Tuesday, January 08, 2008

Log Cabin Republicans, Take Note: The Initiation of Gay Men


University of Michigan Professor David Halperin. Don't look too close--he might make you gay!

Thanks to Kels for this tip:

The University of Michigan is offering a course this spring called "How to be Gay: Male Homosexuality and Initiation."

Promising to be both an examination of and an introduction to the initiation process itself, the course:

In particular, we will examine a number of cultural artifacts and activities that seem to play a prominent role in learning how to be gay: Hollywood movies, grand opera, Broadway musicals, and other works of classical and popular music, as well as camp, diva-worship, drag, muscle culture, taste, style, and political activism.


The instructor, David Halperin, has been subject to lots of criticism and even proposed legislation in Michigan to end his course by way of forcing the state to "scrutinize" funding for public universities. This article, from the University of Michigan Michigan Daily talks about the controversy.

Obviously, you can't teach someone how to be gay. But you can teach them to participate in gay life effectively. Log Cabin Republicans, take note. Perhaps Halperin could be the keynote speaker at your annual convention.

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