SEXTANT: masculinities, sexualities & decolonialities

ABSTRACT

Colonial empires are upheld through many aspects, including the governance of land, political entities, and resources. Less analysed, but arguably most impactful on the daily lives of colonies are interpersonal relations and sexualities, which equally played a role in upholding the colonial systems. This realms of study is vital to understanding the reproduction of settlement and coloniality. Especially in colonial systems where marriages and partnerships are intrinsically tied to status in colonial society, we must understand how sexualities are experienced in this system. As such, this research investigates the question: How were sexual markets used to uphold the colonial system in Colonial Indonesia? This Sway presents a short history of colonialism in Indonesia followed by an analysis of its historical sexual markets present. The Sway also functions as a gallery of artworks, commenting on the findings in relation to the embodied experience of the author’s identities intertwined with colonial history. 

KEYWOrDS

coloniality; sexual markets; decolonial studies; colonial Indonesia; Dutch colonialism

Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.