Theses and Dissertations
Advisor
Thompson, Jospeh
Committee Member
Soares, Leigh
Committee Member
Hersey, Mark D.
Committee Member
Hui, Alexandra
Date of Degree
5-10-2024
Original embargo terms
Embargo 2 years
Document Type
Dissertation - Open Access
Major
History
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D)
College
College of Arts and Sciences
Department
Department of History
Abstract
“‘Freakish Man’: sexual blues, sacred beliefs, and the transformation of Black queer identity, 1870-1959” investigates how queer Black men expressed their gender and sexual identities. It follows how, from the days of Reconstruction to the modern civil rights movement, queer Black men used various aspects of Black culture—particularly the blues, working-class social culture, and charismatic religion—to form identities that departed from dominant Black and white norms. The “freakish man” emerged as queer Black men cultivated legible, subversive gender and sexual identities in sacred and secular spaces of working-class Black culture that prioritized masculine heterosexuality. Though queer Black men were briefly successful in using their status as taboo but enticing social figures to enter the center of Black culture, they were gradually marginalized by the Black community as it moved towards inclusion into mainstream American society.
Recommended Citation
Sivels, Xavier E., "“Freakish Man”: sexual blues, sacred beliefs, and the transformation of Black queer identity, 1870-1957." (2024). Theses and Dissertations. 6175.
https://scholarsjunction.msstate.edu/td/6175