Mapping Alternative Belonging: Queer of Color Homemaking in Neoliberal Urban Landscapes

Gentrification, prevalent in major American cities since the 1970s, has widened the housing gap between those with stable accommodation and access to the private sphere from those without. This process of gentrification is often accompanied by intensified policing, particularly targeting Black and brown queer people whose presence in public spaces is viewed as disruptive to private investment. Without financial stakes in these neighborhoods, queer communities of color must establish alternative forms of belonging. Examining cultural works such as John Leguizamo’s performance of "Manny the Fanny" from his 1991 Mambo Mouth show, Sean Baker’s 2015 film Tangerine, and Bryan Washington’s 2019 collection of short stories Lot, this paper explores how queer communities of color create networks of support and solidarity in unconventional public settings. Despite homonormative narratives of pride and progress that celebrate access to the private sphere for some white gay men and lesbians, bleak life outcomes for queer people of color remain structurally embedded. Their stories, as such, challenge the teleology of homonormativity by illustrating the impossibility of closure in narratives of racialized and gendered trauma. By shifting the sphere of allegedly private behaviors—like caregiving—to run-down laundromats, gas station bathrooms, and fast-food parking lots, these characters illustrate novel forms of homemaking that blur the boundaries between the public and private spatial divide at the heart of neoliberal property regimes. Building upon the precept by women of color feminism that literary and cultural forms can challenge structural violence, this paper reveals how these cultural texts offer us counter maps for navigating the highly policed terrain of commodified urban topographies. While acknowledging the pervasive violence experienced by queer people of color, the texts ultimately convey a sense of hope, finding within these adversities the potential for new forms of intimacy and community.