Stereotypes of Blacks?: "Noah's Arc: Jumping the Broom"

By now, I am sure most gay men, regardless of color, unless one was too caught up in the current presidential race (and truly, is everyone doing that?), know of the opening of the silver screen adaptation of cable Logo's series, "Noah's Arc." Apparently, the film's initial screenings in New York, Atlanta, and Washington, D.C. had almost virtual sold outs and grossed about $30,000 per screening.

The drama (and that word is so applicable here!) of four young African-American men and their loved ones, "Noah's Arc" on the tube has ran two seasons and captured legions of fans. Why? Well, the series has failed romances, suggestive sex, trendy fashion, upbeat music, and more drama that all the episodes of "Dallas" you can put together. None of this troubles me, not even the blatant consumerism. But what does trouble me is the feeding and hyping of the stereotypes of gay black men. When you have one character who is wholly effeminate but highly romantic, another a naive geek, then another unrepentantly promiscuous (and conveniently super-butch), and oh let's not forget, another effeminate, fat man who can crack jokes at the drop of the hat, stereotypes come to mind. The only difference is that this time we have black representation of these stereotypes--how refreshing.