Homosexuell och invandrare - hur går det ihop?
InvandrareHomosexuellaMinoriteterAttityderErving GoffmanSocial problems and welfareNational insuranceSociala problemSocial välfärdSocialförsäkringLaw and Political Science
The purpose of this study was to explore the experiences of being a homosexual immigrant in the Swedish society. Our questions were how the interviewed homosexual immigrants experience being treated by the people in their surroundings and how they are influenced by their attitudes. We also wanted to know what kind of thoughts they have about affiliation considering origin and sexuality, and what positive and negative aspects they experience from the combination of being both homosexual and immigrants.To get the answers to these questions we used a qualitative method and interviewed seven homosexual immigrants between the ages of 25 and 40 years. We then compared our material with earlier studies of the living situation of homosexual immigrants in Sweden, Denmark and Norway. We also linked our findings to Goffman's stigma theory and to heteronormativity.The main result was that the combination of homosexuality and immigrantness can result in various difficulties. The religion can affect the interviewees? possibilities to express their homosexuality. We also found that the immigrant background can be troublesome in the meeting with the homosexual sphere. Despite this, the treatment has been characterized by neutral or positive reactions. Most interviewees can see positive aspects with their situation.