Wipe With Zach & Cybersocket, Then Fun With Fu

A controversy recently ensued from the magazine Cybersocket naming 40 Amazing Porn Stars, and not naming a single Black porn actor. Zach Sire of TheSword.com wrote a piece in defense of Cybersocket. In response, I wrote a comment...that was never posted.

Victor Hoff of MOC Blog was kind and humane enough to give me a forum to say what I wanted to say in response to Zach Sire's obvious insensitivity on this matter. You can read it by clicking on this link:

http://menofcolor.blogs.com/moc_blog/2010/07/guest-commentary-by-trex-xavier.html

For those who are always wondering why I retired from the porn industry....the fact that I had to write this piece, makes it easier to understand why.
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There are some who are glad to see that I've retired, but don't want to see me happy afterwards. For since my retirement from the gay porn industry, I have had online run-ins with people trying to insult my post-porn endeavors. I guess they would be happy if I was drinking myself into a stooper, getting high on God knows what, and/or crying, "Oh my God, no one will hire me! I guess I should just kill myself!", thereby becoming the next (of many) suicidal pornstars who can't deal with the real world.

Well, I'm HAPPY to disappoint them with the fact that I LOVE my post-porn life.

So it brings me great pleasure to announce that this Sunday, August 1st, the 1st public screening of the movie I did last year, "Fu Manchu's Weapon Of Evil" will be taking place. Here's the info:

FU MANCHU'S WEAPON OF EVIL- Public Screening

at GIZZI'S CAFE

16 West 8th Street, NYC

Sunday, AUGUST 1, at 8pm SHARP!

This is the opening night of a new weekly event at Gizzi's, where every Sunday, New York Filmmakers will be showcased. Come on time and please stay for screenings of all the filmmakers' works. The weekly event will run until 10pm. Filmmakers will be allowed 3 minutes to introduce their films and three minutes Q&A after their screening.

So if you're in New York City this Sunday evening, and you haven't seen the videos on YouTube, OR even better, see them collectively as a single feature, then come down, and get a great start to your evening, and please....be sure to say "Hello".

NYC Gay Parties...Over- and Under-

As I've tried to overcome my indecisiveness about going to The Black Party, I finally came to a decision....

...I am NOT going to The Black Party.

My decision came to me while talking my friend Anthony's ear off (again) about my indecisiveness. Then he mentioned how a lot of people he talked to weren't going. While the main reason for their stand was not the same as the racial issue I addressed in "Rites XXXI: Right Choices For Me?", the reasons they mentioned was one I was also considering ----the price.

I mean what are YOU getting for all that money? You still have to pay for drinks. You still have to pay for clothes check. You're still getting sex which you can get at a sex party that has open-bar and $1 clothes check that you pay anywhere from $20 - $40 for (which is where I'll be going). So in short, to answer my own question, what you're getting more is....NOT A GODDAMN THING. In fact, you're getting less.

In that conversation with my friend Anthony, we also realized that New York City overcharges for many of its parties in gay nightlife. So everyone ends up being overcharged, if you're not a racist pig, you will find the parties over-light, therefore you'll find people of a darker complexion or certain ethnicty to have the beauty of who they are under-appreciated.

If you are going to The Black Party, be safe, have fun, and keep what I've say here in your head so that you make a better decison in the future.

And if you're one of the NYC gay nightlife promoters (be it The Black Party or any other gay party), then take heed of what I'm saying here, so I don't have to be this brutally honest again. Because you may think I enjoy calling you people out on your greed and racism, but the truth is that I want us to love and mix each others' cultures and colors in all that we do, so I don't enjoy this. So until you catch up to the high level of thinking as those who share my desire for togetherness, I must take this stand.

