Disidentifications: Queers of Color and the Performance of Politics

by José Esteban Muñoz

There is more to identity than identifying with one’s culture or standing solidly against it. José Esteban Muñoz looks at how those outside the racial and sexual mainstream negotiate majority culture—not by aligning themselves with or against exclusionary works but rather by transforming these works for their own cultural purposes. Muñoz calls this process “disidentification,” and through a study of its workings, he develops a new perspective on minority performance, survival, and activism.

Disidentifications is also something of a performance in its own right, an attempt to fashion a queer world by working on, with, and against dominant ideology. By examining the process of identification in the work of filmmakers, performance artists, ethnographers, Cuban choteo, forms of gay male mass culture (such as pornography), museums, art photography, camp and drag, and television, Muñoz persistently points to the intersecting and short-circuiting of identities and desires that result from misalignments with the cultural and ideological mainstream in contemporary urban America.

Muñoz calls attention to the world-making properties found in performances by queers of color—in Carmelita Tropicana’s “Camp/Choteo” style politics, Marga Gomez’s performances of queer childhood, Vaginal Creme Davis’s “Terrorist Drag,” Isaac Julien’s critical melancholia, Jean-Michel Basquiat’s disidentification with Andy Warhol and pop art, Felix Gonzalez-Torres’s performances of “disidentity,” and the political performance of Pedro Zamora, a person with AIDS, within the otherwise artificial environment of the MTV serial The Real World.

Genres: Queer, Theory, Nonfiction, LGBT, Race, Gender, Politics

227 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 1999

About the author

José Esteban Muñoz was a writer and scholar living in New York City. He taught at and served as chair of the department of Performance Studies at the Tisch School of the Arts, New York University.

Reviews

[Why-why · Rating 4 out of 5]

The intro is golden, wherein Munoz lays out his theory of disidentification.  The book itself, each chapter an application of his theory of disidentification to various examples of performance, I was not so interested in.  By the time I got to p. 130 my interest was barely hanging on, I didn't even bother to unpack what the heck Irigarayan hom(m)osexuality is, lol.

Admittedly, I am not so interested in analysis of art, and stage and screen performance.  I would have appreciated if there was a chapter that addressed off-stage, everyday performance of everyday individuals in day to day living.  Given the focus on media, there was a strong, unmentioned link to the idea of representation.  

Unlike a number of other reviewers, I found the definition of disidentifications to be fairly straightforward.  Perhaps the confusion is in the author's use of previous works that informed his theory, but different from the idea of disidentification proposed.  Or perhaps it is because Munoz gives it a 3-part definition as it pertains to different functions.  In short, disidentification is "heuristic," the process of an individual developing their self-ness via societal models, in this instance by dis-identifying, identifying in-opposition to mainstream values.  (If I remember correctly,) the second is as a mode of analysis that deconstructs mainstream value models and thereby reconstructs new value models in-opposition to mainstream.  And lastly, as a term describing action (vs. passive societal mind control), creating new possibilities and worldviews through performance.

The reviewer Justin is correct, Munoz spells out the limits to the revolutionary potential for disidentification as social action.  He very specifically states that it is not a complete rejection of mainstream, it is a critical distortion of mainstream, staying within the complex, if you will.  The desired end point seems to be inclusion to the mainstream, rather than a rejection of.  

Theoretically I was left with two questions.  For Munoz, queer identity is premised as necessarily fractured, split, fragmented, malaligned... Which leaves the question, is it then impossible (by that definition) to be queer in a completely supportive, inclusive community?  My bigger issue with the formulation of disidentification is arguably beyond the scope that is limited to disidentification with  mainstream culture.  Disidentification is specifically in-opposition to a non inclusive mainstream, which for me begs the question, what about positive identification with non-mainstream examples from other cultures in place and time?  As I read this book it occurred to me that all of history is queer!  (i.e. queer in comparison to mainstream ideology today). 

[Justin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found the book provocative and I appreciate how transportable the concept is, but I had Audre Lorde's "The Master's Tools Will Never Dismantle the Master's House" in the back of my head and I guess I'm just wondering whether there's somehow evidence that disidentifying actually works as a political and not just a personal project. I'm not even saying I disagree but I need to chew on it a bit more.

