Queering Lesbian Sexualities in Collegiate Sporting Spaces

Abstract

This article utilizes cultural studies praxis, queer theory, and feminist poststructuralism to explore the ways in which eight collegiate-level coaches who self-identify with non-normative sexualities transgress heteronormative boundaries by being “out” or visible in sporting spaces. Data were collected through semi-structured qualitative interviews and analyzed within a queer-feminist hybrid framework (Sykes, 1998 Sykes, H. 1998. Turning the closets inside/out: Towards a queer-feminist theory in women's physical education. Sociology of Sport Journal, 15: 154–173. [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]). I found that compulsory heterosexuality continually worked to silence female coaches with non-normative sexualities despite their efforts to change heterosexist sport cultures. Many of these women engaged in necessary practical strategies for historically silenced groups (Sedgewick, 1990 Sedgewick, E. 1990. Epistemology of the closet, Berkeley: University of California Press. [Google Scholar]) to create change, such as changing language in athletic department policy, and using a politics of difference to challenge the status quo on several fronts (e.g., gender, race, ethnicity, sexuality). However, in spite of conscientious efforts to do otherwise, poststructuralist and queer deconstructions of the transcripts illustrated how forced norms and discursive practices inherent in sport regulated both silence and speech for many of the interviewees.

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