Learning from Conscious Living

You May Not Be Gay But You Sure Do Like Having Sex With Other Men

Am I the only one who thinks that Idaho Republican Senator Larry Craig is full of hot air when he admitted that he did nothing wrong in the incident that took place in June of 2007! This is just another case of a "down low brotha." For those of you who are not as familiar with the term, "down low" describes an otherwise "straight" man who likes having sex with other men. It's clear to me that Larry Craig was soliciting sex based on the report filed by the involved plain-clothes police officer. [1]

"At 1215 the male in the stall to the left flushed the toilet and exited the stall. Craig entered the stall and placed his roller bag against the front of the stall door. My experience has shown that individuals engaging in lewd conduct use their bags to block the view from the front of the stall....At 1218 Craig tapped his right foot. I recognized this as a signal used by persons wishing to engage in lewd conduct. Craig tapped his toes several times and moved his foot closer to my foot. I moved my foot up and down slowly....At 1217 I saw Craig swipe his hand under the stall divider for a few seconds. The swipe went in the direction from the front of the stall back towards the back wall. His palm was facing towards the ceiling as he guided it (along) the stall divider...Craig swiped his hand again for a few seconds in the same motion a third time for a few seconds...I could also see Craig had a gold ring on his ring finger as his hand was on my side of the stall divider.."

This police report reads like a salacious gay novel. Well, except that there is no steamy sex scene. Then again, I don't think I could even stomach seeing this sixty-two year old Senator shirtless. He looks like he ought to be rocking in a chair somewhere reading Bernstein Bears to his grandkids and sipping on prune juice. Instead, he's trying to pick up some stranger in an airport bathroom that I'm sure smells like piss and is as filthy as a Motel 8. Talk about desperate. I don't feel bad for him. Now, if he was willing to admit that he was gay, then maybe I could emphasize, but this guy is downplaying his sexuality to salvage what few remains he has left of his political career.  If he wanted gay sex, then he should have just said so. It's not like he'll be much of anything once this all settles down. He'll probably get convicted of some ethics charges and be forced to resign from his post. Then, like Ted Haggard, and before him, Mark Foley, and before him Jim McGreevey, he'll live out a somewhat pathetic life.  Why can't we just accept that even "straight" men like having sex with men!

What Made Pastor Thomas Weeks Lose It?

There are rumors circulating that Bishop Thomas W Weeks III, husband of televangelist and best-selling author Juanita Bynum, may have violently assaulted his wife due to threats issued by Bynum that she would go public with claims that he was sexually involved with men from his church. What is certain is that Weeks and his wife were engaged in an argument when he suddenly attacked her, even choking and kicking her. Apparently, when he walked out of a meeting in which they were trying to reconcile after a separation, Bynum confronted Weeks in the parking lot of the hotel. One has to wonder what could have driven Weeks to be so violent when he had demonstrated such restraint by walking out earlier.

Is this the case of a down low bishop? Or a bishop who had enough with trying to piece his marriage back together? At this point, the facts do not lean one way or the other, but if it turns out to be the former, then the whole down low phenomenon has reached all new lows (or highs, depending on how you look at it.) I don't mean to imply that this is a phenomenon in the sense that this is unique in American social development, only that we have just  recently been able to put a label on a practice that predates the church itself. Interestingly, men having sex with men is as natural to human history as is heterosexual sex. Though for reasons related to social norms, religious doctrines, and legal and political structures, this history has been marginalized.  After McGreevey,  Haggard,  Bob Allen, and others, you'd think that we would stop being so shocked that this happens. But I guess it'll take a whole lot for that.

Related Links
Juanita Bynum's MySpace Page
Weeks Out on Bond
Weeks' Official Website
Juanita Bynum Savagely Beaten
Televangelist Attacked in Atlanta

The Gay Debate That Everyone Saw Except For Me

If you are like me, then you are frustrated that the recent "Gay Presidential Forum" was sponsored by a network that you actually don't get. Instead, I have had to rely on clips from YouTube and reviews by people like Keith Boykin, Ryan Sager, David, and Pam Spaulding. Not to take anything away from their generous gestures, but it certainly would have been nice to  be able to see such a historical debate firsthand. Logo could have at least put it on iTunes, as they do with many of their broadcasts.

It seems that there weren't any real surprises. The leading candidates (Clinton, Obama, and Edwards)  don't support gay marriage, though they are willing to concede full and equal rights for gay and lesbian couples without the dressing of 'marriage'. Richardson once again failed to convince anyone why he is even running. And Kucinich was the crowd favorite with his near perfect score on all of the issues important to gay Americans.

Well, I will say this. From my impression, the specific concerns of gay racial minorities were left off the table, with just one question posed to Obama about homophobia in the Black community. The most dreadful mistake that we could make is in assuming the heterogeneity (no pun intended) of Gay America. Read More

It's So Funny Because It's So Untrue

While you are here visit the general website

BLACK GAY JOURNEYS.COM

 

You Be The Judge!

(It's doctored if you can't tell. Let me just say for the record that I do not believe that Blake or Chris is gay. They have not publicly said whether they are or not, so I think it's best to assume they are not, but you have to admit the picture is very funny.)

Update: Apparently the creator of this picture has revealed herself to blogger Kenneth Hill. In an interview that you can read at queersighted.com. Melissa (no last name given) says that her reason for manipulating this photo is that "I just think they are incredibly cute together, and just by watching them you can tell they are close friends". Read more  

credit: queerclick.com

Is Ryan Seacrest Gay?

Look Who's On My Gaydar

The Week On Rewind: Feb 5th-18th

The Week on Rewind

*The Covenant

*White Privilege

*2008 Presidential Election

*Iraq Resolution

*Ted Haggard

*Entertainment News

Download Audio Version

Former NBA Player Comes Out

I have never heard of this guy so I'll let other media sources tell you about him.

"Ex-NBA Player Comes Out" -TIME.com
 
"The NBA's First Gay Player" -KeithBoykin.com

"Rumors Confirmed" -AOL.com

Celtics Coach, "So What?"-MercuryNews

 

Black and Gay in 1928

This story is taken from Wandering Caravan.com. The story is so great that I thought I would share it with you.

In the midst of my career there burst on me a new and undreamed-of aspect of sex. A young man, long my disciple and student, then my cohelper and successor to part of my work, was suddenly arrested for molesting young men in public places. I had before that time no conception of homosexuality. I had never understood the tragedy of an Oscar Wilde. I dismissed coworker forthwith, and spent heavy days regretting my act--W.E.B. Du Bois in 1958

 

The man Du Bois is speaking of is Augustus Granville Dill, gay African American. Dill was arrested in 1928 for sexual improprieties in a subway restroom with another man. Dill was an undergraduate at Atlanta University during DuBois' tenure as an educator there around 1900. There, the two men became almost instant friends as well as collaborators on various scholarly articles. When DuBois left the University for the NAACP and The Crisis, Dill replaced him on the faculty until he also went to work for the organization under the tutelage of Du Bois as a business manager in 1913. The working relationship of the two men lasted 15 years until Dill's arrest and subsequent firing by Du Bois.

Years later, and challenging the false assumption that all blacks are homophobic, DuBois expressed great remorse over terminating Dill because he happened to be gay. DuBois had no concept of the idea that one man could express romantic affection for another until the scandal broke with Dill's arrest. When Countee Cullen and Yelonda, the daughter of Du Bois separated, Du Bois blamed his daughter for the marriage not working instead of even acknowledging the "open secret" of Cullen's sexuality; Dubois never look askance to Cullen taking Harold Jackman on the honeymoon to Paris instead of his daughter.


Dill was a Harvard graduate and edited an African American magazine for children, The Brownie Book. He has been described by various biographers and historians of the Harlem Renaissance as a chrysanthemum buttonhole wearing dandy or a fastidious and predestined bachelor. Langston Hughes shared Dill's home residence for a brief while upon arriving in Harlem for the first time.

 

How Anti-Gay is Your State?

Click Here to Find Out

My State
Virginia State Laws        

Virginia Adoption Law Virginia permits single GLBT people to adopt and does not explicitly prohibit same-sex couples from adopting. It is unclear whether a person can adopt his or her same-sex partner’s adopted child.

Virginia Birth Certificate Law: Gender Identity Issues Virginia will issue new birth certificates to post-operative transsexuals.

Virginia Custody and Visitation Law Virginia courts have used a parent’s sexual orientation to deny, restrict or modify custody and visitation. There are no reported or published opinions dealing with transgender parents or same-sex co-parents.

Virginia Donor Insemination Law Virginia law is unclear on the issue of donor insemination for unmarried women.

Virginia Hate Crimes Law State law does not address hate crimes based on gender identity or sexual orientation.

Virginia Marriage/Relationship Recognition Law Virginia law and the state constitution both purport to ban marriage for same-sex couples. There are no other forms of relationship recognition for same-sex couples in state law or policies.

Virginia Non-Discrimination Law Virginia law does not address discrimination based on gender identity or sexual orientation.

Virginia School Law Virginia law does not address school issues relating to sexual orientation or gender identity.

Virginia Sodomy Law The Virginia sodomy law was struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court on June 26, 2003, as a result of the Court’s decision in Lawrence v. Texas.

Virginia Surrogacy Law Virginia law permits surrogacy agreements for married couples only