Erotic Islands: Art and Activism in the Queer Caribbean - Hardcover

Gill, Lyndon K.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0822368587 ISBN 13: 9780822368588

Publisher: Duke University Press Books, 2018

Synopsis

In Erotic Islands, Lyndon K. Gill maps a long queer presence at a crossroads of the Caribbean. This transdisciplinary book foregrounds the queer histories of Carnival, calypso, and HIV/AIDS in the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. At its heart is an extension of Audre Lorde's use of the erotic as theory and methodology. Gill turns to lesbian/gay artistry and activism to insist on eros as an intertwined political-sensual-spiritual lens through which to see self and society more clearly. This analysis juxtaposes revered musician Calypso Rose, renowned mas man Peter Minshall, and resilient HIV/AIDS organization Friends For Life. Erotic Islands traverses black studies, queer studies, and anthropology toward an emergent black queer diaspora studies.

About this title

About the Author

Lyndon K. Gill is Associate Professor of African and African Diaspora Studies at the University of Texas at Austin.

Review

“This is a brave, important, and engaging work that breaks new ground while beautifully honoring intellectual and aesthetic traditions. Lyndon K. Gill's scholarship pushes well beyond the current boundaries of anthropology—exploring how erotic subjectivity shapes our expanding cartography of the queer Caribbean, at the cutting edge of black studies, queer studies, and diaspora studies.” (Jafari S. Allen, author of ¡Venceremos? The Erotics of Black Self-Making in Cuba)

“Bringing together anthropologically inflected inquiry and insightful engagement with contemporary theoretical debates in queer theory, art history, and in race, diaspora, and gender studies, Lyndon K. Gill makes an extremely important contribution to our understanding of the contemporary Caribbean. Gill's reading of this space is informed by both a knowing intimacy of the region and critical engagement with a wider body of scholarship in ways that move local knowledge and broader theoretical debates in new directions.” (Rinaldo Walcott, author of Queer Returns: Essays on Multiculturalism, Diaspora, and Black Studies)

Edition details

• Publisher: Duke University Press Books
• Publication date: 2018
• ISBN 10: 0822368587
• ISBN 13: 9780822368588
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 312