ABSTRACT
A sense of belonging was often hard to define or explain, but imagined connections between LGBT people were identified based on what participants saw as similarities, together with a belief that this created mutual understanding. This could gloss over degrees of difference and diversity within imagined communities. Whilst LGBT people might not always be 'similar', some participants identified the potential for shared values, as well as the likelihood of shared experiences. This chapter highlights that most often these shared experiences were related to discrimination, and to a lesser extent experiences of 'coming out' or 'living in the closet'. It discusses evidence that demonstrates how some LGBT people understand community in a broader, more amorphous way than has been documented in some previous research, such as that largely focused on friendship-based families of choice. Differences and values and the 'bond' of discrimination are also discussed.
