‘Why wave the flag?’: (in)visible queer activism in authoritarian Kazakhstan and Russia

Abstract

ABSTRACT Western queer politics aspires to increase the visibility of queer subjects who have been highly regulated in Kazakhstan and Russia. Drawing on three interview studies conducted in 2017 and 2018 in Kazakhstan and Russia, respectively, this article examines and compares narratives on queer activism in both countries. Our findings reveal how visibility has an ambivalent meaning for queer people in these cases. For many, public queer activism is perceived as vulnerable and risky, therefore alternative, less ‘visible’, methods of activism are preferred and deemed more useful. For example, participants in our studies mentioned using social media, signing petitions and taking part in educational initiatives as alternative forms of queer activism. The article deliberates the pursuit and applicability of representational visibility politics within queer activism in Kazakhstan and Russia’s fluctuating contexts.