Liberdade de ser no terreiro: homens gays no Candomblé

Abstract

This work aims to address the presence of gay men in Candomblé, seeking to understand through the narratives of the interviewed people and the insertion of the researcher in the routine of the terreiros, the possibilities and conflicts in these spaces. Similar studies are not recent; for a long time, the presence of non-heterosexual sexualities on those spaces arouses debates by several theorists, under different perspectives; Ruth Landes, Peter Fry, Patricia Birman, Maria Lina Leão, are some of the authors that were interested in this theme. To understand a little bit about the struggles and opportunities the characters encounter in the terreiros, we conducted semi-strucured interviews and the experience of researcher in the routine of terreiros was taken in consideration. Their subjectivities are not in conflict with the foundations of the religion in which they were inserted, but it does not prevent them from experiencing situations of evident prejudice in a place supposedly open to pluralities. In the narratives, we can see how family, sexuality and religion intertwine, producing conflicts and approximations as well as understanding the actions taken by the individuals to establish themselves in these spaces in the face of contradictions that are presented to them daily.