QUEEROWA „CYWILIZACJA MIESZKANIA”. PRYWATKI, PRZYJĘCIA I BALE A KULTURA MĘSKIEJ HOMOSEKSUALNOŚCI W PRL
Queer “Apartment Civilization”: Private Parties, Balls, and the Culture of Male Homosexuality in the People’s Republic of Poland

Author(s): Jędrzej Burszta
Subject(s): Anthropology, Cultural Anthropology / Ethnology, Pre-WW I & WW I (1900 -1919), Interwar Period (1920 - 1939), WW II and following years (1940 - 1949), Post-War period (1950 - 1989), Transformation Period (1990 - 2010)
Published by: Wydawnictwa Uniwersytetu Warszawskiego
Keywords: People’s Republic of Poland; homosexuality; sociality; counterpublics; oral history
Summary/Abstract: The chapter examines the history of gay male culture in Poland in the People’s Republic of Poland. The author argues that a distinct “queer apartment civilization” emerged in major cities like Warsaw, where private homes provided safe havens for clandestine gatherings, parties, and social interaction among homosexual men. This “civilization” served as a pre-emancipatory form of gay subculture, facilitating the formation of identity and community amidst a restrictive societal environment. The author analyzes this phenomenon by focusing on the experiences of Mariusz and Marek, two men who met in the mid-1970s and became deeply involved in Warsaw’s homosexual social scene. The text explores the diverse experiences within these private spaces, including the distinction between elite gatherings and more informal parties, highlighting the interplay of class and social stratification within the male homosexual community.

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