"In the past the images available to lesbians and gay males in the mainstream media were highly negative (219)." This all started since the 1960s and over time it has become less of a negative connotation. These media images created a sense of identity for all of the gays and lesbians in the nation at the time, and depending on the time period, there was a heavy negative to positive relationship with the images and sexuality.
"Homosexuality ignores class, ethnic, and religious boundaries...most gays are not 26 years old and do not live a charmed, protected, and carefree lives in trendy urban centers, earning high incomes..and going to the gym daily and wearing latest fashions (221)." This section of the text pretty much negates all stereotypical connotations of homosexual individuals. When I imagine the "gay male" I always associate a high pitched voice, effeminacy, interest in "girl shows" like Sex and the City, and strange fashion styles to paint my picture of what a "gay male" is. Obviously not all gay men are like that and it is pretty stereotypical, and after reading this article I understand better how media influences a lot of issues regarding homosexuals and how media makes it difficult for them.
The image above, while slightly disturbing, is very interesting to this topic. It was made by street artist "Banksy" and it features two police men kissing. His art is generally associated with political or social themes, which in this case is homosexuality. This sort of media that Banksy has created is just like the article is talking about, with the political media effecting how the public perceives gays and lesbians as. It is a topic of discussion that many people agree with and disagree with and hopefully in the future gays and lesbians will have less negative connotations and more rights.
Why do you find the image "slightly disturbing"?
ReplyDeleteI think it's actually MEANT to be disturbing. Not necessarily in terms of an overt anti-gay sentiment, but because, as Fejes rightly points out, in many ways homosexuality, particularly male homosexuality, has been de-sexualized. In other words, it has become an "identity," almost a brand, dissociated from what actually MAKES it an identity...that is, sexual preference. Banksy is restoring that connection, which I think immediately is jarring. This is particularly the case because it is two figures that are signifiers of both power and (masculine) authority. Brokeback Mountain had a similar impact. As opposed to, say, Sascha Cohen as "Bruno."
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