Heterosexism and the Geographies of Everyday Life in Belfast, Northern Ireland

In this paper we seek to extend work on the relationship between sexuality, space, and society by providing a nuanced geographical reading of the sexual production of space in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Utilising queer theory, we draw from interviews with thirty gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender individuals to illustrate how the discursive and material practices that shape the regulation, self-regulation, and resistance of heterosexism are spatially, temporally, and contextually uneven and unequal. Focusing on the spatial arenas of home, work, and social space we document how each space is produced and experienced in multiple ways, and managed using a variety of sociospatial strategies.