TIMOTHY HILDEBRANDT ties with the international community because of the unifying power of a globalized notion of what it means to be gay,others contend that discussions of identity should actually lead us to expect minimal or strained ties.This argument accepts a universalized gay identity,but suggests that it ignores important idiosyncrasies for LGBT people across cultural contexts.In his studies of Asia,Altman argues that a common gay identity makes it difficult for local LGBTs to assert an authentically'gay Asian'identity.23 For some,international gay activism can behegemonic'and 'neo- colonialist'in that success and political consciousness for all LGBT people is contingent upon 'swallowing this universalized gay identity whole',irrespective of local context.4Moreover,in creating this universalized gay identity,activists tend to rely on language that,while supposedly globalized,is overly simplistic and reflective of its European and American forebears. This globalized identity can have practical implications for LGBT activism.Issues pertinent to the international gay and lesbian movement(usually defined by activists in the US and Western Europe)can seem out of touch to activists elsewhere;what works to promote gay and lesbian rights in one context can fall flat in others.Tan contends that 'global queering'has the power to define gay and lesbian rights in ways that are culturally inappropriate and improbable for many,'mainly as gay marriages'26 Chinese activists are generally disinterested in same-sex marriage,placing it relatively low on the list of priorities for their organizations.They desire more fundamental 'gay rights'such as eliminating employment discrimination and diminishing family pressures.27 The global gay identity's inattention to important cultural nuance has been noted elsewhere.Gay Filipinos object to the preoccupation of 'coming out' among LGBT people elsewhere for a very practical reason:visibility is dangerous. Public spaces are 'not the place for pride',but for shame and degradation.28 Transnational ties that flow from this universalized identity do not always have a positive effect on local LGBT activists.Massad shows that in using universal understandings and frames in the Arab world,LGBT activists can actually provoke the promulgation of repressive policies.By bringing previously ignored discussion of sexuality into the open,political leaders have created new policies that codify archaic anti-gay attitudes. In sum,a globalized gay identity runs the risk of ignoring what is necessary for LGBTs in one context in favor of what is assumed best for those across all contexts. 23.Altman.'Global gaze/global gays',p.418.Altman also argues that the 'AIDS industry'has created a globalized perception of what it means to be a gay man(Altman,'Rupture or continuity?). 24.Stychin,'Same-sex sexualities and the globalization of human rights discourse',p.958. 25.Manalansan,'In the shadows of Stonewall',p.27.This identity also relies on a common language:English. Therefore,bonds between local and global activists are usually restricted to a small subset of the population who understand English.This link between common identity and common language can further limit opportunities for many local activists because most donors still require applications to be completed in English.Rob Efird.'Leaming the land beneath our feet:NGO"local learning materials"and environmental education in Yunnan Province',Journal of Contemporary China 21(76).(2012).makes a similar point about the tension between interational understandings of environmental education and local Chinese receptivity to such pedagogies. 26.Michael Tan,'A response to Altman',Australian Humanities Review,(July 1996). 27.Timothy Hildebrandt,'Same-sex marriage in China?The strategic promulgation of a progressive policy and its impact on LGBT activism',Review of International Studies 37,(2011),pp.1313-1333. 28.Manalansan,'In the shadows of Stonewall',pp.434-435. 29.J.Massad,'Re-orienting desire:the gay intemational and the Arab world',Public Cult 14(2),(2002). pp.361-385. 850ties with the international community because of the unifying power of a globalized notion of what it means to be gay, others contend that discussions of identity should actually lead us to expect minimal or strained ties. This argument accepts a universalized gay identity, but suggests that it ignores important idiosyncrasies for LGBT people across cultural contexts. In his studies of Asia, Altman argues that a common gay identity makes it difficult for local LGBTs to assert an authentically ‘gay Asian’ identity.23 For some, international gay activism can be ‘hegemonic’ and ‘neo￾colonialist’ in that success and political consciousness for all LGBT people is contingent upon ‘swallowing this universalized gay identity whole’, irrespective of local context.24 Moreover, in creating this universalized gay identity, activists tend to rely on language that, while supposedly globalized, is overly simplistic and reflective of its European and American forebears.25 This globalized identity can have practical implications for LGBT activism. Issues pertinent to the international gay and lesbian movement (usually defined by activists in the US and Western Europe) can seem out of touch to activists elsewhere; what works to promote gay and lesbian rights in one context can fall flat in others. Tan contends that ‘global queering’ has the power to define gay and lesbian rights in ways that are culturally inappropriate and improbable for many, ‘mainly as gay marriages’.26 Chinese activists are generally disinterested in same-sex marriage, placing it relatively low on the list of priorities for their organizations. They desire more fundamental ‘gay rights’ such as eliminating employment discrimination and diminishing family pressures.27 The global gay identity’s inattention to important cultural nuance has been noted elsewhere. Gay Filipinos object to the preoccupation of ‘coming out’ among LGBT people elsewhere for a very practical reason: visibility is dangerous. Public spaces are ‘not the place for pride’, but for shame and degradation.28 Transnational ties that flow from this universalized identity do not always have a positive effect on local LGBT activists. Massad shows that in using universal understandings and frames in the Arab world, LGBT activists can actually provoke the promulgation of repressive policies.29 By bringing previously ignored discussion of sexuality into the open, political leaders have created new policies that codify archaic anti-gay attitudes. In sum, a globalized gay identity runs the risk of ignoring what is necessary for LGBTs in one context in favor of what is assumed best for those across all contexts. 23. Altman, ‘Global gaze/global gays’, p. 418. Altman also argues that the ‘AIDS industry’ has created a globalized perception of what it means to be a gay man (Altman, ‘Rupture or continuity?’). 24. Stychin, ‘Same-sex sexualities and the globalization of human rights discourse’, p. 958. 25. Manalansan, ‘In the shadows of Stonewall’, p. 27. This identity also relies on a common language: English. Therefore, bonds between local and global activists are usually restricted to a small subset of the population who understand English. This link between common identity and common language can further limit opportunities for many local activists because most donors still require applications to be completed in English. Rob Efird, ‘Learning the land beneath our feet: NGO “local learning materials” and environmental education in Yunnan Province’, Journal of Contemporary China 21(76), (2012), makes a similar point about the tension between international understandings of environmental education and local Chinese receptivity to such pedagogies. 26. Michael Tan, ‘A response to Altman’, Australian Humanities Review, (July 1996). 27. Timothy Hildebrandt, ‘Same-sex marriage in China? The strategic promulgation of a progressive policy and its impact on LGBT activism’, Review of International Studies 37, (2011), pp. 1313–1333. 28. Manalansan, ‘In the shadows of Stonewall’, pp. 434 –435. 29. J. Massad, ‘Re-orienting desire: the gay international and the Arab world’, Public Cult 14(2), (2002), pp. 361 –385. TIMOTHY HILDEBRANDT 850