Date on Master's Thesis/Doctoral Dissertation

5-2020

Document Type

Master's Thesis

Degree Name

M.A.

Department

Women's and Gender Studies

Degree Program

Women's and Gender Studies, MA

Committee Chair

Story, Kaila

Committee Co-Chair (if applicable)

Fosl, Cate

Committee Member

Fosl, Cate

Committee Member

Caldwell, Anne

Author's Keywords

queer; South Asian; second-generation immigrant; India; Bangladesh; Pakistan

Abstract

Surveys have shown that Asian-Americans are the least likely of all racial groups to identify as LGBT. South Asians in the United States are especially unlikely to be “out.” However, little research has been conducted to explain this underrepresentation. In this thesis, I conduct a qualitative analysis of texts about a specific group of lesbian, gay, bisexual/pansexual, and queer (LGBQ) South Asian-Americans—namely Bangladeshi-, Indian-, and Pakistani-Americans, or desis. These texts include personal essays, feature articles in newspapers, and video interviews with LGBQ desis. I explore trends in LGBQ desis’ experiences as described in these materials. In particular, I am interested in LGBQ desis’ relationships with their families, with mainstream queer communities, and with desi communities. I conclude that LGBQ desis in the U.S. feel that neither their familial cultures nor mainstream American culture provide sufficient emotional and social support for desis’ particular experiences of queerness.

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