Contemporary lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, and queer (LGBTQ) movements often engage with history to define who they are and where they come from. By selecting and interpreting archives, images and public stories, the movements preserve certain experiences while leaving others out, shaping collective identities in the process. This research project, titled HomoClassicisms, focuses specifically on the cases of LGBTQ movements in Greece, the UK and the US. The project examines how these movements use references to classical antiquity to tell public stories about their past. More specifically, the project explores whether these references reinforce narrow or exclusionary ideas of identity, leaving out non-white LGBTQ populations and stories.
HomoClassicisms asks the following questions:
1. What narratives, images, symbols and representations from classical antiquity do contemporary LGBTQ movements in Greece, the UK, and the US use in their attempt to build and articulate particular pasts?
2. Who is left out of the LGBTQ histories and representations of classical antiquity each of the three contexts builds upon?
3. Are the classics used differently in these three different socio-political and cultural contexts?
4. Do discourses of same-sex desire in classical antiquity used by the LGBTQ movements intersect with those of empire and race?
To address these questions, the project follows three complementary tracks:
(a) It studies archival materials that reference classical antiquity from LGBTQ organisations active in Greece, the UK and the US since the Stonewall riots (1969) until today. This helps understand which histories are preserved and how they are presented in public.
(b) It compares narratives, images and symbols across Greece, the UK and the US, analysing how contemporary LGBTQ movements draw on the past to build particular histories. This approach highlights longstanding omissions and current practices of exclusion in LGBTQ public stories of the past.
(c) It explores how ideas of same-sex desire intersect with issues of race, empire and power, examining how dominant Western-focused histories define what is remembered and what is silences. This analysis supports a more inclusive understanding of LGBTQ stories of the past and its social, political and cultural significance today.
In a period of intense transnational migration and demographic dynamics currently challenging Western societies, understanding who is included and who is excluded within LGBTQ public histories becomes a timely and critical enterprise. The project aligns with Horizon Europe’s goal of building a more resilient, inclusive and democratic society. Its findings will be shared through peer-reviewed publications and public engagement with LGBTQ communities, cultural institutions, policymakers and the general public, ensuring the project’s results have meaningful impact beyond academia.
