The ‘Down-Low’ Is Still Kept Down and Low in Black Communities

Norman Chambers is a hot black gay man. Not only that, he’s intelligent and enlightened, a devoted partner who is also responsible. Truly a catch. Not only must he deal with being black and gay, though, he has the added stigma of being in an interracial relationship during the ’70s, when neither gay relationships nor interracial relationships had gained much acceptance. Yet, he handles all these pressures exceedingly well. You would never know from looking at him, though, that he was born a white Jewish gay boy.

Norman (Michael Warren) is the lead character in the 1976 George Schlatter film Norman, Is That You?. However, in the original 1970 Broadway production, Norman was played by a white former TV child star, Martin Huston, as Norman was a young Jewish man who hadn’t revealed his homosexuality to his parents, played by Broadway greats Lou Jacobi and Maureen Stapleton. With the changes in race and religion for the film, the roles of the parents were taken over by Redd Foxx and Pearl Bailey playing, basically, Redd Foxx and Pearl Bailey, as they typically did. The film also stars Cleopatra Jones herself, Tamara Dobson, as a hooker Norman’s father hires for him; even better, Norman, Is That You? features the film debut of gay icons Wayland Flowers and Madame.

Still, it’s not the all-star cast that makes the film important. The Broadway production was lauded as being one of the first plays to deal honestly with homosexuality, and the film version carries the same distinction. The decision to change the race of the central characters to African-American makes it the first major film to focus on the stigmas of homosexuality within the black community, a distinction that makes it a landmark in LGBT film history. Unfortunately, few major films have ventured into this area since this 1976 breakthrough, although the lifestyle of the black LGBT community is ripe for exploration.

Considering the level of homophobia that exists within the black community worldwide, that isn’t surprising. Films featuring black characters often have predominantly black audiences, so the rejection of the LGBT lifestyle by this audience insures that studio heads won’t waste money on a film that will just be labeled “a black Brokeback Mountain“. Such a movie could never be marketed in Africa, which contains four of the five countries which punish homosexuality with death and over 20 other countries imprison homosexuals. This is not to suggest that all black individuals are homophobic; notably, South Africa is one of the few countries in the world that allows gay marriage. Those who are homophobic, though, are quite vocal about their opposition.

Unfortunately, among those who are most vocal are black clergy. A 2000 study by Griffin concluded that “In the climate of gay visibility in religious circles, African American heterosexual voices have been some of the most intolerant and oppositional”. (“Their Own Received Them Not: African American Lesbians and Gays in Black Churches”, Theology & Sexuality: The Journal of the Institute for the Study of Christianity & Sexuality) This viewpoint was reinforced in 2005 by Ward in Culture, Health, and Sexuality and by Pitt in a 2010 edition of the Journal of Homosexuality. Such a preponderance of religious teachings against homosexual behavior is bound to lead to an increase in the number of black LGBT persons living in the closet.

This is best evidenced by the practice in the black community of being on “the down-low”, a coded way of saying “has same-sex experiences in secret”. Certainly, this isn’t a black-only experience, as people of all races have engaged in secretive same-sex relationships. However, the stigma regarding gay sex within the black community has caused secretiveness that may have become dangerous.

According to the Center for Disease Control’s website, there has been no study to link men on “the down-low” with AIDS in the black community, which has reached epidemic proportions. Still, a study by the Black AIDS Institute, reported by CNN, found that “if black Americans made up their own country, it would rank above Ethiopia” in the number of AIDS cases. What’s more, the study reported that AIDS-related complications is the number one cause of death in 25 to 34 year old black women, and the second leading cause for 35 to 44 year old black men. The CDC reports in a separate study that black men who have sex with other men have the second highest rate of HIV infection of any group in the United States; worse, black men also scored as one of the groups “least likely” to know they were infected. These statistics are nothing new; nonetheless, many black LGBT persons continue to continue to have unsafe sex.

A simple internet search informs that down-low behavior is nothing new, either among male or female blacks. In fact, the first known song to feature the term “down-low” is a song about lesbian relationships that occur after all the men go over to fight WWI. This 1930 song by underrated jazz giant George Hannah discusses one man’s observations about the growing trend of black women sleeping with one another:

DADT

Beyond the secrecy it inspires, the homophobic attitude of many in the black community has a greater consequence. A 2011 study published in the American Journal of Public Health reported that gay, lesbian, and bisexual black and Hispanic youths have a greater incidence of suicidal behavior, even if the factors of depression or drug use are removed from the study sample. (O’Donnell, Meyer, and Schwartz, “Increased Risk of Suicide Attempts Among Black and Latino Lesbians, Gay Men, and Bisexuals”) The isolation that these LGBT youth feel was expressed by the late author E. Lynn Harris, when he said, “‘For me, my 20s and early 30s were spent just hiding and running, because there was no one to tell me that my life had value and the way I felt was okay.” Harris’ friend, author Keith Boykin, reinforced this idea when he noted, “We have a ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ policy in the black community.” (“Author E. Lynn Harris dead at 54”, 24 July, 2009)

