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By: RYAN LEE
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For years, media depictions of black gay men have been limited to outlandishly flamboyant characters like Blaine and Antoine from the “Men on Film” sketches of “In Living Color,” and sharp-tongued drag queens like Melvin on “The Tom Joyner Morning Show,” a syndicated radio program.
Concerned about such limited portrayals, a newly formed networking group catering to African-American gay men met April 23 to brainstorm how more accurate, comprehensive depictions of black gay life can make it into the media.
“You want to change stereotypes in the media, but I think the bottom line at the end of the day is that you don’t want to perpetuate them,” said Rick Blalock, a former local TV news reporter in Atlanta.
“We need to make sure we don’t provide ammunition for people who don’t have our best interest at heart,” said Blalock, who now works as a freelance writer and occasional talk radio host on WAOK-AM.
The stereotypical parodies of all gays in the media can inspire or legitimize prejudices, which in turn makes it easier to pass anti-gay legislation, said Blalock, who delivered the keynote speech at a recent meeting of the Brunch Conversations Networking Group.
About 75 black gays, mostly male, attended the April 23 event, entitled “No more Drama! Stereotypes and Misrepresentation.”
Instead of focusing on how the media portrays black gay men, the discussion that followed Blalock’s speech quickly zeroed in on the role black gay men play in broadening people’s understanding so that they don’t think all gay men are effeminate.
Some audience members objected to flamboyant characters like Melvin being labeled inaccurate depictions of black homosexuality, or equated to minstrel shows that used to degrade blacks, arguing such thinking reflected “internalized homophobia.”
“He’s not a coon — he’s a representation of our community,” said J. Lawrence Warren, executive director of My Brothaz Keeper, a group for young black gay men.
“The problem is the brothers who are not like that aren’t willing to step up and be in the public eye as who they are — all of who they are,” Warren added.
Andre Joseph works at V-103, a popular radio station among blacks in Atlanta. When the station has special programs that explore issues surrounding black homosexuality, black gays are essentially non-participants, he said.
Rafer Johnson, a gay employee at Delta Air Lines, said invisibility is a major contributor to the one-dimensional media portrayal of black gay men.
“The topic of this discussion is ‘misrepresentation’ — if we are not going to stand up, you cannot be represented,” Johnson said.
But an equal number of participants said it is neither an obligation, nor is it tasteful, to make sure everyone knows their sexual orientation, particularly when such a disclosure could have consequences either personally or professionally.
Blalock said he is not an openly gay figure in the media, either to his co-workers or audience, and added that the networking event was one of the few public appearances at which he’s disclosed his sexual orientation.
“While it is important to have folks who are out in front, I don’t think it’s a good thing for the community to deride those folks who are not out there,” he said.
The Brunch Conversations Networking Group is the brainchild of Brandon Bragg, who said the April 23 discussion, which at times turned heated and tense, proved that black gay men and lesbians have been eagerly anticipating such an organization.
“My passion, and I guess you can say frustration, that called me to start this was not seeing any other venues where the level of intensity, passion and emotion that we saw can exist,” said Bragg, who launched the networking group last September.
The group is pursuing non-profit status, and anyone is welcome to attend the monthly brunches at Gordon Biersch on Peachtree Street, Bragg said.
The next event on May 21 is entitled “Love & Relationships,” and will focus on dispelling “fairy-tale notions people have about partners,” Bragg said.
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