If I decided to go to The Black Party, I would only be going to see if my suspicions of "overcharged, over-light performers, and under-appreciated races" were correct, and I don't feel confirming myself as being correct is worth $95 -$150 out of my pocket. So after taking all these things into account, I feel a great deal of solace with my decision to not go. My decision makes me no longer have to worry about whether or not I'm being a hypocrite and betraying my stand against the racism of NYC gay party promoters. So once my decision was made, I realized I wasn't.

For the serenity I now feel over my decision, this is not an angry post. I am doing what I have always done with my blog - not call it like I see, but call it like it is.

TO ALL NYC GAY NIGHTLIFE PROMOTERS....

While you're doing promotions for Martin Luther King, Jr. Weekend, as you hire your LIGHT bartenders and LIGHT go-go boys to please your WHITE racist pig patrons and take their WHITE money, you make it quite obvious that you either have no clue of what Martin Luther King, Jr. stood and died for, or your monetary greed makes you not care. Maybe that's why you shorten the name down to the initials "MLK" - to lessen the importance in your mind of the man's accomplishments.

Because of Dr. Martin Lujther King, Jr.'s accomplishments, we are supposed to be 40+ years past the civil rights movement, yet many of you are making the NYC gay club scene show the gay community to be behind those 40+ years by segregating us. I am tired of having a Black/Latino night at a club being one of the few places I feel welcomed. If we were all at the right place mentally, there would be no need for those Blatino party nights.

I know those of you who are members of the guilty party are saying that you've never said such a thing about having a light-complexioned staff to cater to White racist pigs to take their White money. Well action speaks louder than words, and while you may not have said the words, the action of your hiring practices and who you are obviously catering to speaks volumes. Because while every non-White from Asian, Indian, and medium to dark complexioned Black and Latino, etc. you see at your events are probably there by living in denial of what I'm saying, if they face the truth, they will know that you're not taking a minority's money because you really want us there. If you did, we would see some representation in your staff, and kindness from your patrons. So the only reason our presence is tolerated is because it is viewed as mere happenstance.

This is New York City, which is supposed to be a mecca for all ethnicities and cultures. And Dr. Martiin Luther King, Jr. died at the hands of people afraid to see our entire nation become that mecca. NYC Gay Nightlife Promoters, your hiring practices and patrons you knowingly cater to show that you are no better than those people who hoped for, and saw to the death of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. It is the year 2010, don't you think it's about time you showed otherwise? Because while you're telling yourself White is what sells ---- in the year 2010, besides more money, you can also make alot more love with unity, than you can with separatism.

Unzipped & Zach Sire Under Fire

Racism in the gay porn industry is reaching the point where people are tired of it. Perfect examples of this are from this past week are recent posts at GayPornTimes where J.C. Adams did a post about some complaining about FlavaWorks raised profile on gay porn media sites because of the addition of their only white exclusive, Cody Kyler, coming at the expense of their models of color, which is supposed to be the studios niche. I commented on this. Feel free to check out my response here at your leisure.

There was also a post from my friend, Victor Hoff at MOC Blog addressing Randy Blue's dwindling number in their use of black models, considering how they used a total of 39 since the site's inception in 2003 till now. The problem with this number is that of that 39, 26 were used in the first year. That means from 2004 till now Randy Blue has only used half of that number, 13 over the next 6 YEARS to follow. This needed my commentary also.

In response to this, Zach Sire at Unzipped.net wrote a piece that I (like others) felt was a character assassination against Victor, and showed an immense degree of denial to the reality of racism in American gay porn. I wrote a comment there as well. And I had to, because Zach Sire and the people at Unzipped who felt it was OK for Zach to post this showed a high degree of racial insensitivity. They are obviously whites who take their status in gay porn for granted, and don't take the time to think about the MANY minorities who contribute to money made in the gay porn industry, but are repeatedly ignored by gay porn news sites like Unzipped, The Sword, and Chronicles of Pornia, and producers/directors of "mainstream" studios.

