Making (Queer) Kinship in a Childcare Institution in Taiwan

In 2019, Taiwan legalized same-sex marriage, marking a significant milestone in the country's LGBTQ+ rights movement. However, for LGBTQ+ youth residing in child welfare institutions due to family dysfunction or deviant behaviors, the celebration of marriage equality remains distant. While studies have explored queer families within traditional societal structures, the unique dynamics and experiences of LGBTQ+ youth in institutionalized "family-like" settings have been less examined. This study investigates how heterosexual and LGBTQ+ staff members within these institutions engage in various forms of "doing family" and “making (queer) kinship,” and also how would institutionalized LGBTQ+ youth perceive gender, sexuality, and family in relation to their institutional experiences.

The research reveals that the case in Taiwan, its institutional policies, influenced by national deinstitutionalization trends, aim to create a more family-like environment. However, the effectiveness of these policies is mediated by staff members’ individual “cultural toolkits” based on their gender and sexuality. Additionally, the study highlights the complex interplay between institutional logic, individual queer identities, and the formation of queer kinship within the childcare institution. It emphasizes the queer identity itself would influence the epistemology and methodology staff members adopt to reach their professional goals. This not only reflects the relationship between practical social work and the imagination of making (queer) families/kinship, but also coins with the “stigma as coalitional politics” discussed by Heather Love.