Source: (2009) Australia and New Zealand Critical Criminology Conference 2009: Conference Proceedings. Pg. 69-77.
This paper explores how visibly non-heteronormative bodies mediate policing experiences of LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual,
transgender) young people, an area that has been mostly ignored in research about policing young people. Informed by
interviews with 35 LGBT young people in Brisbane, Queensland, this paper addresses this gap by exploring how the nonheteronormative
body mediates policing experiences of LGBT young people. Drawing on Foucault (1984), Butler (1990a),
and other queer theory, the paper argues young non-heteronormative bodies visibly perform ‘queerness’, are read by police,
and shape police-LGBT youth interactions. While this is complicated by looking at-risk (in terms of risk factors like
homelessness, substance abuse), and looking risky (in terms of risk-taking or criminalised activities), the paper concludes
noting how youthful LGBT bodies are regulated by police as non-heteronormative and deviant. (Authors abstract).
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