Queer #PolesinUK: Identity, Migration and Social Media

What does it mean, what does it feel like to be a queer person who migrated from Poland to the UK? This question is particularly pertinent now, when the Brexit referendum has provoked increased anti-migrant sentiments in the UK and the ruling Law and Justice Party in Poland has picked on queers as part of its populist agenda. The lives and experiences of queer Poles in the UK―gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender as well as other gender- and sexuality-diverse people, or LGBTQs―are not all the same. Some are out to everyone who is important in their lives, others remain largely in the closet―for example, to their families in Poland―and need to carefully navigate their queer lives in different cultural contexts, especially on social media such as Facebook, which usually brings those different contexts together. Some are fluent in English, others possess only basic English skills and heavily rely on other Polish migrants to find a job or accommodation and to access public services. Yet others speak English well but prefer to date only Polish people (and they use a Polish dating app to find them) to ‘be able to fully share my passions and interests’ with a future partner, as one participant in this research put it. At the same time, queer Poles in the UK share many values, attitudes and opinions, often because they face similar struggles with anti-LGBTQ and anti-migrant discrimination. In this talk, I will draw on the largest to date study of queer Poles in the UK, which consists of 767 survey responses and 30 interviews with a diverse group of LGBTQs, to trace such similarities as well as differences, bringing to light the lives and experiences of queer Poles in the UK.

Due to the UCU strike this has been rearranged for Friday 28th February, we apologise for any inconvenience and hope you can still join us!