Fri, April 02, 2010
MICHAEL LUCAS: ON “SUPERGAYS”
Hey guys:
Here’s another column of mine that was featured in The Advocate. I welcome your comments after the article.
As an adult performer and entrepreneur, I receive, gratifyingly, a lot of respect in both the gay and the straight community. If I see discrimination, ironically, it’s mostly from our community.
As far as the establishment goes, I have been invited to speak at some pretty prestigious institutions, including Yale, Rutgers, Stanford, and Oxford, among others. The mainstream press has written numerous articles about me. I have been profiled in New York Magazine and The New Republic. And I have appeared on TV channels from HBO to NY1.
At the same time, one of my best friends, an anchor at the gay TV station Logo, didn’t just fail to get me on the network (though he tried), he was also told by his superiors not to socialize with me in public. It could damage the channel’s image, he was told.
When I went to the GLAAD Media Awards as the guest of one of the honorees, pictures of me on the red carpet appeared on WireImage.com. They were removed, on the request of GLAAD, within hours. It took some calls from GLAAD donors to have the pictures put back the next day. I guess that shows that GLAAD really does have some clout with the media: It can make pictures appear and disappear at will. But what a pathetic way to use its power.
One of the more bizarre examples of LGBT-on-LGBT discrimination I encountered over the years was from the respected organization Out Professionals. It refused to publish ads from my company (looking for, no, not the next hot porn star, but rather for an accountant) on its job board, depriving its membership of a well-paid job opportunity just to make a stand — well, against what actually?
I suspect that people who have experienced discrimination all their lives, who have been viewed as damaged or immoral or, in many cases, lesser than the “normal” guys and gals, sometimes have a tendency to turn from the discriminated to discriminator. They seek somebody who is even lesser than they are — and who better to target than the pornographer? Except maybe the drag queens and transgender people whose place in our community is still subject of debate in some circles … or the “dykes on bikes” who, when they lead gay pride parades, maybe don’t show us in quite the light in which some of our supergays would like us viewed?
Supergays and superlesbians don’t like our diversity. They want to streamline us as gymgoing, straight-acting professionals, sanitized for your protection. Anderson Cooper will be their perfect role model, assuming he ever comes out of the closet.
Porn stars and drag queens were never in the closet. We were always brave and out there because, yes, it is brave to be a drag queen, and you have to have guts to be in porn in our society. It’s the nonhomogenized part of our movement that keeps LGBT culture alive — a culture that is born out of our early experience of being different than the majority and our struggle to turn this experience of difference into a source of strength, creativity, and uniqueness. Supergays try to deny the validity of this experience. By telling us to conform and look and behave just like them, to fit in, to pass, they blunt one of the greatest strengths we have as LGBT individuals.
But let me tell you this: The existence of people like me may be a big inconvenience to the supergays. But they all buy my porn. And so I smile, though sadly.
Many circles consider pornography as obscene. I’m guessing the mainstream circles who “accepted” you, would have easily also accepted straight pornographers. beisdes, many people in those circles find the concept of porn and its’ production intresting.
About the circles inside the LGBT community, well, I can’t say i think you’re 100% wrong, because obviously there’s truth to it. I think the basis of it all comes from fear. At the end of day, the same mainstream media will always look at what is flashy. Drag queens at the gay pride parades are what people look at it, and some people (i’m willing to bet GLAAD included) fear that seeing these images, and mostly / only these (how many times have you seen the entire diversity of those walking the parade portraited in the media?) will forever keep the image of “gay” in the public’s mind as “that”.
And again – tough they might watch it, there are people in all kinds of circle that believe porn should be eliminated and don’t want it either associated with them or promoting it in any kind.
If you look at gay media, porn is celebrated as part of gay male identity. In fact, a feature of the queer community is that porn stars are genuine “stars”. The sort of discrimination you are talking about is “official” gays being afraid of part of gay culture that the wide gay community is very comfortable about. it is a sad form of self-loathing — and all for “spin”, for putting on the “correct” mask for the wider community.
Which is to say, being dishonest: pretending to be a way we are not.
In the grand scheme of things Michael, there will always be jealous and sadly bigoted people who cannot accept the fame which you have and the dignified way that you have gone about obtaining it. I suspect that has an awful lot more to do with it than the public stance they need to be seen to take against you and your endeavours.
As you yourself say, you are a highly respected businessman who happens to specialize in a type of business that, whilst publicly condemned in places, is a source of joy to people the world over. That’s truly the victory that their small minds can’t take.
I would have loved to come and watch you speak at Oxford (UK resident) but, alas, funds are short. I wish you luck.