Whenever new statistics emerge about the impact of HIV on the lives of young black gay men (same-gender loving/men who sleep with men), we need to not only be careful about how we receive them, but how we use and share that information. Black gay men have been hearing this for years; we know the odds are against…
Category: MUSED MAG
REBUILDING COMMUNITY AS HIV PREVENTION
“How does it feel to be a problem?” W.E.B. Du Bois invoked this question as it applied to the state of Black people at the turn of the century in his seminal work, The Souls of Black Folk, back in 1903. In 2014, this question can be posed to Black gay men in the South as…
HOW ‘COMING OUT’ SEMANTICS REINFORCE HETEROSEXISM FOR QUEER PEOPLE OF COLOR
The “coming out” paradigm has become rather mainstream (which I actually think is a good thing). But as a result of the mass appeal of “coming out,” it has become sexy and trendy to critique the process of “coming out” for how it reinforces heterosexism. The critique has some validity. After all, why don’t heterosexual…
#LOVEWINS, BUT THE FIGHT FOR BLACK LGBTQ MUST CONTINUE
I believe I will meet a man someday. A man that will take my breathe away every time he walks into the room. A man who will support, affirm and love me for the person I am. He will be more than my better half; he will be my better whole. Earlier this morning, like a…
CONDOMLESS HOOKUPS & THE POLITICAL, EMOTIONAL RESISTANCE OF BLACK GAY MEN
As someone who finds himself very invested in seeing the eradication of HIV, it would seem contradictory for me to participate in condomless sex. Yet, I have done it. Although I do not advocate for everyone to go about having condomless sex, I do think it is a point of interest for us, as Black gay…
‘PLEASE LET US BE LIKE YOU’ – SAME-SEX MARRIAGE EQUALITY’S FAILURE
Previously, my dissatisfaction around the same-sex marriage equality movement has centered on the fact that this movement mostly validates wealthy white queer people. And that is still true. A larger part of my unease rests in the fact that same-sex marriage equality does not solve for the copious layers of injustice that still weigh queer…
A LOVE PROSE FOR BLACK GAY BROTHERS
“This is for my brothers who dare to love other brothers in a revolutionary way.” Writing to you is an exercise in self-love and holistic restoration. I am called to reckon with the promise of my future, the depths of my own greatness, accessed and denied. You are the world. It has been said that…
TAKEN MEN ALWAYS TARGETED, WHILE SINGLE MEN AVOIDED
When it comes to relationships, it’s quite interesting how people treat someone when they go from a single gem to a taken trophy. In the beginning, you’re living the happy life as a single person. Then one day, you tell yourself that it’s time to get out there and start dating. Whether it’s just having…
NO MEANS NO, EVEN BETWEEN TWO BLACK GAY MEN
On a Sunday afternoon in Washington, D.C., I decided to go hang out with the crew at our usual gay club hangout. I was having a great time drinking and doing a little two step, when nature called. I decided to leave my friends and go to the bathroom alone, as I have done since…
I CHOOSE TO LOVE BLACK GAY MEN
Using the media as a litmus test, one would think romantic love among black gay men is in dire straits. Prominent black gay men like Michael Sam and Derrick Gordon both have white lovers, and recently, the key black gay character in Lee Daniels’ “Empire” has a Mexican boyfriend who ostensibly is white. Quite honestly, when the only highly…
