Beyond the Timeline of Progress: Comparing Online Sources with Lived LGBTQ+ Experiences in Guyana

Current maps, reports, and articles available online on LGBTQ+ rights in Guyana, catering to white Western readers, perpetuate a colonial image of the country as a “violent,” “savage,” “uncivilized” space, placing it “behind” on a Western timeline of progress. When comparing these sources with the lived experiences of research participants, we find that, in addition to exclusion, there are many positive changes and aspects of their lives that are left out of most online sources. By looking at the particular case study of Guyana, this article calls for an approach to LGBTQ+ Global South representations that center the nuances and complexities of intersectional local voices and activism, going beyond liberal Western ideals around LGBTQ+ rights.