As I always try to, I will give credit where credit is due. In this case, that goes to Chronicles of Pornia, because in light of the situation with FlavaWorks, he was man enough to admit to falling into the trap of ignoring minority talent. Will the other sites and producers/directors be man enough to do the same? I doubt they ever will. But if they do, I will be more than willing to issue an apology for all the vile existence that I am calling them out to be right now.

Some might think the above statement is one of someone jaded and bitter. That would be the opinion of those who are sell-outs - not so much to their race color-wise, but more so to their race by degrees of humanity. I am bitter, but not for myself. I am someone you can say whatever you want about me, I really don't care. You're safe from an attack by me as long as you don't sight a specific reason for your claim, and twist the truth around for the sake of your claim. When you talk about my friends and family however, you are cruisin' for the harshness of a brutally honest verbal bruisin'.

And that is what Zach Sire, and the inepts at Unzipped to allow that post have done here.

Zach Sire has shown himself to be completely racially insensitive, and his superiors at Unzipped Media showed they are no better by allowing it. When I bought the racist incident involving Pierre Fitch to their attention via a comment, Zach deleted the comment, and had the nerve to call it "dumb", grant Pierre Fitch an interview, and saying that people make up stories all the time.

First off, you my loyal readers know that I don't just pull stories out of my ass for publicity's sake. With that in mind, why would I bring up an incident from 2 years ago involving a porn actor whose hey-day of popularity has gone? MAYBE for the sole purpose of helping the integrity of a website or publication (Unzipped) by making them wise to who they are giving such press to, and how it could backfire on them for doing so. For it has come to my attention that my telling of that racist incident involving Pierre Fitch has grown legs in those 2 years ----and it still is THANKS to Unzipped. So like most racially insensitive people, Unzipped has become their own worst enemy. And with that thanks, I also ask Unzipped's forgiveness, for trying to help them maintain some integrity that they obviously don't have ---- ANYMORE.

When an undeniable fact like the one Victor Hoff brought to the forefront about Randy Blue is put in front of you, how can Zach Sire deny that some form of racism is at play here. For even if Zach Sire's actions away from Unzipped show him to not be a racist, the fact that he is in denial of this situation makes him an enabler, therefore just as guilty. As my comments on the matter show, whether the racist actions are motivated by personal feelings or patronage numbers, IT IS WRONG, and the company owner has a decision to make if their existence overall is to be worth a damn. And Zach Sire and those at Unzipped trying to sweep it under the rug, only makes the situation worst to where it is today - where the overlooked minorities and those open-minded (therefore worthwhile of an existence) to be their admirers are getting tired of it to a degree of becoming seriously belligerent, as some comments on the all the aforementioned post show.

This reality of the intolerance of racism in gay porn is plastered all over the blogosphere. Of course you won't see it told to you on the believed to be popular names like GayPornTimes, TheSword, and Fleshbot. Since action speaks louder than words, if it is not a verbal code, their actions show that there is a code they follow to not make this reality known to the public, and that sales are doing OK, when they have actually been falling since BEFORE this recession.

My bringing such points up in my comments on Unzipped.net has had me on the verge of being banned from commenting. Now is that mature, OR is it the move of someone trying to run from the truth. I've never banned, or threatened to ban anyone from this blog for challenging my views. I just demand a name when you do so for the sake of making you own your emotion. Because if you don't own it, then it's not worth acknowledging. With that said, if they want to ban me, let them. Because the funny thing about the truth is that you can try running from it, but you can never hide. So should I ever be banned there, I still have my own blog, and other friends in the blogosphere, so the truth that I speak will get out there. No matter how much people like Zach Sire and his co-horts in denial and other publications try to sweep the obvious truth of racism in gay porn and the gay community under the rug - the truth of racism and America's growing intolerance of it in all forms of media will prevail.

Victor Hoff offered this great quote that I felt was perfect to close this post with:
Racism in the Gay Porn Industry is the great, big elephant in the room and many of the top names in the business recognize this. It’s important to remember, though, that we will overcome this ugly stain only by utilizing the cool, powerful arsenal of facts as our weapon of choice. Time, as they say, is on the side of truth and while it may be many more years before minorities get their fair shake in porn, we will win this battle. Of that, I am absolutely certain.

