Successful 1993 Queer Collaborations conference

By Tom Flanagan

SYDNEY -- Sydney University was the scene of a very successful Queer Collaborations conference from August 13-15. Three hundred and forty students registered for the conference.

Perhaps the key significance of the gathering is that it represented a new generation of activists campaigning in the arena of sexual politics. Students came from as far afield as the Launceston campus of the University of Tasmania, Curtin University in Western Australia and the Northern Territory University.

The conference opened with a speech by Susan Harben, president of the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras, who drew parallels between the growing significance of Queer Collaborations and the early Mardi Gras.

The conference quickly got down to business with a round-up of activities on the various campuses represented. It became clear that there has been a resurgence of activity on campuses across the country with many lesbian/gay/“queer” groups being formed, reformed or revitalised. Contributions to this initial discussion indicated that many groups were starting from scratch and stood to gain a great deal from the weekend of discussion and networking.

Some of the basic issues that campus groups are dealing with include supporting students in the process of coming out, and increasing the visibility of gays and lesbians on campus. Just putting up posters to advertise meetings can be a major problem on many campuses due to widespread homophobia.

One campus group dealt with the problem of posters being ripped down by implementing a policy of replacing every poster that was removed with two more. Another group used ladders to put posters out of reach. These simple anecdotes are indicative of an atmosphere of enthusiasm in the face of adversity that permeated the conference.

Workshops dealt with poetry, “queer politics”, pornography, the law, religion, workplace issues, media, and the diversity of human sexualities. One unfortunate cancellation was a workshop by the National Union of Students dealing with NUS policy. The NUS representatives failed to turn up.

Two major plenaries were held, one titled “Ethnocentrism/Racism/Queerdom”, and the other “Queer `Identity'/Coalition politics/Assimilationism”. Contributions to the latter ranged from the post-modernist literary gymnastics of writer Kirsty Machin to an assessment of “queer politics” by Cath Lawrence, a member of the Sydney Bisexual Support Network.

Cath Lawrence argued for the use of the term “queer” in an umbrella sense to mean “anybody objecting to heterosexism”, or a “sexual dissenter” (within the bounds of consenting sexual activity). Lawrence suggested that adopting the term “queer” was a way of saying that told your desires, behaviours, or interests are wrong -- a way of proclaiming the freedom for everyone to adopt their sexuality with comfort.

She pointed out that “queer politics” had met with significant hostility from gay and lesbian activists, not just in Sydney but overseas as well, and that a key reason for this was a fear of it assimilating gay and lesbian sexual identities. Lawrence conceded that this was a legitimate concern, particularly given the struggle to achieve lesbian visibility, but claimed that using the umbrella term “queer” doesn't mean denying one's specific sexuality.

The final plenary of Queer Collaborations provided scope for feedback about the conference. Participants praised the friendly non-factional atmosphere, the larger bisexual presence compared to previous years, and the excellent party held on the Saturday night. A national week of action on campus was projected for some time in October, and the large and enthusiastic Brisbane contingent offered to host QC in 1994.

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