Michael Sandy Murder Trial Why Are Gay Men Silent About The Dangers Of Cruising?

About a year ago on October 8th 2006 a young black gay man Michael Sandy went to the parking lot of Plumb Beach in Brooklyn to hook up for a sexual encounter. Sandy had chatted online with another man for sex. However, Michael Sandy didn’t make it out alive that night. Sandy was lured into Plumb Beach for a sexual encounter but he was brutally beaten and robbed by four young white men. Sandy tried to flee his attackers he stumbled into traffic was hit by a car and died five days later.

Could you imagine if a racial reverse occurred? The white American media, the white gay mafia, the top white news networks would be on the case. The white heterosexual and gay media would be salivating and bloodthirsty there would be a new opportunity to pounce once again on the black community. One of the current themes in the mainstream media this year is that all black people are homophobic.

The white media would be attempting to make a “racial link” between the so called rampant black “homophobia” and “violence against white gays”. It is this apathetic racist attitude of society that’s so chilling yet so real. Yet here you have the Michael Sandy case a young black man that was brutally murdered by four young white men and it barely made the news!

Michael Sandy’s murder isn’t the first or last black gay person to be a victim of violence due to being black and gay. Sandy’s death has not received much media attention as Matthew Shepard for one reason. Sandy was black and Shepard was white. In America the blood of a white person has more social value then the blood of a black person. Sandy and Shepard were both victims of violence. However, in white gay America Sandy’s death was of no value or importance for “white gay rights”  to advance the white gay agenda.

When Matthew Shepard died almost a decade ago the white gay and heterosexual communities raised the public awareness about gay bashing and homophobia. However, when Michael Sandy died there was only indifference. Sure, the mainstream gay American media wrote a couple articles about Sandy’s tragic death but there wasn’t the same urgency nor did the  white American gay media take a stand. Michael Sandy although gay wasn’t “one” of “them” due to race.

Sandy wasn’t a member of the New York City white gay community he was an “outsider” since he was a black gay man. Michael Sandy’s death also exposes another issue and that’s the racism of the mainstream American gay community and the homophobia and hypocrisy of the heterosexual black community.

No Al Sharpton, no Jesse Jackson, no Andrew Young, no Tavis Smiley,  it is clear that  the black straight activists don’t care when black gay men are murdered. No CNN, no cover story on Newsweek, no CNN, no NBC, no ABC, no CBS. The black heterosexual activists quickly organized and marched for the Jena six though. The Jena six wasn’t just front page news in America it was global news the BBC in the United Kingdom and Le Monde in France were on that case.

However, anything to deal with black gay people well that’s just off limits. Black gay people we are still viewed as the scum of the earth. Even though Michael Sandy was a member of the black community being gay in the black community means you’re “different”. Black gay people are still viewed as people with no morals and considered a disgrace to the mainstream black community.

Its the silence that speaks volumes about the homophobia that still exists within the black North American communities. Of course, black gay people are indeed helping ourselves to improve our own lives. Black gay activists have been vocal about the Michael Sandy tragedy. There is only so much black gay activists can do. Its exhausting to constantly deal with the racism of the mainstream white gay community and the homophobia of heterosexual blacks. Its just disconcerting that the black heterosexual community is deaf and mute on this issue.

Its frustrating, annoying, and heterosexist, but the black straight media really don’t give a damn about black gays and lesbians. Michael Sandy should be discussed on every single black radio station across North America yet he’s hardly mentioned if at all. I did  notice BET.COM have a brief blog entry about Michael Sandy’s trial and the usual discussions about morality emerged. Its frustrating because here you have a young black gay man that was brutally killed and the focus of the discussion for straight blacks on BET.COM is about morality? I screamed at the top of my lungs. Its like being black and gay there is a constant tug of war people on both sides of the racial, cultural divide cannot be counted on.

The African American gay community in America did make their voices heard about the Michael Sandy’s murder. Black gay people we have to realize we have to help ourselves not just in times of crisis but all the time. The black heterosexual community does not care for black gays and lesbians. The mainstream white gay community only “wants” black gay support when it serves their self interests due to sexual orientation while ignoring race. Black gays and lesbians we cannot ignore race because it is inextricably linked to our identities.  Since white gays still possess white skin privilege they have a choice to think about sexual orientation and race we do not have that choice.

