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Paper short abstract:

ased on fieldwork in Swakopmund, Namibia, this paper explores male friendships in the context of growing, and generally accepted, LGBT+ movements across Namibia. How does friendship relate to and differ from LGBT+ identities? Where must the 'queer' be situated, if at all?

Paper long abstract:

In Swakopmund, a small coastal city in the west of Namibia, notions of friendship sit sometimes uncomfortably close to conceptions of homosexuality; 'friendship' as a particular kind of intimate relationship between men involves companionship, mutual support and sex. Situated outside of marriage, yet usually occurring with the consent of wives and often more intimate than marital bonds, the homoerotic and companionate nature of friendship in Swakopmund is perhaps undeniable.

Despite being kept secret (or played down) from most others outside of the family, in Swakopmund this kind of relationship between men was also normalised not simply by its prevalence but most pertinently by its desirability; even those not involved in friendships expressed a longing for the kind of companionship that came with having a friend. Being 'gay' or 'queer', however, was a label rejected by men involved in these camaraderies, with LGBT+ movements often being located 'somewhere else', both geographically and in terms of personal identification. Yet Namibia is one of the few African countries in which LGBT+ movements receive support from government, despite sexual activity being technically illegal under an antiquated and never-used anti-sodomy law - in Namibia it is, more-or-less, 'OK to be gay'.

Based on two years' fieldwork in Swakopmund, this presentation addresses two key points. Firstly - given the quotidian - and intimate - nature of MSM relationships, how do friendships relate to LGBT+ identities? Secondly, considering the normalisation of both LGBT+ identities and male friendships, how must the 'queer' be situated in Swakopmund?