Marseille 2007
| Abstract #435 - Elvis died and I was born: black African men negotiating same-sex desire in London | ||||
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Session: 21.6: Vulnerable populations (Parallel) on Monday @ 16.30-18.30 in 5 Chaired by William Fisher, Tomas Campbell Authors: Presenting Author: Dr Jane Anderson - Homerton University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, United Kingdom |
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| Additional Authors: Ms Sara Paparini, Prof Lesley Doyal, | ||||
| Aim: This qualitative work reports on the first study of African gay men in the Diaspora, There is a lack of information about sex between African men, both in and outside Africa. This is a consequence of the emergence of heterosex as a major route of HIV transmission coupled with the very low visibility and high rate of stigmatisation of male and female same-sex relations in most African communities. This gap in understanding needs to be addressed before appropriate prevention and treatment strategies for HIV and STIs can be considered. | ||||
| Method / Issue: 15 black African men who were sexually active with other men were recruited in central London with the help of community partners to take part in a focus group discussion in February 2006. Of these, 8 agreed to undertake an additional in depth one to one semi structured tape recorded interview with a white European female researcher. Interview design was informed by themes that had emerged from the group discussion. The men were also asked about their use of sexual health services. Interviews were transcribed and subjected to thematic analysis. | ||||
| Results / Comments: Men originated from 6 sub-Saharan African countries, were aged between 18 and 40 years and had been in the UK for an average of 5 years. None had children. Six were graduates, seven were working and five were studying. Reasons for going to London varied from promoting their education or seeking a job to joining a family already in the UK. Only one mentioned his sexuality as a primary motive for migration. The main focus was on the development of the mens sexual identity in their African countries of origin and the ways in which these identities were reshaped and renegotiated by the move to London. Men talked very powerfully about the tensions between being African and being gay and between their sexual identity and their religion. Their place and roles within the family were complex and a common source of tension. The concept of intersectionality is used in the analysis to make sense of these challenges and of the mens strategies for coping with them. | ||||
| Discussion: This is a small sample of men who had the resources to come to London. It only includes those men who were out and confident enough in their sexuality as to participate in such a project. However the men have provided insights into a group that is so far almost invisible within the research literature. The study offers an illustration of the ways in which individuals in broadly similar circumstances make very different choices and (re)shape their identities as the various dimensions of their lives unfold. The study demonstrates the importance of adopting a flexible methodological approach that does not fix individuals as a homogeneous community at a particular place or time. Researchers, service providers and policy makers all need to understand this if they are to take the needs and desires of these men seriously | ||||
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