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Rainbow Trap
Queer Lives, Classifications and the Dangers of Inclusion
Rainbow Trap
Queer Lives, Classifications and the Dangers of Inclusion
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Description
Rainbow Trap reveals how the fight for LGBTQ equalities in the UK is shaped – and constrained – by the classifications we encounter every day.
Looking across six systems – the police and the recording of hate crimes; dating apps and digital desire; outness in the film and television industry; borders and LGBTQ asylum seekers; health and fitness activities; and DEI initiatives in the workplace – Rainbow Trap documents how inclusive interventions – such as new legislation, revamped diversity policies and tech fixes – have attempted to bring historically marginalized communities out of the shadows.
Yet, as part of the bargain, LGBTQ people need to locate themselves in an ever-growing list of classifications, categories and labels to 'make sense' to the very systems they are seeking to access. This requirement to be classified catches LGBTQ communities in a rainbow trap. Because when we look beyond the welcoming veneer of inclusive interventions, we uncover sorting processes that determine what LGBTQ lives are valued and what queer futures are possible.
Table of Contents
1. Hate Crimes: Safety, Protection and the Police
2. Dating Apps: Technology and the Curation of Desire
3. Culture: Outness in the Film and Television Industry
4. Borders: Truth, Sameness and the Politics of Evidence
5. Health and Fitness: Markers of Difference and the Body
6. Business: Queer Workers and Money Matters
Conclusion: After Inclusion
Acknowledgements
Bibliography
Index
Product details

Published | Jun 12 2025 |
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Format | Ebook (PDF) |
Edition | 1st |
Extent | 248 |
ISBN | 9781350429703 |
Imprint | Bloomsbury Academic |
Publisher | Bloomsbury Publishing |
About the contributors
Reviews
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A nuanced and detailed examination of the efficacy of equality metrics on job application forms and other mechanisms of officialdom … Fascinating.
Morning Star
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In a world that wants to see everything in black and white, once again, Guyan showcases its true complexity with masterful clarity. Rainbow Trap is one of those books that will stay with you and make you reconsider how (and why) we employ inclusivity today.
Dr Alfredo Carpineti, Chair of Pride in STEM
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Rainbow Trap is a fascinating and thoughtful analysis of the ways that categorisations can sometimes result in unintended outcomes, and a must-read for queer scholars!
Paul Baker, Lancaster University, UK
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Written with his characteristic thoroughness and thoughtfulness, Kevin Guyan's Rainbow Trap beautifully explores classification's role in shaping queer lives, and the possibilities and perils of treating it as a tool of liberation. At a time when questions about the politics and experience of queer lives are more urgent than ever, Guyan's work represents a vital contribution to both academic, and activist, conversations about how to pursue freedom.
Dr. Os Keyes, University of Massachusetts, USA
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In this exciting new book, Guyan takes us through the possibilities and problems of classifying people, sexualities and genders. Exploring how labels that are counted both offer access to some equalities and also limit liberations, this book refuses the tedium of administrative process, showing their power and elasticity. Recommended for academics, activists, policy makers and those who make those policies a reality, this book is a must read for those interested in equalities, differences and the systems that both create, and refuse to see, us.
Kath Browne, University College Dublin, Ireland
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An admirably clear, incisive articulation of something that's often impossible to articulate, or even grasp: the political and social work done by queer classification practices. It's a must-read for anyone working in queer sociology, homonationalism, or workplace diversity.
Kit Heyam, author of 'Before We Were Trans: A New History of Gender'

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