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Object Description
Interview no. | W-0055 |
Restrictions | In-library use only. Access through the Southern Historical Collection. |
Project | W.2. LGBTQ Life in the South: Sweet Tea Interviews by E. Patrick Johnson |
Project description | Interviews, 2003-2006, conducted by E. Patrick Johnson with black gay men from the South including men from many Southern states regarding their experience of growing up gay in the South with particular focus on such topics as the influence of the church in upbringing, coming out experiences, gay vernacular, college and career in the South, gay life in small towns, segregation, gay social life, and whether the South is hospitable to gays. These interviews form the basis for Johnson's book, “Sweet Tea: Black Gay men of the South,” published in 2008 by University of North Carolina Press. |
Date | 10 May 2005 |
Interviewee | Joe. |
Interviewee occupation | Students |
Interviewee DOB | 1984 |
Interviewee ethnicity | African Americans |
Interviewer | Johnson, E. Patrick, 1967- |
Abstract | Joe was born in 1984 in New Orleans, La. Joe had a very difficult childhood. At the age of 12 Joe was placed into a group home, which is where he first came out as gay and met his first boyfriend. Joe was adopted by a wealthy white family, but mentions how that has led to him experiencing more casual racism than at any other point in his life. Joe was raised Southern Baptist and grew up thinking being gay was a bad thing. He converted to the Episcopal Church, which is more liberal and accepting of homosexuality, when he was adopted. Joe mentions that church has played such a formative role in his life that he is considering becoming a Benedictine monk. Joe goes into great detail about his views on gay marriage, stating that he is for gay marriage as long as all the different churches (Baptists, Catholics, Episcopalians, etc.) agree that the definition of marriage is a union of two persons blessed by God, not just a man and a woman. Joe also does not believe the government should have any say in marriage, except for the legal and financial benefits that it entails. This interview is part of the E. Patrick Johnson collection and was conducted for Johnson's book, “Sweet Tea: Black Gay Men of the South.” |
Citation | Interview with Joe by E. Patrick Johnson, 10 May 2005 W-0055, in the Southern Oral History Program Collection #4007, Southern Historical Collection, Wilson Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. |
Description
Interview no. | W0055_Transcript |