Jackson's "That's What Rice Queens Study." White Racism / Its Negative Effects & Associated Masculinity (or lack of masculinity / effeminacy) Issues.
	The Binary & Bisexual Erasure - A Hatred of Bisexual People in Gay Communities?
	Femininity Issues in Gay Communities - A Hatred of Feminine Men? Part A
	Femininity Issues in Gay Communities - A Hatred of Feminine Men? Part B
	Having Sissy Issues Addressed in Schools. Do Gay Males Hate Feminine Males?

Introduction

The most troubling aspect of this youth's experiences, however, was that white gay individuals generally had a history of not being appreciated - and even being hated - 'only' because they were different, and they also seemed to have learned nothing from this. These white gay males were, in fact, harming others, as they had been harmed, 'simply' because they were "different." Most troubling was the fact that the gay community was giving its tacit approval to racism by ignoring the issue. Little had therefore been learned from their own lives, except for being much like their abusers, or the ones who gave their tacit approval to such abuses.

Some racist issues were tackled in The Additional Problems of Gay, Lesbian, and Bisexual Youth of Colour  - a chapter from: The Gay, Lesbian, and Bisexual Factor in the Youth Suicide Problem(1993, 1994). An addition was made in 1998: General White GLB racism in North America, Calgary racism issues. There are now links to Internet Resources related to "Of Colour" Issue: North American and International, and the "racism" section is in part replicated in Internet Resources on racism in white-dominated GLB communities. I am, however, only one 'white' individual, and I do not decide what will be done about racism in predominantly white gay communities. At best, I can highlight the problem and then let gay communities define themselves in this respect, as they have done.

As I collected information on suicide problems of sexual minority youth, I became alert to the fact that no one was specifically exploring the suicide problems of North American GLB (gay, lesbian, bisexual) youth of colour, but this did not mean relevant data was not available. For example, one study produced data indicating elevated lifetime incidences of suicidality for 137 GB male youth of colour compared to their white counterpart: 40% (10/25) vs 28% (31/112), respectively (Remafedi et al., 1991).  A sample of 1,925 adult lesbian taken in the 1980s produced a lifetime suicide attempt incidence of 28% for lesbians of colour compared to an incidence of 16% for white lesbians (Bradford and Ryan, 1988).

White racism is a widely reported to exist in North American gay communities, and the same unsavory attribute also exists in England where gay communities are said to be also intolerant to other human attributes within their group:

As with other minorities within minorities, gay Asians face hostility from their own community and from the gay scene ["the racist gay scene"] they turn to for help. Like gay Christians, gay Tories or even gay football supporters, Rajvir faces ignorance whichever way he turns. Makes you feel proud doesn't it? (Article by Chris Morris). [This intolerance and related abuses also applies to "bisexual" individuals and, in gay male communities, another hatred(?) seems to be directed at the more feminine gay males: 1, 2, 3.]

Racism in predominantly white gay / lesbian communities has many faces, the most evident being that almost all GLB organizations will totally ignore white racism - avoid any mention of it (at least publicly) - and certainly not have any relevant information and  resources made available on paper or on their web pages. Recently, I contacted two GLB organizations in a large British city - the major organization in the city and the one at a university - about resources which may be available to a male university student from an Asian country who was having homosexuality-related problems. The 'communication' result was that their complete lack of information on white racism, and the lack of related resources, was "not" to be given a "racism" interpretation, and that such an inference would be met with a refusal to reply to my emails seeking some confirmation that the student in question would not be subjected to racism-related harm if he ventured into contacting these organizations.

An important part of counselling is to NOT refer a homosexually oriented individual - including the ones of colour  - to any group where, in addition to existing problems in need of exploration, they would be made to experience additional problems, such as the harm associated with white racism. In this respect, we can imagine such a youth who is depressed - maybe suicidal - because he is having problems with the homosexual part of himself, and that he is also being rejected / abused / harmed by his own family because they now know what was long suspected. In such a case, should a professional in a counselling capacity refer this individual to a predominantly white GLB youth group if it is known that they are part of the reported predominantly white "racist gay scene" which generally ignores white racism issues and the related harm being done to others?