Thanks Victor. It's intelligent words like these that are the reason you are one of (if not THE) top blog on my list.

Boycotting HustlaBall NY

Once I decided to not attend Hustlaball NY this year, I was going to write a post about why. It was gnawing thought in the back of my mind telling me to write it, but I tried my best to ignore it, and move on to something else. But those were voices in my head. This past Friday however, I was at the indoor pool party, Baña, and someone asked me if I was going to Hustlaball NY. And when I answered "No", their response was, "Are you boycotting?"

What was strange about his response was the fact that boycotting is based on a social matter, and I don't recall ever making public any disapproval with Hustlaball NY in that regard. Annoyed that I offered myself as a performer to no avail, YES, but that comes with the territory of being a performer in any medium, including the adult industry. Disappointment with the shows, YES. Both of those things, I do recall voicing my opinion on last year, but both of those things may incite apprehension to attend, but not a full-on boycott. That is UNLESS, I can see a social matter is at fault here, which there is. Therefore, the fact is that I am actually boycotting Hustlaball.

What I find amazing is the fact that this guy knew it, even though I haven't even discussed what I'm about to say here (or the subject of Hustlaball period) with anyone once the announcement about Hustlaball NY came out. So it's quite plausible that he sees the same thing that I am seeing, even sub-consciously, and knew I would take a stand on it. I was going to take a silent stand, but once a voice outside of my own entered the picture to suggest I was taking a stand, it took that as a sign to make my stand public.

Last year, I said my purchasing a ticket was going against my new rule of "If I'm not good enough to entertain, then my money isn't good enough either". What I meant by that was NOT if Tré Xavier isn't good enough to entertain, then my money isn't good enough. What I meant was that if you can't find more Blacks and other races to entertain, then the overwhelming number of non-White New Yorkers' money should be considered no good either.

Let's be realistic, have you seen the list of entertainers and sponsors? In regards to entertainers, could it get more light-skin only and predominately white with one of the few (and practically ONLY) named dark-complexions belonging to Diesel Washington, and it's quite believable that's the case only because he is one of the few Blacks represented by one of the sponsors, FabScout. And speaking of FabScout, that brings me to the list of how lily-white and lacking in diversity the list of sponsors is. FlavaWorks is a Gold Sponsor for HustlaBall.....in Berlin. Why aren't they sponsoring it here in NY? Here in New York where the roster of performers for HustlaBall New York can be more reflective of the diversity in citizenship therefore patronage that exist here even more so than it does in Berlin . So as far as the list of performers go, that's why I'm boycotting HustlaBall New York.

Now my final reason for boycotting is plain and simple...HustlaBall New York is a rip-off.

I have never been to a HustlaBall outside of New York, but I know others who have, and I have seen the ads for other like the upcoming one in Berlin. In short, HustlaBall overall is marketed to come off with the sexuality at a height like it's another Black Party. Maybe the Berlin version is, but the New York version is an over-priced imitation, yet you are paying practically the same price as you would to get into the Black Party . In other words, it's the typical American attitude of prudishness towards sexuality that is crippling New York City's gay nightlife. The Black Party flips the bird to it. If HustlaBall NY is going to market themselves to be so much like the Black Party, why can't they man-up and flip the bird to that prudishness as well?

Some of you may have already bought tickets for HustlaBall NY, and are now asking yourself, "Why?" Well, if you see all that I have stated here at this year's HustlaBall NY, take this as a lesson learned to not make the same mistake next year. I made that mistake twice already. It would be quite foolish of me to do it a third.

Let's just hope HustlaBall New York steps their game up, and proves me wrong. BUT how often does that happen?