[Angbeen · Rating 5 out of 5]

incredible incredible piece of work on queer performativity + queer of colour critique of queer theory. very interesting, more accessible than i thought it would be (still a challenging read tho lol) and essential reading if you're a queer theorist or queer art-maker.

[Zefyr · Rating 5 out of 5]

A few weeks into their relationship, Sean proposed marriage to Pedro and Pedro accepted. In response, the show's other "star" presence, Puck, decided to one-up the queer couple by proposing marriage to his new girlfriend Toni. Puck stands as proof that not all counterpublics challenge the way in which the social is organized by the dominant culture. Puck's counterpublic is a juvenile version of rugged individualism; it represents a sort of soft anarchism that relativizes all political struggles as equivalents to his own exhaustive self-absorption.

-- Pedro Zamora's "Real World"

[Tia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kind of expected more from this! Muñoz develops a useful, portable concept, and this book is very accessible and easy to read (how else could I consume 170 pages of theory while sick), but a lot of the readings feel sort of obvious. I can appreciate that maybe they were novel at the time though!

[Ayanna Dozier · Rating 5 out of 5]

Disidentification is a "world-making" process for minoritarian subjects, Muñoz states in the closing chapter of his book (p. 197). This world-making process utilizes performance as a method in which individuals can create an environment where identities that do not conform can exercise freedom of being, which is to say that this process performs subtle subversions as a creative way to engage with a state of being. The mere concept of disindetification alludes to the "construction site" that is identity. Identity is never a fixed or stable concept, identity is always changing and is nothing but not fluid. To perform a disindetification, a performance that minoritarian subjects and queer individuals are particularly adapt to in Muñoz's analysis, is to illustrate the limits or failure of fixed subject formations in society. Thus, the disindetification of the "bored lesbian housewife," disrupts the fixity of the the category of woman as situated only in the home and relation to men under the heterosexual matrix (p. 3). Additionally, Muñoz correctly argues that individuals of color are used to performing a disindetification out of survival from living under conditions of white supremacy. Muñoz grapples with the psychological implications of growing up brown or Black and seeing only whiteness as emblematic of success and beauty. In one of may favorite passages, Muñoz points out that survival is possible and praises those who find a way out, quoted here at length:

"I always marvel at the ways in which nonwhite children survive in a white supremacist U.S. culture that preys on them. I am equally in awe of the ways in which queer children navigate a homophobic public sphere that would rather they did not exist. the survival of children who are both queerly and racially identified is nothing short of staggering. The obstacles and assaults that pressure and fracture such young lives as brutally as a police bully club . . . I understand the strategies and rituals that allow survival in such hostile cultural waters, and I in turn feel certain compulsion to try to articulate and explicate these practices of survival." (p. 37)

[Kate O'connor · Rating 4 out of 5]

An incredibly important book for any scholar of queer studies or those interested in queer of color critique. Where the book is weakest, however, is its repetitive cycles. Further, the book gives nearly a dozen definitions of disidentification and makes the very term seem almost meaningless. despite these critiques, it is a marvelous work which can be valuable to almost any scholar.

[Stacey Rice · Rating 4 out of 5]

A honest look at queer masculinity.

[Nihar Mukund · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75
One can spot the seeds of the theoretician's later work on utopias in this book. As a lover of Muñoz's work, I enjoyed the core idea of this text, and for the most part, how it was applied, albeit it was a bit repetitive across most chapters (except for the last few).

However, the writing style felt a bit rushed and unedited, with dense and tricky underexplained passages sometimes followed by overly explained passages, where sentences would forget about those placed next to them. (I think I, too, am writing similarly right now, but this is a rushed review, not a published book.) Like bestie, don't name-drop Hegel's and Irigaray's theories (which would need greater explanation) and then give a repeated idea a whole other paragraph.

Finally, the final chapter led forward, but because the author wanted to suddenly info-dump in limited space, a few threads are left unexplored, to the detriment of his explanations at times. (i.e. Cindy Patton, and the critiques of C.L.R. James' idea) Nonetheless, it is a useful and well-thought-out read (for the most part).

[Nic · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great first book by an important figure in queer of color critique. The chapters don’t progress so much as they accumulate sites and textures of disidentificatory practices performed by queer of color artists and activists. I see so much of Judith Butler’s influence on Muñoz’s own use of performativity. I also see how this work sets him up for his next book on queer utopia. I appreciate how he writes with care, love and understanding about his subjects, who seem so often to be friends and acquaintances from the coterie of queer of color nightlife and underground artists in urban cities. Even if the context and references are dates, the work still feels relevant.

