The POC Agenda

■ PAOI EULALIA PUBLISHER Kink Issue 2018

Finding Common Ground

Among the hate mails I’ve received since launching MXD Magazine last June, my favorite was being called out for using the term white privilege. As it turns out, according to Kevin S. who also claims he is a big-dicked white top, white privilege is a racial slur against white people. My first reaction was to roll my eyes and ask him questions like, “Have you ever shopped in a Louis Vuitton store and refused service because you’re a person of color?” Even Oprah can’t get away with being Oprah fucking Winfrey. For some reason, I caught myself understanding why he felt that way rather than disdain.

Ask An Ally

■ LUKE ADAMS LMFT Kink Issue 2018

Is fetishizing POCs a good thing or a bad thing? Mark M., San Francisco The widespread and profound sexual racism of our culture at large takes on more impact in queer and trans communities because we are smaller groups and more tightly connected. The line between what constitutes a fetish and what constitutes bigotry is often blurry. Outright rejection based solely on race is easy enough to spot, but trying to figure out if someone is attracted to you only because of your race can be a tough call.

Breaking Disparities

■ COLEMAN GOODE AIDS FOUNDATION OF CHICAGO Kink Issue 2018

Why POCs are Not PrEP’d

Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) has been transformative in the crucial fight to bring an end to the HIV/AIDS epidemic.  When taken as prescribed, this anti-HIV medication has been proven to reduce the risk of an HIV negative individual of becoming infected with the virus by over 90%.  During the period of 2012–2016, according to an analysis done by AIDSVu, the number of PrEP users in the United States increased by 880%.

All-American Me

■ KHEVEN LAGRONE Kink Issue 2018

The “New” & “Real” Oakland: A Home For Black Liberation

For years, outside media focused on Oakland’s problems, while overlooking what many Blacks loved about it. Oakland was a place of Black liberation.  For example, before the 1990s, Oakland’s Black gay community was hidden by both racism and homophobia.  The Black Gay and Lesbian movement changed that.  It helped elect the mayor who then supported the Black gay and lesbian community. Several Black gay and lesbian groups came together to march in the San Francisco Pride Parade.  They made themselves visible to the world, including both their Black communities and the white gay community.

Queer Stories

■ JOVAN GIBSON-AVIANCE Pride Issue 2018

B.L.A.C.K.

“Whites Only. No Blacks.” These are just a few I see normally on gay dating apps. That sounds ripped from the Jim Crow era, but it’s true. In person, it was just as bad. Occasionally, someone will say “I normally don’t like black guys but you are sexy.”