Stigmatization of Effeminacy in Gay Jamaican Culture Part II

In April 2009 I had briefly touched on this issue in part 1 of masculine types complaining about effeminate men and not finding them sexually attractive but only as friends in private settings for the most part. Who knew that almost three years later this issue is still a contentious one despite the metrosexual revolution as I term it in aesthetics and attitudes nationally as well trickling into the previous hardened dancehall and male driven societal culture. It was also in January another subject linked to this question of identities under the MSM umbrella was mentioned on my sister blog GLBTQJA on Wordpress looking at role play between masculine types and so called bottoms or passive partners.


See: On Tops bottoms and hyper-masculinity ……………..


Reactions to effeminacy varies according to the space one finds oneself in or the perceptions others may have of one if seen with a girly individual in public given the stereotypes on male homosexuality in Jamaica.

International pop stars such as Prince photoed above or Caucasian eighties Icons such as David Bowie get away with some variant of effeminacy or metro-sexuality in the mainstream as men become very comfortable with either experimenting with near uni-sexual or feminine feel attire versus traditional male accoutrements. Homosexuality linked to effeminacy however has and still is in some circles viewed as a "white" thing and an European import to cultures of predominantly African descent but same gender loving men who are not so effeminate or down right hyper masculine carrying the new swagger type imagery have been getting very vocal in some quarters regarding their non transvestite yet effeminate counterparts in the MSM world. At a new waterhole of sorts in St. Catherine where many brothers hang out as of late the topic came up for mention while I happened to have been present there for the first time and my opinion was sought, I cautiously tried to be neutral and said I had no issue with effeminate persons albeit that I too can be flaming when I wanted to and very masculine almost at the same time after years of mastering the gift of stealth changing over with the greatest of ease. Reference was made of my DJing sessions these days at parties where I spin predominantly dancemusic, international gay club hits and vogue materials for lovers of such music forms and the drag community and have been nicknamed the "dancing DJ," a brother who remembered me from one of my sessions said in the exchage that he did not have an issue with drag queens generally but that some were ugly and did not present themselves well and he would not be caught in public with one either, he also said he would more appreciate a brother who could switch when needed to. Another more ruffian typed brother at the table where we sat said he disliked them period and that he preferred his men manly, "if mi did want a woman mi woulda go look one, not a man weh waan gwaan like gal starrr," (If I wanted a woman I would have gone after one and not a man wanting to be a woman my brother), is this brother subscribing to the stigma from the mainstream in a sense here?

After that remark nearly all the other five brothers who were around the table agreed in some form and this led me to wonder why this dislike or fear of the effeminate from same gender loving males? How easy it is to sway others thought on this issue, we may never know the others true feelings of the other men except in another space or one on one as our culture has a desire to conform attitude following what is politically correct for the group. It was refreshing however to see these new faces as far as I was concerned who were expressing themselves in this space about same sex matters, I hope the space stays safe long enough for more long term socialization and discourse. The brother who had expressed his dislike continued and agreed with the first speaker about not socializing with transvestites in public or even at parties hence his refusal to do gay parties unless they have a certain theme to them. He prefers to go to straight events as it were and find a hot brother than stomach a drag show or see them dancing mimicking the girls on their head tops in mainstream dancehall. 

The fabulous Nina Flowers, Rupaul's Drag race entrant and personality who performed in Jamaica in 2011 to a warm response as many non regulars to local LGBT events came out to see her and Jamaicans who prefer this type of entertainment but outside of Jamaica such as in New York or Miami, notably South Beach.

Even in local LGBT entertainment offerings there has been a steady decline in receptivity to effeminate typed shows with a certain tinge to them save and except for a more dancehall type presentation and more swagger typed hip hop based offering are more popular these days. Drag Queens are still a feature but they are far more looking transgender and closer to a real woman than the drag elements that made the art form popular (I still see it as an art form born out of ones personality) such as the buffed look, butch queen (mix of feminine and masculine attitude complimenting each other) overdone makeup or scary aesthetics so as to indicate it is in fact a man in women's clothes as entertainment. We continue to steadily adopt hetero-normative typed entertainment especially from dancehall culture which is the dominant feature while even drag entertainment is snubbed by the very LGBT community.


Outside of the questionable low quality sometimes of said transvestite offerings however if an overseas big named star is on the bill for events there tends to be some support from the community which may suggest a need to improve local standards in as far as drag shows are concerned. The very dancemusic or "beats" is sometimes not easily digested or accepted any more in local settings as before when the dancehall culture was openly caustic to homosexuality in general, to a certain extent dancehall has burrowed tremendously from the gay underground and ballroom scenes from the United States with sped up beats per minute (BPM) on tracks, triple drop counts, and the sampling of queer sounding voices in some tracks. But with the metrosexual revolution of sorts the aesthetic in dancehall is changing though it has been slowed down due to the absence of its leading personality and bleaching king Vybz Kartel who has been having serious legal woes, murder charges and all. Male dancers in the dancehall community especially those who bleach or lighten their skin for acceptance in the idiom have been and are still castigated as being closeted gays as the dress code in the form of tight pants, plunging neckline tees and brand name gay designer clothing abound and are markers of acceptance especially those with a hefty price tag.  


Could it be a rub off from the national effemophobic response which is embedded in the general homophobia meted out to gay men who are perceived as such with the stereotypical link to effeminate behaviour and the misconceptions of gay men wanting to "replace themselves" in the role of women that has led to the LGBT community also following suit in a sense?


There are some masculine brothers however though who prefer femininity in a guy just that they were not present at that discussion. I am aware of brothers who do not have an issue appearing in public with their spouse or friend or even in drag as many cross dressers  in recent years have presented in public as themselves and have passed easily without incident. Then there are those cases where someone figures it out which leaves a perception that it takes another gay man to recognise a gay man. 


As we evolve we may just see a change again to the widespread recognition of effeminacy again, who knows? it could all be a phase as nothing stays the same.


UPDATE: 26/01/2012
Talk about effemophobia or transphobia ? here is a planned event in the form of a lyme, with some support from guess who? JFLAG!!!!! ...... take a good look at the wording of this invitation sent around the community via various means:

‎::::::::::::::::::::NO Drag Queen are Allowed::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

On February 3rd, 2012, T.A.B.S (founded by Ashe)...will be hosting an MSM LYME titled....Attractor Factor Project Edutainment Lyme.

This lyme promises to be a fun filled event, with a bit of education and gives the option of meet and greet in a comfortable setting with ONLY MSM's. Free HIV testing will also be available for those who wish to get tested, and LIVE performance from the World Renowned...ASHE.

So come out guys, get tested, eat, drink, dance and be GAY...but be on your BEST behaviour, as violence or boisterous behavior will not be tolerated.

It is to be held at (******** ***** ****) and it set to commence at 7pm SHARP!!!!!! This event is invitation only, so if ur name is not on the list..then stay home (lol). interested persons can inbox me their CORRECT name.... Save the date. 

My response to this in one of the avenues used was: cross dressers I would imagine are not apart of the msm community? ........... oh boi, the foolishness continues ........ don't they need to be tested too, what if the persons permanently presents as a cross dresser or is a member of the transgender community pre-operatively? who do they have sex with, isnt it other men in some cases?


This shows we have long ways to go yet.


Peace and tolerance


H