“We definitely need to be less gay”: Questions of language, queer (in)security, and sustainability for the Gay Games Hong Kong

Under a climate of enhanced national security in Hong Kong, the staging of the Gay Games, a mass-scale LGBT + international sporting and cultural event held in 2023, came under attack from politicians for its “subversive” potentials. Through an analysis of interviews with volunteers working for the Games, this article focuses on negotiations of language which shaped the messaging strategies thought necessary to respond to these threats and ensure the survival of the event. Using the Hong Kong Gay Games as a relevant case study, the analysis brings concepts of (in)securitization and sustainability to the field of queer Asian studies. This is to argue for the significance of such a focus where public-facing LGBT + organisations seek to maintain their operations in the face of shifting and destabilising discourse systems that are currently impacting community-grounded sexual politics in the region and beyond.