R.I.P. Tré Xavier - Porn Actor

In my interview with Papi Chulo back in June, I hinted that I may be leaving the porn industry.

Well this post is to announce that it is official - I am leaving the porn industry.

In recent months, I have been doing so many projects outside of the industry that looking for an opportunity to get back in front of the camera has become of no relevance to me. I have often said in my blog posts of how easy it should be to bow out of this industry because "it's only porn", and now I am practicing what I preach.

Furthermore, between all the racism, false hopes, and disregard for performers' and audiences' welfare that I have faced and written numerous posts about over time, I had to ask myself as to whether or not being in this industry makes me happy. And the truth of the matter is thanks to the racism, false hopes, and disregards by agencies like FabScout and studios like Big City, Black Scorpion, Falcon, Jet Set, Lucas, Raging Stallion, and Tyson Cane, I'm not happy being a part of it at all. In fact, looking at the porn industry as a whole, I realized the undeniable fact that because of the companies I mentioned (and those I didn't whose actions wreak the same results), the American gay porn industry is eroding, and I am getting out before it erodes me with it.

In regards to all the posts that I've written about what's wrong with this industry, I wrote all those posts with the hopes of making this industry take a needed look at itself and make itself better in the process. This is something I do for myself, and I expect others around me to do the same. But seeing how so many porn news websites like Unzipped.net and The Sword (due to their current "leadership") insist on reporting fluff instead of the reality that we performers face that are often symbolic of what's happening in the American gay community made me ask myself this question:

Why am I fighting to better an industry where the people in it have repeatedly chosen to ignore my intellect, integrity, and creativity, thereby making that industry way more than a little unworthy of my or anyone else's prowess of such high caliber?

The fact is the American gay porn industry has become a revolving door of performers. There are no more porn legends. There's now just a bunch of guys with high-rates who will never become a Jeff Stryker or Peter Berlin, names I'm sure many of you even in your 20's heard of at some point. What happens now is that just as soon as they get a decent-sized fanbase, those models with enough skill to do other things decide to move on, as I am doing now (and Trent Atkins has already done) because producers/directors and agents have allowed their lecherous ways suck the fun out of this industry.

It's not just me who feels this way. Fans of the porn industry are now becoming former fans of the industry, and turning to amateur porn instead. Because we watch porn to play voyeurs, and these big name studios have forgotten that. Well the former fans haven't forgotten, as it is proven by this quote from my friend, Achmat, as it is a sentiment shared and told to me by many, some total strangers who didn't even know I did porn:

"I love amateur porn because it captures the essence of sex. People are as they are and not what the label wants them to be...Amateur porn captures the fantasy, desire, and passion that the bright lights, pay checks, and fake tans have eroded."

Now, my being in this industry hasn't been all bad. I made some great friends along the way. And it is the industry that gave birth to the "Tré Xavier" persona, which is why if this industry shows any signs of healing its self-inflicted hemorrhage, I will return. But for now, the time has come to move on and take the persona to a higher level. And with all that I've been doing lately, I'm just getting started.

I'm sure based on this post many of my loyal readers fear that this blog will be no more. Well I am assuring you here that while "Tré Xavier - Porn Actor" is no more, "Tré Xavier - Blogger" is still alive and well, which means THIS BLOG ISN'T GOING ANYWHERE. So porn companies and publications, you still need to be on your guard from me calling them out.

For I will still be watching you.

Why would I let my blog go now when I believe I have turned "Tré's X-Ray Vision" from being just another porn actor's blog, to being a blog from a porn actor with a social conscience, to a blog from a regular socially aware guy who just happens to be an exhibitionist. The reason this metamorphosis is important to me is because exhibitionism with the title "porn actor" attached to it can get one treated like a god, and way too many porn actors start believing that of themselves. I however always wanted it to be that no matter what your country of birth or residence, you can say that I'm your brother, and in no way should be or (more importantly) seeks to be treated like a god.

