‘When one doesn't even exist’: Europeanization, trans* subjectivities and agency in Cyprus

Abstract

In the context of Europeanization, transnational LGBTI rights and politics discourses and paradigms interact with local ones. However, the effects of this interaction on trans* people in the margins of ‘Europe’ have received little attention. Drawing from participant observation and interviews with trans* respondents, I examine how trans* subjectivities and politics in Cyprus are shaped amidst this process. I show that institutional responses to trans* claims reinforce trans* marginalization. I find that trans* people are marginalized in, and disappointed by the normalization of, the (trans)national LGBTI movement. I argue that these factors induce alternative modes of everyday trans* politics and community organizing outside NGO structures. Therefore, this article helps decentre trans* studies’ typical focus on Western Europe, North America and Australasia, while offering an analysis of the role of Europeanization in Cypriot LGBTI politics.