For mainstream counsellors, such referrals would likely be unethical, and even more so if the individual was depressed about his racial / ethnic group hating him simply because he was different, thus making realize that little hope in the world can be had given that his own group has learned nothing from what they often complained about: being abused / harmed by white people simply because they are different. For such a youth, venturing into predominantly white gay communities could become the straw that broke the camel's back in terms of having hopes for a better world, given that gay people also seem to have learned nothing from having been abused for "being different." Would not, however, university-based GLB groups be different? Maybe not, as Paul reported in 1993:

A gay students' organization provided Paul Fernandez, 28, with his first experience as a gay person of color. A white-dominated group, this organization proved to be an unpleasant situation for Fernandez. "It was the most painful experience I've had as a gay person." he recalls (Diversity,  Division,  and Racism  in Calgary's Gay and Lesbian Community). Paul continues: "Whites don't have to struggle with internalized racism," he says. "Whites are experts on racism, shouldn't they know it better themselves? Why don't they form their own group and examine their racism?"

It is most interesting that the issue of white racism in Calgary's gay and lesbian community has not been tackled in any significant way in gay / lesbian publications since 1993, and the implications are self-evident. With respect to the two articles referenced here, I asked a Vietnamese gay male doing his master's thesis at the University of Calgary to comment on their relevance to the present racism situation in Calgary's gay and lesbian community. His response was that about 90% of what was written still applies, noting here that one could not expect 100% accuracy in such articles written at any time. Furthermore, the editor of the magazine also apologized for problems with the main article, such as quoting interviewed individuals out of context (Letter to Editor and Reply).

It is also amazing that, on the Internet, information exists on racism in predominantly white gay and lesbian communities, but that no one seems to have taken the initiative of collating the relevant information and making it available. A number of "racism" reasons may account for this; the motivations of white gay / lesbian individuals are self evident, but why have homosexually oriented individuals of colour have not done this? One answer comes to mind from a conversation I had with Paul Fernandez before he left Calgary. White gay and lesbian community leaders appear to have a number of ways to tell their "of colour" counterparts: "We are the dominant game in town and should you make us look bad by telling the truth about your experiences with our racism, which includes the fact that we ignore such issues, there will be a price to pay."

Modern racists (white supremacists?), however, cannot afford to be as honest as their forefathers, and other ways have therefore evolved to maintain their "supremacy status" - an expression used by  Mistinguette Smith Malone (1997) in - Confronting Racism - Elimination of White Supremacy essential to Coalition, Church, and Society. (Address to  the National Gathering (of the UCCL/GC) plenary on July 1, 1997, in Columbus, Ohio. Originally printed in WAVES, the national newsletter of the United Church of Christ Coalition for Lesbian/ Gay/ Bisexual/ Transgender Concerns, September 1997, Vol. XXIV, No. 3.)

I was asked to speak to you today about confronting racism. I want to begin by letting you know that this will not be an opportunity to feel guilty. Confronting racism is work we must do to survive. Feeling guilty is not a good strategy for survival. It is an outstanding way to paralyze change. Your guilt is of no use to me, and ultimately, of no use to you. So I invite you to abandon it as we move forward. Now, we have that out of the way...

I like to use the phrase white supremacy precisely because folks are uncomfortable with the phrase. Racism is a more polite word, and does not make us think of men wearing white hoods. I will use, and will encourage you to use, this phrase when talking about racism.

White supremacy is a phrase that makes things clear. It keeps us from deceiving ourselves about what the problem is, and whether it is urgent, and whether it is our job to do anything about it. The phrase "white supremacy" makes clear with whom we are allied when we are too tired, or too confused, or too guilty, or too ignorant to resist racism.

A central theme was that, as a rule, with modern white racism, the individual of colour is still set up to lose. Paul Fernandez also understood how this works in white dominated gay and lesbian organizations. For example, to delude others with respect to their white racism, they will use tokenism with two results. The individual of colour will detect their lack of sincerity with respect to equality and leave (which has also included leaving the city of Calgary for some "of colour" community leaders), or the individual will fail to "see" the dishonesty for reasons related to internalized racism - self-hatred - which produces acceptance by white supremacists given that the individual of colour lives up to white expectations; this includes creating the delusion what white racism is minimal. As Elliott noted in the documentary, in the land of traditional white supremacy, the individual "of colour" is placed in a "lose / lose" situation - "you can't win" - with winning, such as being a token individual in white dominated GLB organizations, being more like "losing." Have predominantly white GLB organizations in North America 'really' been acting in such ways?

Keith Boykin (2000) - the author of Respecting the Soul: Daily Reflections for Black Lesbians and Gays (1999) and One more river to cross :black and gay in America (1996) - describes what the situation has been in the United states in - Same script, different cast: Bridging the gay racial gap:
 

Keith Boykin:  For the first time, the Human Rights Campaign is contacting LGBT leaders of color to ask for their help on a new "landmark diversity initiative." It's about time they finally got around to this, but it's still too little, too late. The week before I heard about HRC, I was approached by a board member of GLAAD looking for ways to recruit blacks to its board.

