Can Queen Latifah Come Out As A Lesbian & Still Have The Respect Of The Black Community?

The blogs are  exploding with rumours that Queen Latifah and her girlfriend Jeanette Jenkins are going to have a commitment ceremony. The other story is, that Queen Latifah may officially come out as a lesbian. I doubt Queen Latifah will come out of the closet right now.

However,  she isn’t lying she is a lesbian and she’s not hiding either. Queen Latifah basically lives in the glass closet. Everybody, already knows Queen  is in love with her  “fitness trainer” Jeanette Jenkins. Whenever, Queen is promoting a movie, at a celebrity event, or just doing regular things Jeanette is always there. Now one argument is, that Jeanette is just Queen Latifah’s good friend, but people can tell they are a couple.

Queen Latifah is aware of the fact the public lens is watching her. She never show up at a movie premiere or a high profile celebrity event dressed as a butch. At high profile celebrity events Queen Latifah always looks glamorous in elegant gowns, carefully applied makeup, and high heels. Once Queen Latifah is off the celebrity platform she can be seen riding her motorcycle and dresses like a typical butch lesbian. Queen Latifah carefully navigates the butch and feminine imagery in the public sphere.

Some people believe the rumours go back to 1996 when Queen Latifah played the butch lesbian Cleo in the hit film “Set It Off”. However, the rumours about Queen Latifah and Jeanette Jenkins are intensifying not because of what Queen says but what she doesn’t say. When was the last time you saw Queen Latifah with a man? It is a fair question.

I am not suggesting just because a woman is single for a long time means she’s gay. However, we have never ever seen Queen Latifah romantically linked to a man we always see her with Jeanette. The public is shrewd enough to connect the dots and discern that Queen Latifah is a lesbian.

In the October 2007 issue, of Ebony magazine, Queen Latifah was actually asked by Ebony if she was dating Jeanette Jenkins. Ebony is the top black magazine in the world and Ebony usually never asks black stars personal questions. Ebony is all about black community “uplift”, and not about getting involved with black stars private lives. Ebony can be boring at times but the interview with Queen Latifah was definitely interesting. However, Queen Latifah provided a very evasive answer and didn’t deny she was a lesbian.

Queen Latifah is also cognizant of the fact since she’s a black lesbian she cannot just come out like Ellen Degeneres. Ellen Degeneres had the support of the liberal white American media on her side. Queen Latifah’s situation is a bit more precarious since she is a black lesbian. Would the black media support Queen Latifah if she declared she is a lesbian? Degeneres was on the cover of Time Magazine in 1997 when she came out. Degeneres is also not a movie star she’s a comedian and she’s also white.

Queen Latifah does have more barriers because she is a black lesbian and her core audience are black Americans. Although Queen Latifah has “crossed over” in the last couple of years into the mainstream with Cover Girl and numerous other high profile endorsements. Queen Latifah always presents the image that she “cares” about what the black community thinks about her.

It appears to me Queen Latifah is struggling navigating the questions about her sexuality. Again, Queen Latifah has never been seen dating a man. Queen Latifah always says in interviews she’s looking for a “good brother” or she hasn’t found the “right man” yet. It is obvious Queen Latifah is a lesbian the public can read between the lines. Black Celebrities have it tougher because they have to deal with the public and private spheres.

Black celebrities are a part of pop culture the media and the public become curious when they notice certain things. Queen Latifah’s “personal life” has always been off limits. Of course, on the one hand that’s important everyone wants to maintain a certain level of mystery and have some privacy. On the other hand, it is well known publicists of the closeted black gay stars also understand in maintaining the status quo. There are numerous female rappers that are gay but they don’t have the same high profile Queen Latifah has so the media and public are apathetic to them.

It is well known that different cultures view homosexuality differently. I actually think because Queen Latifah is a black lesbian it would be much easier for her to come out. There is an anti lesbian attitude in society and lesbians do encounter discrimination in relation to gender and sexual orientation. However, the mainstream doesn’t have the same fear of lesbianism as it does with male homosexuality. There is still an intense hatred society has for gay men.

I definitely think there is so much negativity towards black gay male sexuality. It would be very difficult for a black gay man to come out. For instance, R&B Tevin Campbell was caught soliciting an undercover male police officer. Tevin has not come out of the closet but is an open secret in the black community that he’s gay. Tevin is currently on Broadway in the play “Hairspray”.

