Nowadays, it’s strange to remember that it wasn’t that long ago when gay men who wanted to be out and proud—who wanted to dance and flirt and fuck without facing violence or death threats or worse from the straight community—had to seek safety in numbers and hide out in their own rainbow-colored ghettos. But we live in a kinder age, where Lady Gaga can sing “Born This Way” during the Super Bowl halftime show, same-sex couples can get married, and even straight boys can dance at Roscoe’s. We should be past the need for “gayborhoods,” as Amin Ghaziani argued in his influential 2014 book There Goes the Gayborhood. Don’t areas like Boystown, fun as they are, only remind us of the bad old days?
Throughout Boystown, Orne explores the neighborhood’s various fault lines: race, class, gender, queer culture versus gay culture versus straight culture, hookup apps. He’s a responsible sociologist, faithfully taking field notes even when he’s out clubbing, and he’s transparent about his methodology, but he’s by no means an impartial guide. He shares his nicknames for various factions—the wealthy “plastics” who hang out at Minibar and on boats off Hollywood Beach, the “good gays” who disapprove of promiscuity and want to meet nice boys in the real world and settle down like straight people—and his various prejudices, not just political, but also personal. For instance: “I fucking love brunch. I don’t care if it makes me a basic bitch.”
By Jason Orne (University of Chicago) Orne will read from Boystown Thu 3/9, 7 PM Unabridged Bookstore 3251 N. Broadway 773-883-9119unabridgedbookstore.com Free
