“Out of This Confusion I Bring My Heart” Love, Liberation, and the Rise of Black Lesbian and Gay Cultural Politics in Late Twentieth Century America by David B. Green Jr. A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (American Culture) in The University of Michigan 2015 Doctoral Committee: Associate Professor Maria E. Cotera, Chair Professor Frieda Ekottto Assistant Professor Brandi S. Hughes Assistant Professor Victor R. Mendoza When you love as we did you will know There is no life but this And history will not be kind Melvin Dixon (I)Eye dedicate this work to My Brother O.B. Green Who was taken too soon from this earth ii Acknowledgements I believe…no—wait—I remember. Yes. I remember the exact moment when I received a call from Jesse Huffnung-Garskof. Jesse called to inform me that I had been admitted into the Program in American Culture here at the University of Michigan. I was in Der Rathskeller, the main lunch drag at the University of Wisconsin’s student union. In the middle of grabbing one of their delicious cheeseburgers, I struggled to retrieve my cell phone. “Hello?...hello yes, this is David.” Moments later I was screaming. “Really?!” Yes, I was admitted into a doctoral program at the University of Michigan— one of two programs that accepted me. I knew nothing about this university. To tell the truth, I had never heard of the University of Michigan. Seriously. When I was completing my Master’s thesis and applying to doctoral programs, a colleague, Eric Darnell Pritchard—who had completed his Master’s degree in African American Studies and Doctoral degree in English Rhetoric at Wisconsin and now works as an Assistant Professor at the University of Texas at Austin—encouraged me to apply to Michigan. Eric believed that Michigan would really appreciate the work that I do in African American Studies. Without hesitating, I began researching Michigan, doing my “homework” as I was taught to do by my life-long mentor, Dr. Stephanie Y. Evans. After a few days I decided to apply to the American Culture program, writing in my research iii statement that I’d continue exploring topics in African American Studies—especially topics related to gay history. Months passed between submission and the admission’s decision. During those months of waiting, I completed the research and writing of my Master’s thesis. Weeks before I was scheduled to defend my Master’s thesis, I received a call from Jesse. “Congratulations!” A few weeks later, I received a letter in the mail. I was awarded the prestigious Rackham Merit Fellowship, which covered five-years of funding, including four summers. I was in. I had been admitted. I was awarded a huge fellowship. I was getting my PhD and I resolved then that I would let no one or nobody turn me around—and I’ve kept truth to that promise…and what a journey completing the third step—the doctoral degree—has been. The first round of thanks goes to The University of Michigan’s 2009 admissions committee, whom ever you are. Thank you for reading my application materials and seeing something in my work that merited my admissions. Thank you Dr. Eric Darnell Pritchard. Thank you for alerting me to Michigan. My mind was set on attending school on the East Coast because this black gay southerner could no longer endure living in the frigid mid-west—vis-à-vis Madison, Wisconsin. Had you not encouraged me to apply to Michigan, I cannot say where I’d be at the moment. A round of thanks goes to my Madd- Wissy crew. My Master’s thesis committee: advisor, Dr. Christina Greene and Dr. Brenda Gayle-Plummer. You two made writing the MA thesis enjoyable. I must also thank Dr. Sandra Adell for your saving grace. Madison was rough and you loved me through the pain. Dr. Tracey Curtis: Thanks for helping me realize and articulate my passion for Cultural Studies. To my cohort: Catasha Davis and Doria Johnson. You two gave me so many memories. Thank you for “punch-it Thursdays.” iv Prior to entering graduate school at Wisconsin and here at Michigan, I entered the Ronald E. McNair Scholars Program as a rising senior at the University of Florida. I was in the program when I first learned about the doctoral degree—the PhD. Before entering this program, I knew no one with such a degree. I’d never heard of a PhD. I knew so little about education. I am a first generation college student. I am the first in my family to attend college. I’m from the hood—you know…the ghetto. With the exception of attending high school at Douglas Anderson School of the Arts and eighth-grade at Twin Lakes Academy Middle School, I primarily attended inner-city urban schools in Jacksonville, Florida. I fought hard not to be left behind. I’m still fighting. All that to say, thank you to the University of Florida and its McNair Scholars Program for taking a chance and admitting me into its AIM Program. In the McNair program I discovered the joy of research and learned about this thing called graduate school. As a McNair Scholar, I met Dr. Stephanie Y. Evans—and this meeting ultimately altered the course of my life. Dr. Evans: THANK YOU! You were the first black woman to believe in my dreams. You were the first black woman who took the time to tell me that I could do this thing called grad school. You were the first person to ever ask me about my dreams—what I wanted to do in this life: “I want to teach.” I wanted to teach well before associating this dream with the professoriate. Without skipping a beat you began preparing me for graduate school. You helped me understand the application process. You helped me write apple- polished admissions essays—eight drafts in total. You helped me become me in all of who I am and for that I am ever and eternally grateful. Thank you. I must say that writing the dissertation was, for me, a joyous process—mostly because I had committee members who have believed in me at every step in the process. v To Victor Mendoza, you taught me how to craft a fine book review—the first book review I ever wrote began in your class and is now published in Callaloo! You taught me how to use words economically, beautifully, and powerfully. You mentorship, your words of advice, your directness, and your support continuously inspire me to be the very best that I can be. Thank you for all of this. Thank you for serving as my LGBTQ Studies Advisor; thank you for stepping in at the moment that you did; thank you for your hopes and belief in my success. To Frieda Ekotto, what can I say! Your pedagogy of fierceness is really a praxis of love. At what seemed like the midnight hour—and what was really for me a moment of crisis—you stepped in without question. Our lunch dates and tea sessions were enchanting and motivating; and needed. Thank you. To Brandi Hughes, woo! You have been my rock, my number one supporter, and advocate. From the first moment we met I just knew it would be a lasting something. We have taught together and from you I have learned how to be resilient; I have learned to make connections between this resilience, happiness, and empowerment. You teach me valuable lessons about the importance of laughter, perseverance, professionalism, and camaraderie. You are a blessing. Finally, to Maria Cotera, my dissertation chair: This dissertation would not have come to life without your expertise and critical insights, without your feminist mentorship, without you letting express my ideas without judgment; without your love. When I needed a new dissertation chair, you stepped in without question. You read my work; you understood my vision; you believed in this vision; hell, sometimes you saw the vision even when I did or could not. You saved me at the very moment when I felt I no longer needed saving; the very moment when I thought I had had enough; the very vi moment when I seriously thought to give up and leave grad school. Your yes went a very, very, long way. Thank you. I moved to Ann Arbor, Michigan over joyed by the idea of earning my doctorate. The transition from the South, from Florida to Wisconsin and from there to Michigan, was not easy. I could not have adjusted without friendly and welcoming spaces. The Rackham Summer Institute, organizations like the Black Humanities Collective and Students of Color of Rackham, and to the Trotter Multicultural Center—thank you for providing my the space and place to socialize and do the very hard work of dissertation work. I could not have supported my research and survived during these times without money. Thanks to the Rackham Merit Fellowship at Rackham School of Graduate Studies, the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Martin Duberman LGBT Visiting Scholarship at the New York Public Library, the Department of African American and African Studies’s Visual & Popcultural Predoctoral Fellowship, Michigan Women’s Studies Robin I. Thevenet Memorial Fellowship, Travel Grants and Fellowships from the Department of American Culture, the Sweetland/ Rackham Dissertation Writing Institute, and finally Michigan’s Institute for The Humanities. These funding sources gave me life, honey! I was able to travel throughout the U.S. and internationally, where I visited Paris, France for the very first time.