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VIDEO: Fascinating Discussion of Representations of Black Gay Men

Thanks to Duke University's Mark Anthony Neal for the heads up. Heidi Lewis, Riley Scholar-in-Residence, Feminist and Gender Studies at The Colorado College, delivers a fascinating and engaging micro-lecture on the representations of Black gay men on television from the 1980's to present.

Lewis concentrates her analysis on two characters: The first is "Omar Little", the Black gay homothug and stickup artist on HBO's gritty drama The Wire. The second character is Julien Low, the closeted police detective on The Shield. President Obama once said that Omar Little was the "most fascinating" character on television.

"One thing that interested me were depictions of Black gay men in the new millenium," says Lewis. "Prior to that you have representations of Black gay men as effete, feminine or sissified, if you will. Around 2000 you began to see a shift in those representations. Omar and other characters began to challenge that. Omar is hyper-masculine ... his occupation was robbing drug dealers. That's a problematic occupation but one that is a stark contrast to stereotypical representations."

Lewis' lecture and video is very engaging. It's only about six minutes long. Watch it AFTER THE JUMP ...

Coming Down to "The Wire"

The final season of HBO's dramatic tour de force The Wire is coming to a close. This next episode will be the last and Sunday's installment was truly bittersweet. Michael, the young assassin recruited from the local junior high school and played to perfection by Tristan Wilds, was responsible for the death of one of the series' most memorable characters.

Spoilers and analysis after the jump.

The End of Omar on "The Wire"

Perhaps you missed it during last night's nonstop Oscar telecast and coverage, but, your Sunday night television viewing will forever be changed. Omar Little—the black gay homothug and stickup artist with the heart of gold played to perfection by Michael K. Williams—was killed.

The character saw his demise in the most mundane and ordinary of circumstances—buying his usual pack of Newports at a corner store—and lost his life to the most extraordinary of killers: A boy who was no more than 9 or 10 years old. Editors at The Baltimore Sun decline to report on the "routine homicide", but, luckily the crime scene yielded a clue that is sure to take down the Marlo Stanfield crime family.

Omar Little's character defined the television series often described as the "best" on television. Frontrunner Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama channels many basketball players and our blog buddy Shana Naomi at Popnography to say Omar Little was his favorite character. "He's this black, gay gangster who only robs drug dealers, and then gives back," Obama exlains in the audio interview. "He's the toughest, baddest guy on this show, but he's gay, you know. And it's really interesting."

The shootout in the corner store signals the demise of one of the most compelling television portrayals of a black gay character. "The most fearless thing I had to play as Omar was his openness about his sexuality," Michael K. Williams says in a recent NPR interview. (Audio) "I wanted that to be serious, I wanted him to be believable, and, I didn't want to disrespect anyone in the gay community." To that end, Michael K. Williams upheld his promise and presented a conflicted, complex character. Omar lived violently and died just as violently—but he was fearless and open with his sexuality.

And we need much more of that on television.

You May Have Missed ...
Michael K. Williams: Omar's Sexuality is "Fearless" [R20]
Obama: Omar is "Black, Gay, Fascinating" Character [R20]
Michael K. Williams and Being Gay on "The Wire" [R20]
Deb Price on Blacks LGBTs and Obama [R20]
All Up in Omar's Game [Popnography]
The Parts You Can't Make Up [Popnography]
Best Gay Sex Scenes on TV [After Elton]

Michael K. Williams on "The Wire": Omar's Sexuality is "Fearless"

Michael K. Williams is the man of the moment. Last week, Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama heralded Williams' character "Omar"—the black gay homothug and stickup artist with the heart of gold on HBO's gritty drama The Wire—as his favorite character on television. This week. Williams is interviewed on NPR and says Omar's shotgun is not the most fearless aspect of his character. It's being openly gay.

"The most fearless thing I had to play as Omar was his openness about his sexuality," Williams tells Terry Gross in the interview on Fresh Air. (Audio) "I wanted that to be serious, I wanted him to be believable, and, I didn't wan to disrespect anyone in the gay community."

The actor also says he had no hesitation about playing the character and embraced the role. "I looked at this as an opportunity to stand out," Williams says. "I saw there were some stellar kick ass actors on the series, I wanted to fit in."

Williams says that prove his mettle, he surprised his co-star and improvised that first kiss with "Brandon" on Season One. "I told him we should put the kiss in there and he said, 'Don't tell me when you're going to do it, just surprise me.' So we did it. Then, after we finished and loaded the bullets in the shogun, 'click-click', it was like the ultimate contrast to me."

Michael K. Williams interview with Terry Gross is beautiful. It's rare to hear actors—especially from the black community, and, the inner cities—present so much honesty and respect to their LGBT characters and the community. It's also rare to hear an actor discuss the psychology and sexuality of a character and never once cite their own heterosexuality as a buffer. Bravo.

Thanks MARK.

