The Centre for the Study of Sexual Dissidence is the focal point for research in queer studies at the University of Sussex. Founded over twenty years ago, the Centre gained international acclaim by pioneering the field of queer studies. Today, we continue to bring together faculty, undergraduate and postgraduate students from across the University of Sussex and the University of Brighton, and members of the Brighton community, to create a thriving network of enquiry, dialogue and experimentation.
We offer opportunities for graduate work in queer studies through our PhD in Sexual Dissidence and our MA in Sexual Dissidence. The MA in Sexual Dissidence was founded in 1990 as one of the first degrees of its kind in the world and offers an interdisciplinary training in the study of sexuality.
We organise the Queory seminar, a visiting speaker series that showcases new queer research, arts, literature, and activism and is open to all. Recent speakers have included Mandy Merck, Joseph Bristow, Andy Medhurst, David Halperin, Del LaGrace Volcano, Heather Love, Thomas Glave, Gerard Koskovich, Sarah Schulman, William Leap, Shamira Meghani, Stella Bolaki, Dagmar Schultz and Gail Lewis.
We are also the home of the graduate student-led Queer Studies Reading Group, a friendly and informal group that brings together faculty, graduate and undergraduate students, and members of the Brighton community to keep up to date on the latest developments in queer studies (check out the Facebook page). The Sex Diss Film Club regularly holds informal gatherings to watch and discuss films selected by students and faculty members.
You can consult our News and Events pages for full details on all of our events.
As part of our Queory events series, activist, academic and writer Sarah Schulman gave a Q&A chaired by faculty member JD Rhodes, speaking about her experiences and role in producing the film United In Anger: A History Of Act Up (2012), screened at Duke's @ Komedia, Brighton, on 18th February 2013. She talks about the Act-Up movement, the logistics of the filming and her personal experiences of the AIDS epidemic, Act-Up and current gay rights issues. To listen to the podcast of the Q&A session please click below: