Everyday passing: the heteronormative dress of gay men

This research investigates how gay men ‘pass’ through their everyday lives by constructing heteronormative appearances with clothing. In a so-called ‘neoliberal’ landscape, it seeks to understand the motivations behind gay men’s continued constructions of hegemonic masculinity, which are often limiting and oppressive. To do so, twelve gay men residing in Toronto, Ontario were interviewed on their masculine dress choices. By engaging with their clothing, these men revealed how cultural stereotypes of ‘gay’ have evolved and developed, how gay men experiment with fashion and a new tailoring of masculinity that aims at diminishing – historical – stigmatized perceptions of homosexuality. This research contributes knowledge to the field of fashion and masculinity by exploring how gay men, from past to present, use clothing to survive within heterosexual frameworks.