Sexuality, Citizenship and Migration: The Irish Queer Diaspora in London

This chapter will draw on research that examined the experiences of Irish lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered (LGBT) people living in London. Various writers have noted the appeal of global cities to LGBT people. Metropolitan centres are associated with tolerance of sexual diversity and established queer communities. There is a long history of Irish migration to the UK, particularly London. This has coincided historically with many Irish LGBT people feeling compelled to emigrate in search of a more tolerant and supportive social climate. The study explores Irish queer migrants’ reasons for moving to London and their experiences there. Research questions address notions of home, identity, belonging, familial relationships and subjectivity. The ways in which identities become circulated in global contexts and are rearticulated, as well as the significance of migration in the formation of Irish queer subjectivities, are examined. By exploring the relationship between sexuality, ethnicity and migration, the study attempts to uncover the ways in which contemporary sexual citizenship, migration and queer imaginaries of the metropolis are mutually implicated in complex ways. The chapter considers some of the implications of the research findings for wider theories of sexual citizenship.