Michael Sandy could of been me, he could of been any of my friends, he could of been someone that I knew. The Michael Sandy tragedy strikes a chord in me because I know what it feels like to have my hormones take over and not think things through completely. All men think about sex and there is nothing wrong with that. Michael Sandy had a sex drive like any other living breathing male. Michael Sandy took a risk a risk he thought he could handle. How was Michael Sandy supposed to know he was going to be attacked? He didn’t? Michael Sandy thought the sexual encounter would be like any other a thrill, a rush of excitement. Michael Sandy’s death is a chilling reminder to young gay black men that there are men out there that are evil and prey on gay black male sexuality that wish to exploit and destroy us.

According to news reports the good news is that three out of the four men have been convicted of a hate crime but not of first degree murder. The first attacker he was convicted of manslaughter and robbery as a hate crime, one man did confess he admitted his guilt to robbery as a hate crime, and another man was convicted of manslaughter and robbery as a hate crime. The fourth man is still awaiting trial.

Plumb Beach’s parking lot in Brooklyn in New York City is still a cruising ground for men that have sex with other men a year later despite the risks. Plumb Beach is far away from the gay epicenter of downtown Manhattan. Men sit in their cars in the parking lot at night waiting for other men to approach them and then they leave the park for a sexual encounter.

The Michael Sandy case pulls the covers off of an issue a lot of gay men do not want to discuss and that’s the potential dangers of cruising for sex. Why is the issue of the entrenched racism against black gay and lesbian people ignored by the media? The mainstream media are attempting to ignore a clear fact that “racism” along with homophobia was a factor in this tragedy.

The Michael Sandy murder case is an opportunity to form a dialogue about the barriers that gay men of colour or closeted men of colour experience. Where are the support networks for young black gay men and other gay men of colour? Although it has been mentioned that Michael Sandy was a young black gay man the media have focused on the issue of “homosexuality,” “gay bashing”, and ignored the issue of systematic “racism”. The question remains why? Black gay people we cannot separate ourselves from our blackness or our sexual orientation, we encounter multiple layers of oppression.

Race is a factor here because there is an intersection of racism and homophobia that makes black gay men vulnerable. The media have focused on the “gay bashing” of Michael Sandy yet it must be pointed out Sandy’s attackers were young white males. It is indeed possible Sandy’s attackers targeted him not just because he was gay but also because he was black and they wanted to kill a young black gay man.

The Michael Sandy trial has not received much attention in the African American heterosexual media although the New York City press have covered the story. It is disconcerting that the larger heterosexual black community are not cognizant of the sheer violence that young black gay and lesbian people can encounter. Black gay people we face racism, sexism, and homophobia. I wish stronger ties could be forged between the black heterosexual and black gay and lesbian communities. For some young gay men of colour cruising is considered a more viable option to explore sexuality then going to the gay epicenter and not encountering the racism in the white gay epicenter.

Every gay man regardless of race has cruised. Everybody has done it and the gay men that claim to have never cruised for sexual encounters are either lying or never done it yet. Whether its going to a bar, going to a party, going to a bathhouse, going to a park at night, or looking online its still cruising. It must be hard for straight people to understand” why gay men “cruise” for sex.

In Toronto there was a horrible tragedy recently although for slightly different circumstances. A seventy two year old white gay man named Harley Walker died after meeting up with a man he met online. Walker met up with another man online for a sexual encounter not at a public parking lot but at his residence in downtown Toronto. A violent struggle took place yet the killer transported Walker’s body to Northern Ontario and dumped it there. Recently the remains of Mr. Walker have been found. Mr. Walker’s death highlights another issue and that’s the safety of gays cruising for sex as well.

Should Sandy and Mr. Walker had been more cautious? Perhaps? But hindsight isn’t always 20/20. Both men believed they were safe. Sandy knew Plumb Beach was a gay cruising ground in Brooklyn. Walker believed his own residence was a safe place for a sexual encounter. Both males were cognizant of the dangers of cruising and thought they would be safe.

