Negotiating the Paradoxical Binaries of ‘Safety’ in Queer Spaces: Autoethnographic and Socio-Spatial Reflections

Amidst a backdrop of attacks on both LGBTQ+ individuals and LGBTQ+ venues coupled with the ongoing changing landscape of urban queer spaces across the UK, this article offers a timely autoethnographic and socio-spatial account of queer “safety.” This article examines when and how queer spaces are experienced as “safe.” Specifically, the article offers reflections from the author’s experience of two queer spaces: (1) The Proud Place, a purpose-built community center in Manchester, England and (2) The concert of a queer female artist that took place in Bristol, England. The article concludes that queer spaces are contextually safe spaces. Through an analysis of (in)visibility and exclusivity in queer spaces, the article reveals the social structures and power dynamics impacting perceptions of safety.