Differences that Matter: Friendship Dynamics Among Chinese LGBTQ+ Migrants in North America

• In Event: 20862 - Section on International Migration Roundtables
  In Refereed Roundtable (60 minute): Table 4: Migration and Social Capital

Abstract

Scholars have increasingly acknowledged the multidimensionality of social tie formation within the context of proliferating diversity in migration. As an empirical description, the concept of superdiversity invites greater theoretical development. Incorporating insights from scholarship on sexual integration and migrants’ social embeddedness, we focus on the under-examined friendship patterns at intersection of sexuality and migration. Drawing on qualitative data from 50 in-depth interviews with skilled Chinese LGBTQ+ migrants in North America, we examine how these individuals navigate and construct queer friendships in a context of perceived greater social acceptance. Our findings reveal three distinct perceptions of queer friendship: preference for queer friends, ambivalence, and preference for straight friends. By elucidating the logic behind these diverse patterns, this research advances a more theoretical analysis of the complexity of migrant relationships within superdiverse societies.

Authors

• Tori Shucheng Yang, University of British Columbia

• Sean R. Lauer, University of British Columbia