In North America gay men have much more freedom and rights compared to men from other countries. However there are still powerful invisible social stigmas attached to male homosexuality. Male homosexuality is still viewed as decadent behavior in society’s eyes. Although gay rights have improved tremendously homophobia also exists. For closeted men also known as men that have sex with men going to a gay bathhouse is not an option or a gay bar because they could be potentially “seen” in public. There is a fear for these men that people will find out about them. Another issue is the danger for gay men is gay men are vulnerable to “gay bashers” that know where gay men go cruising for sex and seek to exploit, rob, murder, or attack gay men.

Sandy and Walker were openly gay men they were cognizant of the gay scenes in their respective cities and yet still they were both vulnerable to male violence. The issue of male violence is another issue some gay men don’t want to discuss about because some view it as threatening our manhood. It is true gay men can be victims of violence by other men. In society the belief is that men we can take care of ourselves and are not vulnerable to male violence but this is not true. Heterosexual men can be potential perpetrators and gay bash and even murder gay men. Male violence is an issue gay men need to discuss and form a dialogue on more often.

The internet has become a vital and important tool for gay men, married, bisexual men, men that have girlfriends that don’t consider themselves gay to meet other men for sexual encounters. Cruising is still a part of the ” gay underground” it still remains hidden to straight eyes.Perhaps this is one of the attractions gay men have to “cruising” because “cruising” is also a scavenger hunt, a journey, a chase, a way to explore sexuality without the fear of the heterosexual society’s piercing eyes of contempt and judgement.

Being a gay male in North America is still taboo to a certain extent. There are anti discrimination laws that protect gays but there is still the belief in North America that to be a gay male you are not living the “right” kind of life. For some closeted men they internalize this kind of homophobia they don’t feel comfortable with the larger gay community that is very white and has other barriers such as racism. Not every man regardless of whether he is in or out of the closet wants to go cruising at the usual gay social centers such as a bar or a bathhouse. Not every gay or closeted man is out to family, friends or even to themselves. It is important to identify that some of the men that cruise for sex do not identify themselves as gay.

Some straight people may believe this sounds illogical. How can men have sex with other men and not be gay? In straight society’s minds if men are making the decision to cruise for sex travelling to places known for where gay male sex takes place they view these men as gay. However, in the minds of the closeted men they don’t identify as gay or even as bisexual they view this sexual activity as just as something they want to do. Unless you live in specific gay neighborhoods men cannot approach another men in public say at a bookstore, supermarket, or at a movie theatre, or on the street for a date.

The public sphere is still very heterosexist it is where straight people do not have internal social barriers. For example straight men don’t think to themselves being “heterosexual” is “not okay” there is no internal social barrier. Straight people can meet straight people just about anywhere they want. Its also the reason closeted gay men like the United States Senator Larry Craig will cruise for sex in an airport washroom. It is also the reason some men take drastic steps to meeting in public parking lots, cruising in parks, cruising in public washrooms for sexual encounters. Society forces gay men to “cruise” I believe. Now my view is it is unacceptable to cruise for sex in a public washroom because its a public space. However, cruising in public washrooms does take place because closeted men feel compelled to do this due to society’s homophobia and that’s what’s being lost in all the news reports.

The heterosexual media still have the homophobic attitude that “cruising” is “wrong”. There is no “wrong” or “right” here. There are always going to be gay men that cruise in public or private spheres. Cruising exists because gay men feel compelled to take action to explore sexuality and to meet in social spaces gay males “think” other gay men are due to society’s entrenched homophobia. If society was a truly “open” and “accepting” of male homosexuality perhaps gay men wouldn’t feel the need to cruise but that day hasn’t come yet. Michael Sandy and Harley Walker’s deaths are a wake up call to the North American gay communities that more education needs to take place more needs to be done to reach gay men and explain or discuss and have a forum about cruising. Why is cruising our dirty secret? Why is it in the closet? Just about every gay man cruises in his own way whether he chooses to admit it or not? Maybe if the gay male community was more focused on working together instead of trying to present an image of compulsory heterosexuality more action could take place.

Links to information about Michael Sandy and murder trial: http://gothamist.com/2007/10/12/jurors_argue_bu.php

http://www.baynewsbrooklyn.com/site/tab1.cfm?newsid=18911369&BRD=2384&PAG=461&dept_id=552847&rfi=6

http://www.gaycitynews.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=18907024&BRD=2729&PAG=461&dept_id=568864&rfi=6

Link to Harley Walker story: http://www.thestar.com/News/article/211221