administration (oral, vaginal ring, implant, transdermal patch). We performed an electronic database search for papers published from 1 January 1990 until 30 November 2015 using PubMed and MEDLINE. We pre-selected 113 studies and judged 48 studies suitable for the review. Most studies showed that follicular development continues during treatment with hormonal contraceptives, and that during treatment there is a reduction in serum concentrations of FSH, LH and oestradiol, and also a reduction in endometrial thickness, ovarian volume and the number and size of antral follicles. The ovarian reserve parameters, namely AFC and ovarian volume, are lower among users than among non-users of hormonal contraception; regarding the effect of hormonal contraception on AMH, there are still controversies in the literature

Inclusion in the homonormative world city : the case of gay migrants living with HIV in Barcelona

L'homonormativitat ha esdevingut un concepte hegemònic dins de les geografies de les sexualitats, i els acadèmics crítics emfatitzen les pràctiques d'exclusió en subjectes específics «no desitjats». No obstant això, la literatura ha ignorat el paper d'una de les principals fonts de biaix i discriminació per als homes homosexuals: la positivitat al VIH. El document pretén omplir aquest buit mostrant que les geografies d'homonormativitat i les rutes de migració d'homes homosexuals amb VIH se superposen. El document construeix un relat diversificat i situat dels espais homonormatius com a espais de privilegis (relatius) i inclusió observant les pràctiques i experiències quotidianes d'emigrants gais seropositius italians i francesos a Barcelona, la capital catalana. En considerar les pràctiques quotidianes, l'article se centra en tres característiques generalment associades amb l'homonormativitat neoliberal: individualisme; privatització, domesticació i higiene de la vida sexual; i exaltació de la parella. Metodològicament, els resultats del treball de camp realitzats a Barcelona el 2014 inclouen 16 entrevistes en profunditat a immigrants homosexuals italians i francesos amb VIH.Homonormativity has become a hegemonic concept within geographies of sexualities, with critical scholars emphasizing exclusionary practices towards specific 'unwanted' subjects. However, the literature has ignored the role of one of the main sources of bias and discrimination for gay men: HIV-positivity. The paper seeks to start to fill this void by showing how the geographies of homonormativity and the migration paths of gay men living with HIV often overlap. The paper builds a diversified and situated account of homonormative spaces as spaces of (relative) privilege and inclusion by looking at the everyday practices and experiences of Italian and French gay migrants living with HIV in Barcelona, the Catalan capital. When considering everyday practices, the paper focuses on three characteristics usually associated with neoliberal homonormativity: individualism; privatization, domestication and sanitization of sexual life; exaltation of coupledom. Methodologically the paper results from fieldwork conducted in Barcelona in 2014, including 16 in-depth interviews with Italian and French gay migrants living with HIV.La homonormatividad se ha convertido en un concepto hegemónico dentro de las geografías de las sexualidades, y las investigaciones críticas enfatizan las prácticas de exclusión hacia sujetos específicos «no deseados». Sin embargo, la literatura ha ignorado el papel de una de las principales fuentes de sesgo y discriminación para los hombres homosexuales: la positividad al VIH. El documento pretende llenar este vacío mostrando que las geografías de homonormatividad y las rutas de migración de hombres homosexuales con VIH se superponen. El artículo hace un relato diversificado y situado de los espacios homonormativos como espacios de (relativo) privilegio e inclusión al observar las prácticas y experiencias cotidianas de los inmigrantes homosexuales VIH positivos italianos y franceses en Barcelona, la capital catalana. Al considerar las prácticas cotidianas, el artículo se centra en tres características generalmente asociadas con la homonormatividad neoliberal: individualismo; privatización, domesticación e higiene de la vida sexual; y exaltación de la pareja. Metodológicamente, los resultados del trabajo de campo realizados en Barcelona en 2014 incluyen 16 entrevistas en profundidad a inmigrantes homosexuales italianos y franceses con VIH.L'homonormativité est devenue un concept hégémonique au sein des géographies des sexualités, et certains spécialistes critiques mettent l'accent sur les pratiques d'exclusion concernant certains sujets spécifiques « non désirés ». Cependant, la littérature a ignoré le rôle de l'une des principales sources de biais et de discrimination chez les hommes homosexuels : la séropositivité pour le VIH. Le document vise à combler cette lacune en montrant comment les zones géographiques s'inscrivant dans l'homonormativité et les trajectoires de migration des hommes homosexuels séropositifs se chevauchent souvent. Le document construit un récit diversifié et localisé d'espaces homonormatifs en tant qu'espaces privilégiés (relatifs) et d'inclusion tout en observant les expériences et les pratiques quotidiennes des migrants séropositifs italiens et français à Barcelone, la capitale catalane. Lorsqu'il examine les pratiques quotidiennes, l'article se concentre sur trois caractéristiques généralement associées à l'homonormativité néolibérale : individualisme ; privatisation, domestication et hygiène de la vie sexuelle ; exaltation du couple. Méthodologiquement, les résultats du travail effectué à Barcelone en 2014 comprennent 16 entretiens approfondis avec des immigrants italiens et français homosexuels atteints du VIH

