Resisting Police in Queer Spaces

Resisting Police in Queer Spaces offers a compelling account of the determined and resilient efforts of Two-Spirit, queer, and trans communities to carve out and maintain vital public spaces. It charts the history and contemporary realities of their activism in the face of significant and often oppressive police intervention. By analyzing a range of community organizing strategies and specific instances of police action, Alexa DeGagné reveals the ways in which these communities have navigated and challenged attempts to marginalize their presence in public life. The book also thoughtfully explores the internal complexities and at times conflicting perspectives within these diverse communities, particularly concerning interactions with law enforcement. Through case studies, Resisting Police in Queer Spaces illustrates the unwavering commitment to build and safeguard queered publics-spaces of belonging, resistance, and cultural expression. This insightful work is essential reading for anyone interested in understanding the ongoing struggles for social justice, the dynamics of Two-Spirit, queer and trans activism, and the need for police abolition. Pairs resistance to police intrusion in queer public spaces against the tension of Two-Spirit, queer, and trans communities' assumed need for police protection. Pairs resistance to police intrusion in queer public spaces against the tension of Two-Spirit, queer, and trans communities' need for police protection. Bibliography, index
"Expertly surveying Canada's shifting landscape of policing sexuality, Resisting Police in Queer Spaces is a brilliant demonstration of how police organizations close-down queer spaces, foment divisions, and reinforce racial, sexual, and class hierarchies in Two-Spirit, queer, and trans communities. DeGagné crafts a compelling, cutting-edge account of fierce contests over police incursions in queer publics that deserves to be widely read." Emma Russell, La Trobe University
"Resisting Police in Queer Spaces provides an in-depth investigation into the criminalization and surveillance of queers in public space. DeGagné engages with current interdisciplinary debates on human rights, police power, the state, settler colonialism, and the definitions of public and private." Tom Hooper, York University

• Introduction

• Section 1: Sex in Public

• Chapter 1: Histories and Theories of Police in Queer Publics

• Chapter 2: Policing Queer Publics and Public Sex in Marie Curtis Park

• Chapter 3: Taking Back Marie Curtis Park

• Section 2: Police in Pride Parades

• Chapter 4: Visibility and Traps of Pride Parades

• Chapter 5: The Trouble with Police in Pride Parades

• Chapter 6: Exercising the Politics of Pride Parades

• Section 3: Communities in the Streets

• Chapter 7: The Pride Defenders of Hamilton

• Chapter 8: Gage Park Pinkwashing Fallout

• Conclusion

• Bibliography