Debunking the Down Low

[Quetzal]

Debunking the Down Low

The truth about black sexuality in general is even more undercover than black men who have sex with men “on the down low” due to recent media misinformation, charges gay activist Keith Boykin in his upcoming book, “Beyond the Down Low: Sex and Denial in Black America.”

Set for release in February 2005, Boykin’s book charges that African Americans have long avoided having honest conversations about issues like fidelity, the existence of black gay men and lesbians, and taking individual responsibility for protection against HIV.

Instead of addressing those issues, blacks — aided by what Boykin calls a sensationalistic media — have recently focused their ire over rising HIV rates among black women on black men on “the down low,” widely perceived as men with wives or girlfriends who secretly have sex with men.

A deluge of media coverage over the last two years cites men on the down low as the primary cause of disproportionate HIV rates among African-American women. That presumption has become prevalent despite the Centers for Disease Control & Preven-tion’s insistence that data on the down low is hard to come by and a clear definition of the “DL” is non-existent.

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Debunking the Down Low