Chinese Queer Males’ Memories of Negotiating and Practicing Queer Identities in Educational Spaces

The argument that educational settings are spaces where gender and sexual expressions and practices are policed and under surveillance is well established in literature (e.g., Xu, Schweisfurth, & Read, 2022; Brett, 2024). Heterosexual and heteronormative norms prevalently shape school curriculums, teacher-student interactions, and peer cultures; rendering the experiences of those identifying as gender non-binary or non-heterosexual invisible and marginalised. Under the political regime of hegemonic masculinity in China, however, there is limited knowledge regarding how Chinese queer students negotiate their gender and sexual identities in school places. This paper thus presents the memories of 20 Chinese queer males (aged 19 to 28 years old), concerning their school experiences and their practices of queer identity in school space. Through biographical interviews, the participants recalled that they actively engaged in negotiating queer identity and in producing queer school space under the surveillance imposed by schools and the wider society. The strategies emerged include for example, establishing a network of allies including fujoshi and queer role models; co-creating knowledge about queer identity; empowerment through academic achievements; and the separation between school and family spaces. The findings point to a person-centred approach in supporting Chinese queer students in school contexts, focusing on individual and collective agency and empowerment.