Re-Watchg Omar: Moha, Black Gayns and Shiftg Media Receptn Aled L. Mart, Jr. / Universy of Iowa – Flow

Contents:

• HOW THE WIRE’S OMAR LTLE CHALLENGED GAY STEREOTYP MEDIA
• RE-WATCHG OMAR: MOHA, BLACK GAYNS AND SHIFTG MEDIA RECEPTN ALED L. MART, JR. / UNIVERSY OF IOWA

HOW THE WIRE’S OMAR LTLE CHALLENGED GAY STEREOTYP MEDIA

But, of urse, that’s only part of Williams’ Simon, creator of the show, once told me that whenever someone asked him why he ma Omar gay, he would rpond: Why did we make the other 19 characters straight? It’s a brilliant unterpot, one that nonts whout antagonizg, while touchg on the theme of the first LGBTQ equaly march on Washgton, back 1979: We are clus the ‘ jt didn’t talk about for people to accept the premise that the most feared man one of Baltimore’s most dangero neighborhoods was openly gay, the actor portrayg him had to first breathe life to an asphyxiated versn of Black masculy.

Said was “as gay as was Black, not that was exclively eher. It took somethg like Hugh’ poem “Mother to Son” and assumed the le “life for me a’t been no crystal stair” was solely about the impact of racism and not homophobia or a batn of the ’s what ma Williams’ work on the show as transformative as was brgg the character of Omar to life, Williams rurrected aspects of Black queerns that had largely gone missg Black artistry outsi of theater and edians such as Mart Lawrence and Jamie Foxx dog drag on TV. Betiful boyiends who would appear naked bed wh him, makg impossible for viewers not to see his sexualy as part of his Omar on a h show, beg an out and proud gay Black man livg the Black muny, was on par wh seeg Will hang out wh Grace their all-whe one — an experience that Joe Bin once said ntributed to changg attus toward gay people.

QUESTION: Why did they (wrers) make Omar character gay? Oh, and he’s openly TVBefore Omar The Wire, cema and TV had a very rigid ia of what a gay man was.

RE-WATCHG OMAR: MOHA, BLACK GAYNS AND SHIFTG MEDIA RECEPTN ALED L. MART, JR. / UNIVERSY OF IOWA

Cultural juggernt shows of the 90s and early noughti were very specific how they viewed gay men, wh characters high-voiced, loose-limbed and the victim of homophobic jok.

It was a sublimally effective way of limg what gayns uld be seen as. That’s not to say the shows and characters were homophobic – they weren’t; they were jt bld to seeg gayns beyond a quirk or a predomant inty tra.

The characters were gay first, everythg else after.