On the perception of black gay characters on TV
“You feel every time you see one, they have to represent. When I saw [Matthew St. Patrick’s] queer black macho husband on ‘Six Feet Under,’ I thought: Is there nothing soft there? I love seeing all of the different types, and not prioritizing one over the other. Sissies can be powerful. The term ‘thug’ has been co-opted by conservatives as term for a black male—but there is a clear admiration for hyper-masculine depictions of black gay men. Being black and gay in America both come with heavy doses of self-loathing. I think it’s extremely important for people who are taught explicitly or implicitly to think less of themselves, to have an alternate perspective. I wanted to be the best, most realized version of myself. I have had some self-loathing come up. You have to be honest in processing those moments. One of the gifts of being a gay man is to express our emotions, and that vulnerability of being raised that we are ‘less than,’ and having to experience that, and work through that, and do it together, is important.”
On balancing art with activism
“I learned after making “Noah’s Arc,” that you are not always doing rewarding work. As a guest on a TV show, you stand around delivering lines. Being able to play Noah and speak to people on a visceral, unexpected human level…I did think that if I never work again, was it worth it? It was. If I never got another acting job, I felt the ways Noah empowered so-called sissies and men who are more sensitive than their parents or friends want them to be, it was so important and rewarding for me to illuminate the heroism and strength of living without fear and falling in love and doing what he wants without listening to what society dictates.”
