Das Buch, das es nicht mehr gibt/ Out Of Place

English

“Die fragliche Amnesie, die der plötzlichen Behauptung einer europäischen ‘Tradition’ anti-homophober und anti-sexistischer ‘Grundwerte’ zugrunde liegt, entspringt weniger geschlechtlichen Fortschritten als rassistischen Rückschritten.”

zit. Jin Haritaworn, mit Tamsila Tauqir und Esra Erdem: “Queer-Imperialismus: Eine Intervention in die Debatte über ‘muslimische Homophobie’” in Kien Nghi Ha, Nicola Lauré al-Samarai, Sheila Mysorekar (Hg.) “re/ visionen. Postkoloniale Perspektiven von People of Color auf Rassimus, Kulturpolitik und Widerstand in Deutschland” Unrast, 2007, S. 187 – 205, hier S. 188

2008 brachte Raw Nerve Books “Out of Place. Interrogating Silences in Queerness/ Raciality” raus. Der darin enthaltene Artikel “Gay Imperialism: Gender and Sexuality Discourse in the ‘War on Terror’” von Jin Haritaworn mit Tasmila Tauqir und Esra Erdem zeigt auf, dass in Britannien “muslimisch” zunehmend mit “homophob” gleichgesetzt wird und fragt danach, welches Interesse insbesondere Weiße Schwule, Lesben, Feministinnen und Queers an der damit einhergehenden Form der Repräsentationspolitik von Queers of Color haben. Am 7. September 2009 allerdings erklärte Raw Nerve Books “Out of Place” für vergriffen und veröffentlichte eine Entschuldigung und Richtigstellung gegenüber einer Person, die in “Gay Imperialism” als Beispiel und Akteur einer Form von Repräsentationspolitik erwähnt wird, die muslimische Queers als handlungsunfähige, zu rettende Opfer und “homophobe Migrant_innen” als Zivilisierungsobjekt vorstellt.

Dadurch, dass “Out of Place” auf diese Weise unzugänglich wird, bleiben genau die Stimmen und Wissensproduktionen verschüttet, die sich gegen diese Form der Repräsentationspolitik aussprechen. Und Weiße Leute umgehen mal wieder die Möglichkeit sich auf konstruktive und anerkennende Weise mit Formen von Rassismus innerhalb ihrer Politikformen zusammen zu setzen (“auseinandersetzen”, im Sinne von einem Distanz schaffendem: “Ich bin/ wir sind nicht rassistisch. Das kommt bei mir/ uns nicht vor.” machen sie ja schon ).

!!!!!!!

Deswegen leitet die Info weiter,

kommentiert auf den Blogs

“On the censorship of ‘Gay Imperialism’ and Out of Place” X:Talk website

“Racism and the Censorship of ‘Gay Imperialism’” von Aren Aizura

“Out of Place, Out of Print: On the Censorship of the First Queerness/Raciality Collection in Britain” von Johanna Rothe

und schickte nette, unterstützende Rückmeldungen an Jin Haritaworn

The Gender Institute,

The London School of Economics and Political Science,

Houghton Street, London

WC2A 2AE, UK

English

“Racism and the Censorship of “Gay Imperialism”
by Aren Aizura (full version here)

Dear friends,

Over the last few years a number of timely publications have illuminated the connections between gender and sexuality, the War on Terror and racialisation.  One of these is Out of Place: Interrogating Silences in Queerness/Raciality, edited by Adi Kuntsman and Esperanza Miyake and published by Raw Nerve Books in 2008.  An edited collection examining intersections between race and sexuality in the United Kingdom, Out of Place joins Jasbir Puar’s Terrorist Assemblages as a key contribution to this debate.  Alongside other contributions in Out of Place, the chapter “Gay Imperialism: Gender and Sexuality Discourse in the War on Terror”, by Jin Haritaworn, Tamsila Tauqir and Esra Erdem pointed to the continuing deployment of queerness as a symbol of “freedom” to rationalise the continuing wars in Afghanistan, Iraq and future wars in Iran and elsewhere, as well as to rationalise restrictive and racist immigration policies in “Western” or “liberal” nations.  ”Gay Imperialism” uses the work of activist Peter Tatchell, founder of Outrage!, as an example of how white gay activists can become complicit with this agenda by painting Islam as inherently homophobic and misogynist, and appointing themselves as the saviours of non-white queers.

On September 7th, Raw Nerve Books declared Out of Place to be out of print, removed it from circulation and sale, and issued an online apology to Peter Tatchell.  Presumably this is the result of threats of legal action by Tatchell and Outrage!.  The apology quotes its own publication to apologise for what it accepts as defamatory statements and misrepresentation of Tatchell and Outrage! by Haritaworn, Tauqir and Erdem. [...]

This incident proves something about how difficult it is to do anti-racist work.  Pointing out racism, no matter how carefully we might phrase it and no matter which arguments we have about the use of the word ‘racism’, is often perceived as a personal and individual affront. [...]

This way, the person or organisation critiqued can escape engaging with the content of the critique and put the burden of proof back on the person who raised the issue. [...]

The authors of the chapter and the editors of Out of Place are unable to comment due to UK libel law.  It’s unlikely that Raw Nerve will reissue the book, even if the editors wanted this.  Meanwhile the authors’ reputations are themselves besmirched.  There are several things you can do about this situation:

1. Circulate this and your own commentary among your friends, companeros, colleagues.
2. Circulate “Gay Imperialism” — a PDF is online here:
   <www.mediafire.com/?sharekey=
   edf3d795b172f5376b21be4093fab7ace04e75f6e8ebb871>
3. Write letters in support of Jin Haritaworn to:
   The Gender Institute,
   The London School of Economics and Political Science,
   Houghton Street, London
   WC2A 2AE, UK

Please pass this around, respond, send it to other listservs and read the other statements written about the censorship of Out of Place:

“Out of Place, Out of Print: On the Censorship of the First Queerness/Raciality Collection in Britain” by Johanna Rothe, Monthly Review, <monthlyreview.org/mrzine/rothe151009.html>

“On the Censorship of ‘Gay Imperialism’ and Out of Place“, X:Talk website, <www.xtalkproject.net/?p=415>

In solidarity,

Aren Aizura”

~ von fleshback am 28. Oktober 2009.