black sexualities and gender performances
Stereotypes and Assumed Performance
The notion of gender as a social construct, which was extensively discussed by Judith Butler, emphasizes how during the process of socialization, people primarily assume the role of the gender that was imposed on them by their environment and, accordingly, construct and perform that reality. Based on that notion, race can also be seen as a social construct.
Simone de Beauvoir: "One is not born a woman, one becomes one" (2009: 283). Analogically, one is not born a man, one becomes one.
Black Men Are Talked About Rather Than Talking Themselves
White people are claiming the right to construct Black masculinity which, in fact, stems from white patriarchal ideas of manhood. Typical stereotypes include: physical strength and aggressiveness, sexual animal/hypersexuality, promiscuity, toughness, emotional numbness and other physical manifestations such as e.g. dress type. Noteworthily, many of these stereotypes are deeply rooted in the history of enslavement where Black people were dehumanized, demeaned and devalued by the colonizers and, as a consequence, were deemed animals, beasts and monsters. More material on this topic can be found in our section on "The Black Man as "Less/Inferior" on the following page:
White imagination, together with their patriarchal ideology, influence identity shaping of Black men. These (mis)representations are internalized by Black men which leads to them adhering to these expectations by believing that this is what they are. As a consequence, these (mis)representations become the norm because they are constantly reproduced.
The Fire Next Time, Essays (1963)
"[...] he was defeated long before he died because, at the bottom of his heart, he really believed what white people said about him" (Baldwin 15).
The Fire Next Time, Essays (1963)
"I was no older than five, sitting out on the front steps of my house on Woodbrook Avenue, watching two shirtless boys circle each other close and buck shoulders. From then on, I knew that there was a ritual to street fight, bylaws and codes that, in their very need, attested to all the vulnerability of the black teenage bodies" (Ta-Nehisi Coates 15).
Moonlight, Movie (2016): Scene 1
This scene illustrates very nicely how Black kids are socialized to enact the expected gender performance, i.e. violence, physical strength, as a survival strategy in the own community.
Black Male Homosexuality
The interplay between different identity categories lead to discrimination in mainstream society. A Black homosexual man, therefore, is subject to double discrimination because 1. He is Black and 2. His sexual orientation does not coincide with heteronormative standards.
"Plainly stated, hegemonic masculinity relies on [...] homophobia, in part, as means to enforce rigid and limited gender norms and expressions" (McGuire et al. 261).
The Black gay man is othered because he lacks characteristics of a 'real, authentic' man (Grant 246). This deprives him of the chance to be acknowledged and integrated not only into the American society but also the own Black community.
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"Hegemonic masculinity among high school boys, for example, is demonstrated by their use of the “fag” epithet. High school boys use the “fag” discourse to insult and police other boys’ gender expressions of masculinity. The “fag” epithet signals a boy’s lack of masculinity and associates his masculine expression with homosexuality, femininity, and a form of male shame" (Dean 535).
Progressive Black Masculinity
The Netflix series Pose offers a new dimension to existing constructs of Black masculinities and challenges these by incorporating male African-American LGBTQ+ and gender-nonconforming characters.
Moonlight, Movie (2016): Scene 2
This example demonstrates how homophobia among Black people, e.g. the use of the fag epithet, can work as a means of performing and confirming one's heterosexual masculinity.
The need to be unambiguously intelligible for the community in order to 'fit in' which is analogous to performing the unilateral stereotypes.
The Hypersexual(ized) Black Man
Deriving from the stereotypes of the Black man as promiscuous and aggressive, mainstream society portrays the Black male as hypersexual. Simultaneously, there is a certain power assigned to his sexual organ which is perceived as a 'threat', a 'source of anxiety' or a 'weapon' . Ironically, however, such associations and constructs do not exist for white heterosexual males.
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This hypersexual(ized) image contributes to the objectification of Black men by sexualizing them and limiting them to their genital.
Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song, Movie (1971)
The protagonist of the movie is a male prostitute who performs Black masculinity through the act of sex.Throughout the course of the plot the protagonist has numerous sexual encounters with women which, on the one hand, highlight his personae as being depicted hypersexual(ized) and, on the other hand, indicates how his sexual prowess becomes a signifier for his masculinity and, beyond that, a powerful tool to freedom.
Critical Note
Although numerous critiques focus on how it is dangerous that the character in the movie fits the stereotypical characteristics of that hypersexual Black male figure, it is also important to scrutinize this. The director of the movie Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song, a Black man, is also playing the protagonist. He, in fact, introduces a new perspective to Black masculinity by including a male prostitute in the story. The opening scene of the movie shows how he was raped by a female prostitute in early childhood. While this puts forward the clichéd idea that "the black man is not a man until he is sexually active" (Gagner 38), it also shows how Black males are taken advantage of. Black men are usually denied the status as victims due to their stigmatization as the abuser. This, in turn, leads to them not speaking up about such issues. And if they do, they are more likely to be marginalized due to the 1. stereotypical views of the mainstream society and 2. their status as a minority group.
N.W.A. - "Gangsta Gangsta"
The Black male is depicted as overly sexual by making constant references to sexual actions with a woman. At the same time he reinforces the image of that 'desired' object by the females.
Life ain't nothin' but bitches and money
[...]
'Cause you know, they know what’s up
So we started lookin' for the bitches with the big butts
Like her, but she keep cryin'
"I got a boyfriend"—bitch, stop lyin'!
[...]
We all said "Fuck you, bitch!" and kept goin'
To the hood, and we was fin to
Find somethin' else to get into
Like some pussy, or in fact
A bum rush, but we call it rat pack
On a n****a for nothin' at all
[...]
And all you bitches, you know I'm talkin' to you
"We want to fuck you, Eazy," I want to fuck you too
More material on this topic can be found in our section 'The Black Man as "Exotic/Fetishized"' on the following page:
Moonlight, Movie (2016): Scene 3
Given that the character in this scene is actually gay or at least bisexual, this excerpt shows how hypersexuality, together with hypermasculinity, can also work as a strategy to compensate sexualities rendered not masculine (enough).
Further Thoughts: Black Masculinity in Visual Culture
In the video attached to this post, Fahamu Pecou sheds light on a crucial issue concerning Black masculinity, namely the importance that male Black US Americans themselves are given a voice and a chance to (re)define Black masculinity, a right they should have been given in the first place. Beyond that, they should also be enabled to (artistically) represent the range of variety of Black manhood and identity. Especially in contemporary American visual culture it is significant to abandon the idea of 'the' male Black US American and instead alter and extend the discourse to 'a' male Black US American.
The material on this page was compiled, created, and arranged by Amna Anwar, Sena Konçak, and Artan Islamaj.
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