Representing, repressing and pushing back: Queer and trans (in)visibilities in media, law and culture

What is it about?

The increasing focus on non-normative gender identities and sexual orientations in cultural discourses creates a paradox for LGBTQIAP* communities: On the one hand, increased visibility paves the way for greater tolerance in the general public, but, on the other, it may also suggest the logical fallacy that onscreen representations mirror offscreen realities. This article argues that the hyper-visibility of queerness in media maintains and legitimises existing, cis-heteronormative sociocultural orders in which are reflected in legal developments. Further, the (popular) cultural discourse about queerness adds to its continuing normativisation. The mainstreamification of queerness risks cementing legal inequalities for LGBTQIAP* persons, leaving queers vulnerable to discrimination while popular discourse is able to imagine an emancipated queer subject onscreen.

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