SEWSA 2016 Intersectionality in the New Millennium: An Assessment of Culture, Power, and Society

Substance Abuse Advocacy as Resistance: The Gay Shame Movement and LGBT Substance Abuse Treatment

Room 220, DiGiorgio Campus Center (DiGs)

Research conducted by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration suggests that queer populations experience substance abuse rates of 20- 30% compared to roughly 9% of non-queer populations; many queer activist groups have been working to curb these numbers and to address the unique set of problems queer identifying individuals face in addition to substance abuse. One such group is the Gay Shame movement, which seeks to resist a commercialized gay identity. This paper places the Gay Shame movement and the need for substance abuse treatment within queer populations in conversation with one another, with special attention paid to the intersections of race, gender, class, and sexuality with regard to access to substance abuse treatment. So far, access to substance abuse treatment services has not been discussed as a major means of resistance to the current, commercialized pride events. Specifically, this paper will examine the rates of substance abuse versus access to treatment resources in queer populations, and will argue that advocacy for increased access to substance abuse treatment and preventative programs within queer communities is one of the most powerful and needed forms of queer resistance.