People of colour have been greatly harmed in predominantly white societies and, from past experiences with the not-so-honest 'good faith' of white GLB community leaders, many are reluctant to accept such 'punishing' invitations. Boykin continues:

So how do white organizations change if people of color don't help them out? In reality, blacks and other people of color have already provided the help, and now the white community needs to do the serious work of paying attention... For many people of color, it's too late in the day for white organizations to expect sympathy. Mandy Carter, a veteran black lesbian progressive activist, says "the less skeptical side of me would say there needs to be the bridge builders, but my days of bridge building are getting damn near over." ...At this stage in the process, the responsibility to educate white people rests squarely with white people, not with people of color.

First, racism is a basic and integral part of U.S. life and permeates all aspects of our culture and institutions. Second, Whites are socialized into U.S. society and, therefore, inherit the biases, stereotypes, and racist attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors of the society. In other words, all Whites are racist whether knowingly or unknowingly. Third, how Whites perceive themselves as racial beings seems to follow an identifiable sequence that can be called stages. Fourth, the stage of White racial identity development in a cross-cultural encounter (counseling minorities, counselor training, etc.) affects the process and outcome of an interracial relationship. Last, the most desirable stage is the one where the White person not only accepts his/her Whiteness, but defines it in a nondefensive and nonracist manner (Sue and Sue, 1990, p. 113).

Why, however, would the ones in the "helping" professions, including teachers, need such an education. Someday, they may encounter a grade-4 boy who is Black and will NOT tell you why he threw himself in front of a car to end his life, as it happened in Calgary. The following are the words of his mother quoted in The Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual Factor in the Youth Suicide Problem - Appendix F:

He was chased home, beaten-up and taunted by groups of other little boys.  He was ostracized, and called horrible and vicious names.  The friends he did have were mostly little girls, a lot of whom acted as his protectors.

I always felt so badly for him.  He seemed so lonely and unhappy.  He used to ask me what he could do to get friends, and make people like him.  I of course told him to "JUST BE YOURSELF, AND EVERYONE WILL LIKE YOU,"  That was the advice my mother gave me.  I know now that advice was useless to him at that time.  He was thinking to himself "OH NO, THAT'S THE ONE THING I CAN'T BE."

...My son and  I have spent many hours talking about his experiences growing up.  They both sadden and anger me.  He knew who he was at 7 years-old.  His very first crushes were on other little boys.  Since he had already been taught heterosexism, he thought there must be something wrong with him even though the crushes he was experiencing felt perfectly natural to him.  The idea that something was wrong was continually reinforced by name-calling and harassment from other little boys.  The teachers saw it and did nothing to stop it.  Everything he saw on television and the media portrayed gay people as either funny or sick in some way.  All comments he heard were either negative or nasty, including ones made by members of his own family.  He had no positive gay role models to look up to; felt completely alone, and was sure he must be a really bad person.

...At ten years old, my son started acting differently, became quiet, and lost his sense of humour.  His school work suffered, and he talked about not wanting to be around anymore.  After jumping out in front of a car that barely missed him, we took him to the Sick Children's Hospital for counselling.  He still could not tell anyone what was really wrong.  He now says he was really waiting for someone, a counsellor, a teacher, or me, to ask "THE QUESTION," He said if anyone had appeared to understand that a kid could be gay he might have opened up and talked about it.  It was as if the issue didn't exist.  He managed to convince the counsellors that everything was just fine.  They told me I was probably overreacting and maybe he was just doing this for attention!

...My son was, and still is, a wonderful, handsome, intelligent, kind,  funny, loving and talented young man.  He has won many awards for his achievements, and was always well thought of by adults.  He always tried to do his best to please everyone!  He was wonderful, but had difficulty accepting a compliment.  His confidence and self-image were so low that he could not believe he had any worth.  He had been taught to hate himself.  The school system and society in general had failed him since the time he was a small child.  It had failed to protect him from the physical and emotional abuse he suffered at the hands of other children.  It failed to build his self-esteem by making him feel like a freak.  It either ignored that homosexuality existed or taught him that it was abnormal to be one.  It made him feel he had to hide himself away with no hope for a life.

