ABSTRACT
This chapter begins with a discussion of how the concept of queer and queering is understood historically. It summarizes the histories and tenets of queer theory and explores queer theory in education. In most North American contexts, the use of queer was a rejection of static lesbian and gay identities. The activism and politics that grew out of this era demanded visibility and a “complex mobilization of people beyond sexual identity”. Thinking about the significance in leaving regimes of truth unexplored and the norms hidden or generally accepted in terms of gender and sexuality often results in the perpetuation of heteronormativity and cisnormativity. The provisional and changing nature of queer theories invites educators, policy makers, students, and scholars of social justice to continue to engage with how language, discourse, and knowledge are constructed and produced. Gender and sex are ambiguous and contested within queer theories.
