"What's Queer About Europe?" Continued

I am not going to write about all of the essays in the book. In "Queering European Sexualities Through Italy's Fascist Past: Colonialis , Homosexuality, and Masculinities" by Sandra Ponzanesi mention is made of a film that I would definitely like to see, "A Special Day" ("Una giornata particolare" in Italian). Marcello Mastroianni portrayed a gay radio reporter, and Sophia Loren played the role of a frustrated housewife. The story takes place in Italy in 1938. Both have been marginalized by the Fascist party, one for being gay and the other for being a woman. They meet and become friends when her husband is at a party meeting. Homosexuals were not imprisoned in Italy as they were in Germany at that time, but they were ostracized. This essay also deals with interracial heterosexual relationships between Italians and the natives of the Italian colonies in Africa. For an Italian to have a relationship with an African woman was not seen as anything unusual, but marriage between them would not have been accepted.

"Queer/Euro Visions" by Carl F. Stychin is another essay that I found interesting. It deals with the camp potential of the song competition as well as the use of "queer" to refer to the other. Some of those who compete are not from the country they represent. Celine Dion who is from Canada represented Switerland. Some of the countries who participate are not geographically part of Europe. Israel is one of those countries. They were represented by Dana International in 1998. She was the first transgender person to win the competition. Marija Serifovic from Serbia perfomed in masculine attire in 2007. She has since come out as a lesbian. A gay pride march had been planned in Moscow when the competition took place there, but the police broke it up. The essay also deals with the issues of language and politics and the Eurovision Song Contest.

There are other interesting essays in the book. I would recommend reading What's Queer About Europe: Productive Encounters and Re-Enchanting Paradigms edited by Mireille Rosello and Sudeep Dasgopia and published by Fordham University Press in New York in 2014.