You May Have Missed ...
Obama: Omar on "The Wire" is A "Black, Gay, Fascinating" Character [R20]
Michael K. Williams and Being Gay on "The Wire" [R20]
Why Obama is Losing Black Voters [HuffPo]
Welcome to the Campaign, Barack [HuffPo]
Deb Price on Blacks LGBTs and Obama [R20]
All Up in Omar's Game [Popnography]
The Parts You Can't Make Up [Popnography]
Best Gay Sex Scenes on TV [After Elton]

Obama: Omar on "The Wire" is A "Black, Gay, Fascinating" Character

Now that's hot. Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama joins the ranks of the many television critics to describe HBO's The Wire as the best show on television. Obama also channels many basketball players and our blog buddy Shana Naomi at Popnography to say his favorite character is "Omar Little", the black gay homothug and stickup artist with the heart of gold. The character is played by Michael K. Williams, seen on the left with his on-screen love interest Renaldo, played by Ramon Rodriguez.

"Omar is a great guy," the senator tells the Las Vegas Sun. "That’s not an endorsement. He’s not my favorite person, but he’s a fascinating character."

Much more context if you listen to the accompanying audio interview. "He's this black, gay gangster who only robs drug dealers, and then gives back," Obama exlains in the audio interview. "He's the toughest, baddest guy on this show, but he's gay, you know. And it's really interesting."

Sure, we all knew that last part, but, it's a great feeling to read and hear those words coming from a presidential candidate—especially the same one who took some fire from the black gay community after the Donnie McClurkin fiasco last November.

More BARCK OBAMA

You May Have Missed ...
Michael K. Williams and Being Gay on "The Wire" [R20]
Why Obama is Losing Black Voters [HuffPo]
Welcome to the Campaign, Barack [HuffPo]
Deb Price on Blacks LGBTs and Obama [R20]
All Up in Omar's Game [Popnography]
The Parts You Can't Make Up [Popnography]
Best Gay Sex Scenes on TV [After Elton]

After Elton Rates Television's Most Important Gay Sex Scenes

For your Monday morning hotness, head over to After Elton for their history and countdown of television's most influential gay sex scenes. The historic moments (and screencaps) were selected by the editors of After Elton and several writers, critics and producers—including yours truly—and each are accompanied with some spot-on analysis.

The list includes two episodes from Noah's Arc, including the short scene in the premiere episode, "My One Temptation", between Ricky (Christian Vincent) and Dwayne (super hottie Nate Adams). It probably wasn't the most memorable scene from the series, writer Christie Keith argues, "But Ricky and Dwayne's storeroom sex scene just busted onto TV screens without apology or angst, marking the first graphic representation of gay men of color having recreational sex in television history."

After Elton's choices are fairly diverse, ranging the gamut from that groundbreaking moment on thirtysomething to Omar and Dante's romp on The Wire and the more recent black gay storyline on ER. But it's worth noting that the vast majority of the selections come from premium cable television, which somewhat shows how far we've come since that 1989 postcoital snuggle on thirtysomething. Far ... but not too far.

TV's Most Influential Gay Sex Scenes [After Elton]

Some Background ...

What Does the Future Hold for Noah's Arc? [After Elton]
Deal or No Deal? [Rod 2.0]
Noah's Arc Has Sailed [R20]
Michael K. Williams and Being Gay on "The Wire" [R20]
Beyond the Sassy Sidekicks? [R20]
A Conversation with Keith Boykin [R20]
Patrik-Ian Polk in "Genre" [R20]
DVD Review: "Noah's Arc" [R20]

Michael K. Williams and Being Gay on "The Wire"

"It is not about him being gay." Actor Michael K. Williams talks to After Elton about his role as Omar Little—the homothug and stick-up artist on the critically-acclaimed HBO series The Wire. "He makes no excuses for it,” Williams says. “It is what it is, and he is fine with his bottom line."

Williams' performance as Omar is one of the best portrayals of a black gay man ever seen on television. One moment he is ruthless and cutthroat; the next, he is sweet and tender with one of his boyfriends.

Omar is not the only gay character on The Wire—Sonja Sohn plays a lesbian detective and Seth Gilliam's ("PUNKS") character constantly engages in homoerotic banter. Williams opens up to After Elton about the backlash he received for a passionate on-screen kiss in season two. He says that it's indicative of a larger diversity issue within the black community: "We are still calling an educated brother with proper diction an Oreo cookie. What I am saying is, it is a lot deeper than the gay issue.”

The Wire's Michael K. Williams on Playing Gay (After Elton)

Previously:

Hamilton Cobb: No Big Deal Playing Gay (Rod 2.0) Jody Watley on Black Homophobia (Rod 2.0) Raz: "I'm Exploring Myself" (Rod 2.0) Busta's Homophobic VIBE (Rod 2.0) Taking the Homophobia Out of Hip-Hop (After Elton) Primetime Reports the Black HIV Epidemic (After Elton) "Why Would Any Straight Man?" (Rod 2.0) Taye Would Play Gay (Rod 2.0) Raz B Will Play Gay (Rod 2.0) John Legend and Cornel West (Rod 2.0) Ray J's One Wish (Rod 2.0) Taye Would Play Gay (Rod 2.0) A Conversation with Darryl Stephens (Rod 2.0) Rockmond Dunbar Joins "Noah" (Rod 2.0) Keith Hamilton Cobb Joins "Noah" (Rod 2.0)