You have all taken me on this great journey, and helped in giving me the courage to move on to the next chapter. I hope you will move on with me, and with that strength added to mine, I will not disappoint.

So now, think of this video as me washing off yesterday, so I can be refreshed in taking on today and beyond.

Music: "Love Wasn't Built In A Day" (Instrumental Version) featuring Dave Koz

On Racist Blast: NYC's Go-Go Dancing Scene

I've often have said recently in my posts regarding the racism in the gay porn industry that you can only look at the same type of White guys fuck but so many times before it becomes boring. That is unless you have lowered your existence to being a creature of habit. Well, the same goes for go-go boys. You can only see the same type of White guys but so many times before the White asses and crotches get boring. And the problem in New York City right now, is that bars, clubs, and party promoters acts as if White boys are all that exist as signs of what is beautiful and sexy in this city. They may however throw in some light-skinned Latinos or if you're lucky enough to see a Black dancer there, he's always muscled-up - never a simply toned physique like you will find on some White dancers. In other words - AGAIN, NO VARIETY.

Splash Bar in NY is definitely one place that is guilty of this racist hiring of dancers. Even on their so-called Black and Latino night where you can find a Latino go-go boy with a toned physique, but with a Black dancer, it has to be obvious that they hit the gym hard. This racist perception while hiring dancers is not limited only to Splash Bar. Other culprits include The Urge, and g Lounge. And if it's not the bars responsible, then there are way too many party promoters that I can list who contribute to this problem.

And yes, I did use the word, "problem". Considering the fact that one hires a go-go boy to be eye-candy for the crowd in their bar, club, and/or party, if your patronage is the gorgeous variety of colors and ethnicities that make up New York City, then isn't it only right that you put that gorgeous variety on display for them. Instead, what they present to you is the result of their stereotypical gay behavior of self-absorption by showing their redneck hick mentality that they didn't lose when they came to the melting-pot mecca that is suppose to be New York City. "Suppose to be" because the migration of those redneck hicks is making New York no longer the symbol of variety it once was.

I ask you, isn't this sight old already? I believe it is, because I'm seeing go-go boys make less and less in tips. That is unless they act like hustlers about getting them the way some do at The Urge or Macho Mondays @Nowhere.

One of the things that brought this problem to my attention was how often I get asked why am I not dancing. This has been asked of me from not only strangers (who may be using a line), but also patrons who know me from parties of promoters that I have danced for in the past, and most recently from of all people - an actual dancer while he's on the bar. He's was actually trying to set me up to talk to the manager, then I had to break the news that shocked him of how I had already been there, and done that. I'm sure I get asked this because I'm quite well-maintained. However, due to the racist perception of the promoter or manager, my simply toned body combined with my Black skin makes me unqualified to so much as apply, which may also contribute to the problem for many other toned-physiqued Blacks besides myself.

This racist perception has gone on for so long that just like in the porn industry, many Blacks who could do well as a go-go boy, but whose perfectly fine physiques don't fit that limiting perception don't even apply because they feel, "why bother?". Thereby, showing a justified lost of faith in the hiring process.

It is sad that New York City has become segregated within itself this way, where if you want to see White, you don't have to look too far AND you get a variety of body types to choose from. However, if you want to see Blacks - go here and/or wait until this 1 night of the week and it's muscled-up only; if you want to see Latinos - go here; and if you want Asians, travel all the way over to The Web. It is unseemly that unless you are one of the racist midwestern mindsets that have migrated to New York in recent years, that you should have to wait or travel far at all within the city for your non-White eye candy.

Is it just me, or do you find this incredibly unfair? I've gotten to the point with it where I don't tip a buck out of admiration, I tip a buck to the dancers so that they would move the fuck on with their all-too-common look. Ones that are not too common are the ones that get a dollar and then some, unless I'm in a charitable mood to the ones that act like hustlers. I mean there are so many White guys that if you line them up by torso and crotches, you can't them apart unless they have a defining tattoo.