[Benjamin Coakley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Five and half stars.

Currently writing a master's thesis that employs Muñoz's understanding of disidentification as a way to read the paradoxical formation of conservative evangelicalism as a minority subculture, despite its place within the hegemonic spheres of white supremacy, heteronormativity, and patriarchy.

Someone remind me to come back and say more about this book when I'm done writing. 😄

[Nilsu · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read his work after engaging with thinkers like Irigaray, Lorde, Anzaldúa, and his PhD advisor, Sedgwick. With those voices in mind, it’s hard not to connect his ideas to concepts like Mimesis and Mestiza Consciousness, while I recognize disidentification as a powerful tool, to me, it feels like another variation of these... (Even though he employs dualities rather than a direct split, it still feels relatively familiar).

[Amber · Rating 4 out of 5]

While I realize the value of this book as a marker and archive of queer being and action, it was challenging to grasp a complete understanding of disidentification. Like other reviewers I found the definition or term to be nebulous, nonetheless, the examples were clear and understandable in themselves of the hybrid nature of queerness.

[Jacob · Rating 5 out of 5]

an essential queer theory read, in my opinion. it’s so interesting to read this a while after reading Cruising Utopia—disidentification has so much utopic potential and you can see Muñoz’s thoughts leading to that next step.

[Isabella :) · Rating 5 out of 5]

mister muñoz thank u for existing and building the queer world i can come into. i cannot wait to understand your legacy as i keep reading you. thank you cuban. “Our charge as spectators and actors is to continue disidentifying with this world until we achieve new ones.” thank you.

[Gisela · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm mad I didn't read this earlier!!!

[Kolby · Rating 5 out of 5]

Necessary reading for anyone invested in the process of queer art-making. We lost one of the greats with Muñoz's passing.

[Leomii · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is very good

[Lemon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Life-changing book about queer and trans* BIPOC performances! A must-read for anyone interested in queer studies and performance studies!

[seamus slattery]

unbelievable

[Adrianne Ackroyd · Rating 5 out of 5]

No one does it like Munoz. This is theory as it is meant to be done.

[Kafka · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read Intro. for essay. Will read more later, good stuffff

[Iris Core · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing little text, a lot of depth within it but in a way that is very readable. Certainly one of my favourite pieces of queer theory i’ve encountered

[Joseph Conner · Rating 5 out of 5]

The ability to exist outside oppressive systems is the most thoughtful, liberating concept that I have never eve considered possible before I read this

[jess liu]

reading this was a litmus for how much i’ve grown since reading cruising utopia (my first piece of queer theory)

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found disidentification really useful as a concept. Munoz doesn’t really jump into it fully until the last third of the book.

[Katrinka]

4? 5? I don't know—the book gives much food for continued thought, and that's the sign of something good.

[Parker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Disidentifications: Queers of Color and the Performance of Politics by José Esteban Muñoz is a book that surveys the potential powers and methods that gender and sexuality disidentifications can operate on (drag) bodies. The author argues that conventional majoritarian constructs reify themselves through subconscious, repetitious performances by the masses. Therefore, binary-driven, oppressive concepts must be taken on by minoritarian counterpublics, like queer-drag circuits, and reimagined for progressive means.
The book highlights how performances of queer-drag create queer counterpublics that continue in the footsteps of the postmodern traditions of disidentity and parodic play within oppressive majoritarian publics. By refusing binary traditions, rejecting essentialist claims, and exalting disidentifications, spaces of rupture within generalized, heteronormative society can become visible and tangible for evaluation, dissection, and transformation into queer possibilities.
Overall, Disidentifications: Queers of Color and the Performance of Politics is an essential read for anyone interested in queer theory or deep-analyses of modern sociosexual politics. It offers new perspectives on minoritarian performance that is both insightful and thought-provoking.

[Gabe Chazan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Challenging but essential book.

[The Atlantic]

"In Muñoz’s first book, 'Disidentifications,' he argues that living as a brown person or a queer person (or both) in the world can be exhausting because you either live with straight whiteness or live against it. He offers a third option: to disidentify, to invent new ways of being." — Joseph Osmundson

https://www.theatlantic.com/books/arc...