Homonationalism

The term was originally proposed by the researcher in gender studies Jasbir K. Puar in 2007 to refer to the processes by which neoliberal and capitalist power structures line up with the claims of the LGBT community in order to justify racist, xenophobic and aporophobic positions, especially against Muslims, basing them on prejudices that immigrants are homophobic and that Western society is egalitarian.

[2] The concept of homonationalism was created to describe and critique the nationalization of queer movements and growing anti-immigrant stances, while ignoring homophobia still propagated in Western society.

Venezia argues this disregards historical shootings with more victims, "'...including race riots and labor disputes in the early 1900s and massacres perpetrated by the U.S. Army or settlers in the American West.'

"Police and politicians often get good press by expressing their sympathy and solidarity with the LGBTQ+ community, even as they remain unapologetic and unresponsive in regards to oppressive policies and actions, like the Stonewall riots, abuse of trans folk, and restrictions on LGBTQ+ rights and protections.

[14] In a 2011 article, Sarah Schulman argues that the Israeli government, as part of a marketing campaign to depict Israel as "relevant and modern", "harness[ed] the gay community to reposition its global image.

[17] Political scientist Emil Edenborg invoked the concept of homonationalism in Ukraine and the West as a counterpart to a Russian nationalism centered on traditional values, writing that "Russia's geopoliticization of gender is mirrored by homonationalist and femonationalist discourses in the West, when gay rights and gender equality are portrayed as evidence of 'our' national superiority vis-à-vis backward Others, whether Muslim immigrants or homophobic Russians.

"[18] The rise of the Hindu Nationalism and the Bharatiya Janata Party has also seen some members of the LGBT community in India allying with Hindutva, while furthering tropes of Islamophobia and anti-minority rhetoric.

[21] In 2019 an event at SOAS, London was disrupted by masked individuals wearing balaclavas and carrying a rainbow flag that said “Gay for J&K”, “Article 370 is homophobic”, and “Regressive Left, don’t betray us".

[22] In 2023, the Indian Government's Ministry of Social Justice appointed scholar Giti Thadani to the National Council for Transgender Persons amidst allegations of Islamophobic tweets and hate speech.

[23] Abhijit Iyer-Mitra, a petitioner in the Supreme Court case to legalise same-sex marriage, has also been described by Al Jazeera as a 'Hindutva Idealogue' when he met with U.S. Democratic Congressman Ro Khanna.