For example, these are not 3 pictures of 1 guy in different go-go gear. They are 3 different go-go dancers at the same party taken on the same night. AND 2 of the 3 look like whoever hired them has a Brent Corrigan fixation. If these promoters and managers would ethnically mix up their dance staff, maybe you could tell them apart better. Nor should I be able to use as an example of how with those having these all-too-common looks, while I may tip with a smile on my face, the real thought going on in my head goes more like this:

"Oh another one of you, what a shocker. Uh, here's a buck so you can move the fuck out of the way, so I can make eye contact with that slim Black guy across from me. You see, he's has a beauty that hasn't been shoved down my throat by gay media to admire. I like my men that way. Because the fact that he has allowed himself to just be slim, and not become a gym-rat is what makes him one step closer than you to being the embodiment of a REAL man.... NEXT!"

It's things like racism that (as racism always does) contribute to a lost of luster. One that in this case dulls NYC gay nightlife. The many non-Whites in this city get no decent amount of representation of their beauty by way of eye candy like go-go dancers. Furthermore, I hate the fact that when out-of-towners ask me where to go hang out, with one of my criterias being eye candy, that I have very little to recommend because the go-go boy scene is no where near being as diverse as it should be. If this continues, then NYC gay nightlife will one day have about as much luster as a burned out charcoal briquette. That is if it doesn't already.

To managers and promoters, I believe that's your cue to get it fixed, so New York City nightlife can start having a REAL shine once again.

Write That Down #5

I felt the need to write this thought down, because it best explains the reason why I felt the need to start my category of "On Racist Blast":

I don't really see color when seeing beauty, but the fact is that at some point in the day, one must look in the mirror. Think about it - if you look in the mirror, and with all the signs in advertising and club and bar eye candy presented to you, you then realize when you look in the mirror that your reflection is the 1st (and maybe even the only) time you've seen your skin color thought of as "beautiful" all day. For some who are without a strong degree of self-esteem, because you had to say it to yourself, this may wear down your spirit. So I say this to re-affirm those who have been put in doubt of how their non-White skin can be just as (if not more) beautiful than the media attempts to portray White skin to be.

On Racist Blast: HX Magazine

I have often discussed racism on this blog, and named names of guilty parties in the process. I have never taken pleasure in naming those names. My solace comes from the fact that I don't share their racist outlook, AND my allegations can never be justifiably disputed. Therefore, no one can try making such a claim about me and be justified in doing so. In this case, the guilty party is HX Magazine.

I have held off for quite awhile in calling HX Magazine out on their racist practices. To be more exact, the entire time I've been doing this blog, which is almost 3 1/2 years now. What has changed to make it necessary to speak on it now? I've been putting myself front and center to try and make my way into the circle that HX uses to represents NY's gay community to no avail.

This circle of HX Magazine that I'm speaking of for the most part has no substance. They are a bunch of what could be considered pretty party people, and not much else. Problem is that pretty party people often includes the bad connection to party drugs. What's bad about sticking to that image is for those people they feature who are of substance. That quality is mentioned quickly, and not referred back to often when speaking of that person, so their quality unfortunately gets lost in the shuffle. This form of editing is in a word - stereotypical, and for a gay magazine gets further described by me as "faggoty".

"Faggoty" is what I define as the negative stereotypical behavior associated with being gay, such as being having a narrow-minded view of beauty, and an even greater obsession with youth than the typical American. Hence why in this blog, I have referred to some gay males as faggots, while those males that are not that negative stereotype are called," gay men".

HX Magazine definitely hits the NY gay community over the head with this negative stereotype, and I've tried putting myself in some of their events to break that mold. For example, I have tried to be a contestant in their Mr. HX competition, and responded to their call for models to be on their Pride float and photoshoot. In both instances, they asked guys to write why they should be considered. You can click on the links to read my entries to be considered a contestant for Mr. HX, and a Pride float model.


