Tuesday, October 12, 2010

Vibe Magazine focuses on the Mean Girls of Morehouse College


Yes, I said Morehouse College. The prestigious black, all male college who last year, sparked drama after enforcing a dress code that focused on "men dressing like girls."


Vibe magazine has talked to a few of the gay students there. Here are some pieces from the article:
“I’ve always been into clothes, shoes, hair and everything,” says Diamond, who was born and raised in Providence, R.I. He says there’s a good chance he’ll transition into a woman at some point. “My mother says I always played dress-up in her clothes, my grandmother’s clothes. I’d even get my brother to do it sometimes. That’s just always been me—pushing the envelope of what I’m supposed to be as a man.”
So does Diamond really consider herself a man? At the question, he groans. “Yes, I refer to myself as a man, you know, to relieve any confusion. Sometimes people don’t understand the whole androgyny thing. There’s always the question: Well, what are you? Yes, I’m a man. I like women’s clothes. And yeah, I’m gay. But I don’t want that to define me. How come people can’t just see me as a person?”
...
Michael—who lives with Diamond and his boyfriend, Eric—and Brian, who has an off-campus apartment, are two of the current students at Morehouse who proudly call themselves members of the Plastics. “When I first got here, the androgynous kids were called the Glams,” Brian explains. “And then one day we were all sitting together on Brown Street and some straight guys walked by and called us the Plastics. Straight boys are the ones who gave us the name.”
While the two admit that the relationship between the Plastics and the straight community is fraught with issues, they say the rest of the gay community who can be downright hostile. “The gays hate us,” says Brian plainly.
“It’s because we have a certain aura,” says Michael. “We don’t care what people think about us when it comes to how we dress and carry ourselves. Some people are uncomfortable with it.”
...
Phillip—who hails from Fort Lauderdale, Fla.—came to Morehouse in hopes of pleasing his father, a minister from Jamaica who he says is staunchly homophobic. “I’ve always wanted to be a man’s man,” says Phillip, with a sigh. “I wanted to be masculine. I thought by coming here to Morehouse I could be the masculine man my father wanted me to be. The first day I got to campus, I was a boy. I had my little dreads pulled back, jeans and all that. Trying to be this masculine boy, real cool and real quiet.”
 
It took exactly one day on campus for Phillip to see that this plan was not going to work. “The first time I walked from my dorm to student services, someone yelled out ‘faggot’ and a crew of boys started laughing at me.” Phillip throws his hands up dramatically. “That was it. I was going to have to be me. There was no hiding that I was not masculine. That I was not a boy. I went back to taking my female hormones and rocking my hair.”

 I encourage y'all to check this article out. It's very interesting

2 comments:

EMikeGarcia said...

Good for them... Although I do hope the best for their safety, of course.

When I started school, I was just coming to terms with my sexuality, or rather, living openly, so I decided to stay very low-key and keep my head down. Leaving my more flamboyant clothes in the closet. Still, it took less than a week before some Frat punks started calling me a fag. After that, I said fuck it and wore whatever the hell I wanted. Soon, I made some super-great girlfriends and was rarely ever bothered again.

That was over ten years ago and I am so very grateful I didn't let douchenozzles dictate how I was going to express myself. I was able to play with my sexuality, and my femininity enough to become the very well-adjusted, comfortable and happy (still slightly queeny) man that I am today.

lelocolon said...

Even I now like the male personification I still find myself non-gender specific. I am glad that when I came out it was in NYC were I was loud and in your face. I used to terrorized my neighbors when once In a while I strolled down the streets in drag. I remember one day the sister of one of my roommates got really angry at me when she saw me with a black skirt and lipstick. I was laughing at the emotions.

I will have to read the article myself to see what the problem is. One thing though those girls are going to have a lot of shit to face. More so with the climate nowadays.

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Viktor is a small town southern boy living in Los Angeles. You can find him on Twitter, writing about pop culture, politics, and comics. He’s the creator of the graphic novel StrangeLore and currently getting back into screenwriting.