The Queer Liberation Theory Project

Project Scope and Objectives

This research project will seek to advance the public education and community development work being done in the name of queer liberation, by resurrecting the principles of the historical gay liberation movement, re-contextualizing them within contemporary queer discourse, translating the findings in theoretical terms, and disseminating them through various accessible multimedia platforms. The international literature will be reviewed and a multi-media resource list of sources that deal with queer liberation theory and perspectives will be created. Ontario-based activists, academics and artists who engage in queer liberation theory and activism will also be interviewed and an oral history and short documentary created for public education and queer community development purposes. A clear language pamphlet, ‘Queer Liberation in the 2010s’, will be produced, and a public forum will be held where the oral history, short documentary and pamphlet are slated to be launched.

Project Significance

The significance of this project is in its attempt to disrupt the forces of a neo-liberal agenda that has infiltrated the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transsexual and transgender (LGBT) communities over the last two decades, partly due to many positive advancements made by equal rights advocates (i.e. marriage equality), and also because of the overriding discourse that queer persons are just likestraight persons save for their sexual attractions. A queer contingent of the LGBT communities have become more and more dissatisfied and discontented with the direction of the LGBT movement, feeling that their countercultural voices are being increasingly drowned out by heteronormative, assimilationist, capitalistic and corporatizing powers at the expense of diversity and queer social justice. In response, this research project will resurrect the principles of the historical gay liberation movement, re-contextualize them within a contemporary discourse, iterate the findings in theoretical terms and disseminate them via multimedia approaches to further the aims of modern queer liberation movements, including community development and public education.

Research Team

The Queer Liberation Theory Project is a community-based research study partnering Nick Mulé in his academic capacity with Queer Ontario to make up the following research team:

Principal Investigator: Nick Mulé, PhD
Research Assistant: A.J. Lowik
Videographer: Davina Hader
Community-Based Partner: Queer Ontario
(Media Committee, Research and Education Committee)

Resource Lists

We have collected 206 resources related to queer liberation, which have been conveniently filed under nine categories. These are:

This resource list is also available as a single document, viewable and downloadable on Scribd.

A Final Note

The Queer Liberation Theory Project is a research study made possible through funding from York Minor Research Grant and SSHRC Small Grant at York University and is currently in progress.

To access the official Queer Ontario website, click here
or visit www.queerontario.org