As apart of my series on writers I'm presenting this piece by Yolo Akili,
Old White men ,Young Black Boys; & the Sexual Legacy of Slavery: Part 1
by Yolo Akili
In my experience, it's been one of the most unspoken taboos in both gay and African American communities; it is white male’s consumption and fascination with black male bodies.
My first real experience with this was when I was at Arby's in Midtown, years ago, when I just moved to Atlanta. I was sitting in Arby's eating a grilled cheese, and from nowhere this middle aged white man, maybe in his 50-60's, comes and stands above me, lurking down upon me a like a parasite longing for new blood. His behavior initially puzzled me, I asked "Can I help you?" and he just stared at me and licked his lips. Then he flashed me several dollar bills. Recognizing this was some sort of sexual innuendo that I had absolutely no interest in, I grabbed my food and walked out of the restaurant. At this point, I did not know that the Spring Street Arby's and the subsequent area around the club 708 is space where many sex worker, most of them African American boys, & trans women are solicited. I had no idea as I would learn later, through much of my work with HIV prevention, that most of those young African American boys and trans-women would report that the majority of their clients are middle aged white men. At first I thought little of it. I mean, why wouldn’t the majority of them be middle aged white men, who in this country would be more likely to have the disposable income? As I continued my studies in African American literature and history I found a few things that took me somewhere else. Where to you might ask? Why to Slavery my dear friend.
When Reading over various slave narratives in undergrad and beyond, their is evidence to suggest that young black boys, and black men of all ages, were often forced to have sexual relations with their white male slave owners. While the innuendos are mild, and likely doctored by both historians and African American studies professors who fear exposing such a history that they perceive would further "shame" black men, the likelihood of such things happening doesn't at all seem far fetched. Because same sex desire is an expression of humanity that conforms itself to the structural social hierarchy of the day, it would make sense that for many white male slave owners, corrupted by racism, bigotry, prejudice and drunk off notions of power would use black male bodies, of which they had authority and control, as a site to express there same sex desire. It would also make sense that, like most of the social patterns from that not too long ago period, that those patterns persist in dynamics today. This has hardly ever been spoken of but as James Baldwin would Say: The consumption of young black male bodies by white men, is "The Evidence of Things Unseen."
This is not just in gay community, oh no. I think about the porn industry, of which I’ve been doing a lot of research on, and the very famous series "My Wife Likes Black Dick". In this porn series, white men look on as their white wives are penetrated, often aggressively by black men. The white men are present in the space when this happens, and in some clips, the white male looks on with fascination "saying" that's right, take that Black dick/you like that black dick don't you?". Fawning over the male’s performance and focusing on that "big black dick". In other scenarios, the white male is seen crying or sobbing as he witnesses his white wife penetrated-and while she makes comments on how his "little white dick" is nothing like this. So why would white men want to consume a product of a conjured storyline of having their wives penetrated by a "black dick?" How is this not projected homo-erotic desire? Let me make this clear, because unfortunately, many of us may be going there already-this is not some diatribe to suggest that white men should not date black men. What it is, is an invitation for both white men and black men, to explore further the relationship and the historic social, spiritual pain and eroticization that exists between us. What it is, is an opportunity for us to understand that patterns of sexual exploitation are not so rapidly dissolved, and maybe ponder, that the consumption of black male bodies by white men and white culture is not only almost always exploitative, it is, in a male context, homo-erotic; it is an expression of the white male unconscious desire for the black male body, eroticized as other, and as "jungle dick fuckers".
There is a lot more to be explored here, this doesn't even scratch the surface. On the next blurb I’m writing on interracial relationships I hope to go deeper..
But I think this maybe might open up a chapter...Much more to come…but for now..
What do you feel?
For more of Yolo's blogs, and other writings: Check out Envisionthis-yolo.blogspot.com via Yolothepoet.com
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