The Global Dynamics of Queer Criminological Knowledge and Activism

• In Event: Developing Queer Criminological Theories and Methodologies

Abstract

While queer criminology has developed across the Global North (UK and USA) and South (Australia), its epistemological and political foundations are firmly situated in the Global North. This is illustrated by the dominance of LGBTIQ identity politics within queer criminology, queer criminology’s disciplinary position, and the way that the goals and concerns of the field reflect ‘Northern’ priorities.
This paper investigates these global dynamics in queer criminological knowledge and activism. It interrogates the ways in which queer criminology’s positioning in the Global North is maintained, particularly through its knowledge objects and its politics. It also points to the important role that both the emerging field of Southern Criminology and the more established counter-colonial critiques of criminology and LGBTIQ politics play in encouraging queer criminologists to reflect on the position of queer criminology within the global dynamics and politics of knowledge. These critiques are not directed towards policing the boundaries of any specifically ‘Southern’ mode of queer criminological thinking, but rather to bring into the awareness of ‘Northern’ thinking the importance of issues for the Global South. Ultimately, the paper asks whether queer criminology itself can ever be fully accountable to the power dynamics it perpetuates and the exclusions it produces.

Authors

• Matthew Ball, Queensland University of Technology

• Angela Dwyer, University of Tasmania