On both of these occasions, I felt if chosen then HX Magazine would have made some progress in the images they put out to the gay community, but I have come to see that nothing has changed. HX Magazine still acts as Whites and light-skinned Latinos are the only relevant ethnicities of gays in New York City, where a great example of this is with their Mr. HX contestants. Meanwhile, Blacks, Asians, Indians, and other minorities are treated as random trivial spots in the NYC cultural and ethnic canvas.

HX Magazine does show Blacks can be featured in their magazine. But there's a catch. That Black person, especially males must be of an extreme. Those extremes being extremely effeminate (like a drag queen), or uber-masculine image of a Black male that I discussed in my post, "White America's Slave Fantasy". But that uber-masculine image is often dolled up by airbrushing to push them to the extreme effeminate, like the ones HX dressed up in fetish gear for The Black Party issue. Proof can be seen by comparing the cover on your right to the video below.

Furthermore, isn't that insulting to the Black citizens of the LGBT community? HX thinks of featuring Black men only because they say the words, Black Party. Is that the best HX can do?

I'm not a sore loser in those 2 aforementioned events. What has forced me to write this post is the fact that I have yet to see any Black man of any build or shade without being extremely effeminate or masculine, with strong convictions needed to better the LGBT community promoted by HX Magazine. HX Magazine promotes the old days of Hollywood where the image is that all Blacks males are good for is to make White people laugh, and Black women can be good for either a laugh, or to sing to the White people.

Now, I ask you, should that be New York in the year 2009? I don't believe so.

To further insult my intelligence, not too long ago, I got an email from HX Magazine saying in the subject line, "HX wants YOU". But it is not what you would think. It was actually them trying to ask me to spend beaucoup dollars to promote myself in their classified section. I took this to be along the lines of my quote from "Write That Down #2". That quote saying, "Why let you acknowledge the existence of my color today, when you're going to act like it's a stain to wash away tomorrow?" With that in mind, why would I promote myself in an obviously racist magazine that shows no signs of progressing? That is why unbeknownst to HX, I was considering taken them up on their offer and promoting this site in their classifieds, IF either I had been chosen to be a Pride model, OR I learned of a Black man being chosen who doesn't fit that uber-masculine mold. It would have been my way of saying "THANKS for progressing, HX Magazine".

BUT WAIT, THERE'S MORE TO THIS PART OF THE STORY.

I asked the person who sent me this email asking me to promote myself in HX if they could give me any info regarding my entry in being part of the Pride Issue. Their reply was that the Pride float was being handled by an outside source. Well, if the Pride float is being handled by an "outside" source, then why did the response I got thanking me for my submission come from a design director at HX? And let's say for argument's sake that an outside source was used, then I think HX Magazine should re-think using that outside source again, because another reason for this post is so many being in agreement with me on the racist image of NYC that HX Magazine propagates. And those of you reading this who do agree, I strongly urge you to comment and show you agree, instead of sitting at your computers and nodding your heads, because change will not happen if you are totally silent. This city is my home, and I demand the melting pot that it to be represented.

The bottom line of all this is that HX Magazine like so many, has no idea of what Pride is supposed to be about celebrating. Gay Pride is not about considering someone worthy because they're beautiful ONLY on the outside. They are worthy because of who they are inside, by the words and actions they spread through some medium to better strengthen the spirit of the LGBT community which enhances their beauty on the outside. By their actions, HX Magazine doesn't strengthen the LGBT community of New York City. Instead, they make it take steps back from progressing, because racism, ageism, and vanity have never contributed to the progress of not just gay society, but any society for that matter. With that in mind, those following HX's creedo are also halting the progress of the acceptance of the LGBT community by the rest of society.

So after you've had a chance to let all I've said here sink in and marinate, hear me ask you this - Should color and body type define who should embody Gay Pride? Based on what I've said here, you know my answer. I just hope you are smart enough to share the same answer with me.