Semiotics of Homonationalism

Abstract

This chapter discusses homonationalism as an analytical concept, which was developed originally to describe how queer identities get mobilized instrumentally to align with neoliberal agendas of nation-states. The chapter also discusses how this concept has been harnessed in newer ways to “do” a tactical politics of resistance by queer movements in illiberal contexts. Studies from the social sciences, broadly, and sociolinguistics, particularly, are presented, with a focus on how homonationalism as a discourse is semiotically construed in particular contexts. A detailed case study involving the Pink Dot movement in Singapore demonstrates the semiosis of homonationalism (in the sense of a resistive politics), through the multi- and inter-semiotic co-deployment of spoken and written language, color, visual images, photographic footages, symbols, music, and represented urban landscapes and embodiment cues. The chapter concludes by highlighting homonationalism as a complex analytical site at which queer politics can get done as well as undone.