Everyone, in the black global community knows Luther Vandross was gay yet during his lifetime Luther never disclosed his sexual orientation. It was an open secret that Luther was indeed gay. Luther Vandross had a “don’t ask don’t tell” policy with the black audience. We all sing Luther’s songs, attend his concerts, buy the DVDs and CDs. However, the game was that Luther was asexual or at least he had to appear asexual for us to respect him.

Ebony, Essence, Upscale, Vibe, and the other black entertainment publications never asked Luther about his homosexuality. The topic was off limits. I think that’s the tragedy of Luther’s life that he wasn’t able to be himself in the public sphere. Its the hypocrisy of the black community that’s disconcerting. On black blogs such as Bossip, Crunk and Disorderly, Mediatakeout, and other black blogs the homophobia can be incredible.

Another point to consider, is openly gay and closeted black gay stars cannot count on the mainstream white gay community as a potential market. Black gay stars are rarely ever mentioned in the mainstream white gay media. Black gay and lesbian celebrities know their main market is the black audience.

If you bother to pick up the glossy white gay magazines such as Out Magazine, Girlfriends Magazine, or the Advocate you will notice gay people of colour don’t exist. If you surf some of the white gay media blogs there is a condescending, patronizing, and racist attitude towards black gays and lesbians. Black gays and lesbians we are marginalized due to race, gender, and sexuality.

A few white mainstream gay media blogs, have a “corner” on their websites marked “gay people of colour” as if that’s all we are. Being black and gay is more then just being displaced and branded on some white gay media website. We are multi dimensional people and there is more to us then being categorized and stigmatized into a cardboard box. I find these kinds of barriers limiting no wonder some black gays don’t trust the white gay community.

You will also notice most of the time the people on the cover the mainstream gay magazines are white gays not black gays. Also, when the Advocate does have a black star on the cover the celebrity is usually straight. For example, Mary J Blige was recently on the cover of The Advocate. The public image of blackness is still compulsory heterosexuality and once again black gays and lesbians we are branded as “the other”.

Even in lesbian pop culture on the television program the L Word why is the only black woman on the program Pam Grier’s character straight? Why isn’t Grier’s character a lesbian? The L Word is about lesbians and bisexual women yet the only black woman on the program is heterosexual. I find this annoying, irritating, but not surprising. Black lesbians are once again displaced in pop culture. The producers and writers behind the L Word have a right to do whatever they want it is their show. However, I think Pam Grier’s character should be a lesbian not a heterosexual woman. We need more representations of black lesbians in pop culture. Yes, Jennifer Beals plays a lesbian on the L Word but Jennifer Beals has never declared that she is a “part” of the black community. Beals is mixed race and she’s always kept a distance from the black race and black issues.

There is an eerie silence to the issue of racism and prejudice of the mainstream white gay media. Luther Vandross never attempted to reach out to the white gay press during his lifetime. Vandross simply did not trust the gay white media. Rosie O Donnell and Ellen Degeneres are white lesbians they are a part of the white gay American community. Queen Latifah is a black lesbian although she is popular she is not white. The white gay press also has a consistent racist paternalistic attitude to the issue of homophobia in the black community. Meanwhile, the white gay press ignores the bigotry within the white race. It will be interesting to see what Queen Latifah will do? The questions about Queen Latifah’s sexuality have even entered mainstream media publications. Everyone is just waiting to see when Queen Latifah will come out or not?

I think there might be a slight backlash against Queen Latifah if she came out as a lesbian. Some people may be shocked but there have been rumours of other high profile black female celebrities being lesbians as well.

There have never ever been a high profile A list black lesbian celebrity to come out of the closet yet. Although the former WNBA basketball star Sheryl Swoopes did come out a few years ago. The public was apathetic to Swoopes coming out announcement people just shrugged their shoulders. Swoopes was very brave in coming out of the closet. Swoopes is an Olympic gold medalist. However, since women’s basketball has a low profile in the American sports culture there was indifference to Swoopes coming out.

Nobody, was shocked when Swoopes declared she is a lesbian. Although it may not be politically correct to say this the WNBA has the public image of being a haven for lesbianism. There are a lot of stereotypes associated with women’s sports. Swoopes, coming out as a black lesbian didn’t exactly shatter these stereotypes. Although, it was commendable that Swoopes came out it just wasn’t a big story. Queen Latifah’s situation is entitely different she’s a well known A list Hollywood movie star. I think there is still the unknown and that’s probably the reason Queen Latifah hasn’t come out yet.