‘I guess I really survived many crises’: On the benefits of longitudinal ethnographic research

Building on my ongoing ethnographic research with people living with HIV in different European countries, the paper focuses on RD, a Catalan man I have interviewed three times since 2014. In RD's life narrative, ‘crisis’ is a recurring theme including both the most blatant forms, like the severe housing crisis in Spain that followed the global financial crisis, and the most ordinary ones like domestic violence. Analysing the impact of crises in RD's perception and experience of the present, interwoven with the past(s) and the future(s), the paper discusses two main benefits of longitudinal ethnographic research. First, it allows to capture how crisis is not just a moment or a phase in RD's life, but acts as context generating a recurring experience of an ‘uncanny present’ shaped by logics of return and repetition of the past, and anticipation of the future. Second, it supports RD's self-awareness around his ability to navigate the unknown when experiencing the ‘uncanny present’; this highlights the ethical care dimension entailed by such methodology

Here, there, everywhere: The relational geographies of chemsex

In recent years sexualised drug use, usually referred to as chemsex, has become the object of intense media health-related panic and increasing academic scrutiny. Critical social scientists have challenged pathologising perspectives, analysing the socio-cultural and political economy dimensions of chemsex. Against the silence of geographers in this emerging field, the paper develops a geographical relational analysis of chemsex, focusing on the experiences of gay men living with HIV in two Italian cities (Bologna; Milan) and Italian gay men living with HIV in three English cities (Leicester; London; Manchester). Demonstrating the constitutive role of place in the practice of chemsex, the paper frames place relationally, that is, as the encounter between here and there, the material and the virtual, imagined geographies and lived spaces. To emphasise the central role of place and geographical knowledge to understand chemsex, the paper builds on ‘weak theory’, as it conceives things as open, entangled, connected and in flux, while focusing on ordinary practices and heterogeneity in more-than-human worlds. Showing how chemsex represents an embodied, relational geographical encounter among different human and non-human actors, places (both physical and digital), imaginations and desires, the paper highlights the role of sexual practices in the relational construction of place-making, therefore calling for an increased engagement with sex itself within the field of geographies of sexualities

Citizenship, Justice and the Right to the Smart City

This paper provides an introduction to the smart city and engages with its idea and ideals from a critical social science perspective. After setting out in brief the emergence of smart cities and current key debates, we note a number of practical, political and normative questions relating to citizenship, justice, and the public good that warrant examination. The remainder of the paper provides an initial framing for engaging with these questions. The first section details the dominant neoliberal conception and enactment of smart cities and how this works to promote the interests of capital and state power and reshape governmentality. We then detail some of the ethical issues associated with smart city technologies and initiatives. Having set out some of the more troubling aspects of how social relations are produced within smart cities, we then examine how citizens and citizenship have been conceived and operationalised in the smart city to date. We then follow this with a discussion of social justice and the smart city. In the final section, we explore the notion of the ‘right to the smart city’ and how this might be used to recast the smart city in emancipatory and empowering ways

Geographies of PrEP, TasP and undetectability: Reconceptualising HIV assemblages to explore what else matters in the lives of gay and bisexual men

© The Author(s) 2021. Recent biomedical innovations in the field of HIV prevention and treatment – namely PrEP, TasP, and ‘undetectability’ – have completely reshaped the experience of living with HIV, as well as the meanings of ‘risk’ and ‘safety’ in relation to sexual practices, leading to new forms of pleasure and sociality for gay and bisexual men in the Minority World. While human geographers have been slow to engage with the changing social dimensions brought by these innovations, scholars across the whole spectrum of the social sciences have been far more creative and responsive contributing to a critical understanding of what these processes entail in terms of subject formation as well as social and communal relations. This article proposes a distinctly geographical contribution to analysing and interpreting these biomedical technologies, exploring the ways that new spatialities and spatial relations emerge from their use and circulation. Our approach is based on provisional assemblage thinking as it offers the possibility to think the complex connections between biomedical innovations in the field of HIV, sexual practices, subjectivity, pleasure, spaces, and technologies, going beyond the subdisciplinary preoccupations and methodological reflexes of geographers focused primarily on either health or sexuality