Because gay and lesbian youth in general face extremely high suicide rates, Asian American gay or lesbian youth may be at extra risk. Many will not consider coming out to their families because the cultural stigma is so strong (Asian Cultural Diversity Roundtable, Session 3 N/A: Depression and Suicidal Ideation among Young Asian Americans, April 12, 2000)

They know that I'm here at UCSB, doing my Ph.D. in sociology... I have heard so many stories of Asian American gays, lesbians and bisexuals who feel left out of Asian American communities, that they become ashamed of being Asian American, or that they commit suicide because they don't know of any other Asian American gays, lesbians or bisexuals (Asian Scope. 1997 N/A: Author only identified as "gay Pilipino American man." (White Print on white)

It it hoped that you will enjoy your learning adventure in this part of a web site designed to educate especially professionals - but also others - about the problems GLBT individuals "of all colours" may be experiencing at various ages, one focus being one of the most serious for youth: suicide. Additional resources at this site related of GLBT "of colour" in predominantly white countries are:

Excerpts:

I always found race difficult to understand. It was never intuitive. And the reason was simple. Like every other white person, I had never experienced it myself: the meaning of colour was something I had to learn...

In our 14 months in Hong Kong, I learned some brutal lessons about racism. First, it is not the preserve of whites. Every race displays racial prejudice, is capable of racism, carries assumptions about its own virtue and superiority. Each racism, furthermore, is subtly different, reflecting the specificity of its own culture and history.

Second, there is a global racial hierarchy that helps to shape the power and the prejudices of each race. At the top of this hierarchy are whites. The reasons are deep-rooted and profound. White societies have been the global top dogs for half a millennium, ever since Chinese civilisation went into decline. With global hegemony, first with Europe and then the US, whites have long commanded respect, as well as arousing fear and resentment, among other races. Being white confers a privilege, a special kind of deference, throughout the world, be it Kingston, Hong Kong, Delhi, Lagos - or even, despite the way it is portrayed in Britain, Harare. Whites are the only race that never suffers any kind of systemic racism anywhere in the world. And the impact of white racism has been far more profound and baneful than any other: it remains the only racism with global reach.

Being top of the pile means that whites are peculiarly and uniquely insensitive to race and racism, and the power relations this involves. We are invariably the beneficiaries, never the victims. Even when well-meaning, we remain strangely ignorant. The clout enjoyed by whites does not reside simply in an abstraction - western societies - but in the skin of each and every one of us. Whether we like it or not, in every corner of the planet we enjoy an extraordinary personal power bestowed by our colour. It is something we are largely oblivious of, and consequently take for granted, irrespective of whether we are liberal or reactionary, backpackers, tourists or expatriate businessmen...

Race remains the great taboo. Take the case of Hong Kong. A conspiracy of silence surrounded race. As the British departed in 1997, amid much self-congratulation, they breathed not a word about racism. Yet the latter was integral to colonial rule, its leitmotif: colonialism, after all, is institutionalised racism at its crudest and most base. The majority of Chinese, the object of it, meanwhile, harboured an equally racist mentality towards people of darker skin. Masters of their own home, they too are in denial of their own racism. But that, in varying degrees, is true of racism not only in Hong Kong but in every country in the world...

Racism everywhere remains largely invisible and hugely under-estimated, the issue that barely speaks its name...

The dominant race in a society, whether white or otherwise, rarely admits to its own racism. Denial is near universal. The reasons are manifold. It has a huge vested interest in its own privilege. It will often be oblivious to its own prejudices. It will regard its racist attitudes as nothing more than common sense, having the force and justification of nature...

"I'm a racist. My students tell me so. They claim racism doesn't exist in our society anymore. Therefore, anyone who brings up race when analyzing injustice is a racist. According to them, I fit the bill. I teach high school social studies in Portland, OR. Most of my students are white; so am I. Some still use the word "colored" when referring to African Americans..."
 

References

Racism and the Gay Community [no.762] Access via dowloading -PDF File N/A -  of "Current HIV Education Research - A Bulletin for UK Professionals" (Issue 7 - Spring 1999)

March 1999 to June 1999

This study aims to explore the expression of racism within the gay community. Particular attention will be paid to the experience of using gay venues and services by Black and South Asian gay men, and other men who have sex with men. This focus aims to highlight both the ways in which racism inhibits access to services and the attempts of service providers to address the problem.

Following a literature review, focus groups and one-to-one interviews have been conducted with 20 Black and South Asian men, aged between 20 and 40, who were recruited through agency networks and research contacts.

Participants were asked about their experiences of racism. This work was undertaken in co-operation with five Black and Asian non-governmental organisations with experience of working with gay men and other men who have sex with men. The final report will be disseminated to gay organisations and other service providers.

Funding: Ethnicity & Health Unit, Faculty of Health
Manawar Jan-Khan, University of Central Lancashire, Ethnicity & Health Unit, Faculty of Health, Preston, Lancs PR1 2HE. Tel: 01772 892 780; Fax: 01722 892 992; Email: m.jan-khan@uclan.ac.uk

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