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Nicholas Faraclas
University of Puerto Rico
Dr Nicholas Faraclas, of Romani (aka ‘gypsy’) and Greek descent, is a Professor in Linguistics at the University of Puerto Rico, Rio Piedras. Having received his PhD from the UC Berkeley, an NSF and two Fulbright Fellowships, he has taught and published in theoretical, descriptive, socio-, and applied linguistics. He conducts research on postcolonial linguistics and colonial-era contact languages and promotes community-based literacy activities in the Caribbean, Latin America, Africa, Asia and the South Pacific.
Talk Information:
Life And Love in a Time of Receding Pandemic and Rising Fascism
August 2, 2024 | 9:00 AM
Being a long-term gay interracial couple, my partner and I sought refuge from the COVID-19 pandemic in Bamburi, Kenya. Despite a history of facing prejudice and discrimination, we found resilience in our relationship and the community we encountered. However, the murder of LGBTQIA2S+ activist Edwin Chiloba highlighted the ongoing dangers faced by queer individuals in the region.
I argue that discomfort with the concept of "gay marriage" in the Global South is often rooted in historical and cultural contexts. We should be cautious in imposing Western LGBTQ+ norms on other cultures, preferring a more nuanced understanding of diverse sexual and gender expressions.
Caribbean activists and scholars Krystal Nandini Ghisyawan and Carla K. Moore point out, “white, queer liberalism serves a neocolonizing function by instructing Global South and Third World countries on the right way to be queer” (Moore, 2020, p. 20).