All this brings us back to Norman, dreamy black gay guy and a rarity in film. Numerous studies have proven that positive representations of LGBT persons in the media have aided in increasing understanding and tolerance. However, such positive representation is rare for black audiences. Sure, black men can dress up as women for comedic effect (Flip Wilson, Tyler Perry, Martin Lawrence, Shawn and Marlon Wayans), but showing the life of a black transgender person is less appealing to a mass audience.

This isn’t to say that there haven’t been any black LGBT characters, let alone black characters who can serve as role models. Keith (Matthew St. Patrick) in Six Feet Under, Holiday (Ving Rhames) in Holiday Heart, Det. Kima Greggs (Sonja Sohn) in The Wire — hell, even The Rock as Elliot Wilhelm in Be Cool — are just a few of the black LGBT characters who are open and proud.

Often, though, these characters exist within predominantly white worlds (think of Carter on Spin City). The gay world of Queer as Folk was lily-white, while The L Word did better, featuring several black lesbian characters. Still, these characters were surrounded by women of all ethnic and racial backgrounds. There are few media representations of the lives of black LGBT persons living among other blacks. One such depiction came courtesy of Spike Lee’s Get on the Bus, which told the story of gay couple Randall and Kyle (Harry Lenix and Isaiah Washington — yes, that Isaiah Washington) as the men broke up while riding on a bus of black men headed to the Million Man March. Another, Omar on The Wire, was featured in last month’s column as one of the ten most important LGBT characters in TV history (“Beyond Jodie Dallas: TV’s 10 Most Important LGBT Characters”).

Further, the here! network had a short-lived series in 2007, The DL Chronicles, about men on the down-low, while Logo ran Noah’s Arc for one season starting in 2005, with a feature film Noah’s Arc: Jumping the Broom coming three years later. The 2002 documentary Venus Boyz prominently featured Dred Gerestant, black lesbian Drag King, a rare look at a black lesbian experiencing life as a trans person. Gerestant has developed quite a following in the years since, in part due to her appearance in the film.

Unfortunately, relegating positive portrayals of black LGBT characters to subscription cable or film festivals fails to inform the general public. Worse, it increases the sense of isolation that black LGBT individuals may feel, particularly those in predominantly black countries, cultures or neighborhoods with little access to other LGBT persons, in life or in the media. Highlighting a sympathetic gay or lesbian character in a film certain to be seen by both black and white audiences — say, in one of the countless Madea movies — could help foster an important dialogue about how society views and treats black LGBT persons.

Until that time, though, there are countless resources online to help build a community among black LGBT individuals. Some are issue oriented, such as United Lesbians of African Heritage and The National Black Gay Men’s Advocacy Coalition, while others are more fun, like Black Gay Gossip. A simple internet search reveals numerous blogs by black LGBT persons, as well as bulletin boards and chat rooms that black individuals might find reassuring. Of course, most broad-based LGBT individuals welcome persons of all races and ethnicities, and many have trained counselors or personnel who can lend an ear. Still, talking to someone who has walked in those shoes can be even more reassuring.

Just as positive changes for the LGBT community have come slowly in societies, so too will it take time for the attitudes of the black community to grow and be more inclusive. Positive portrayals of blacks of all orientations will only make that progress happen faster. Then, proud black gay, lesbian, bisexual and trans persons will become accepted by their families and cultures, as these entities come to realize that their gay family members and friends are too valuable to discard.

Cheers, Queers to Sherwood Smith and Rachel Manija Brown, who refused to succumb to publisher pressure to change one of the characters from gay to straight in their forthcoming young adult novel, Stranger.

Here’s Mud in Your Eye to Tea Party Nation president Judson Phillips, who has called homosexuality a “liberal freak show”, “distinct threat”, “bad behavior”, “aberration”, and “one more factor in the destruction of America”. Phillips also notes that bullying is merely peer pressure, healthy in that it forces those young wanna-be homosexuals to re-evaluate that “bad” choice. Phillips’ statements reinforce the idea that what had started as a ground-based movement of dissatisfied citizens has been hijacked by right-wing reactionaries. (Source: Joseph Ascanio, “Tea Party Shows its Anti-gay, Bigotry Hand”, Progressive News Daily, 27 July 2011)