Racializing The Fag

The word “fag” can mean many things depending on who is saying it and who it is directed at. In River High the term had a general definition of weakness and lack of masculinity. The term was racialized, meaning different races (mainly the white males and the African American males) used it in various ways (this also overlaps with cultures). The African American boys did not use it nearly as frequently as the white boys. In fact, they teased each other for being white more often then for being a fag. In America, African American males are hypersexualized, making white males more feminine in comparison. In some ways, the African American kids calling each other white was equivalent to the white kids calling each other fag.

The first main difference in meaning of the word fag was related to dancing. For the African American kids, dancing illustrated that the person was part of a cultural community -- the hip-hop community and identity. Really good dancers were also very popular. Dancing was a way of communicating. The boys would teach each other moves, show off a little, and also have fun dancing together. The white boys could only pay attention to the physical contact of males with other males, indicating a lack of masculinity.

The second difference was regarding the way males treated their appearance. By paying attention to clothing and carefully putting yourself together is a large part of relating to the hip-hop identity for African Americans. Pascoe notes it as the “cool pose” – appearance as being included in a cultural group, racial group, and also class status. The white boys (also more generally of a high economic status) are not supposed to care one bit how they look, otherwise they would fall into the fag position. Looking dirty was their choice, and coming from a lower class background is not something you would want to represent and be proud of.

The way the white boys and the African American boys interacted with one another and expressed themselves came from the things they learned growing up, which are largely based on their racial and cultural backgrounds, class status, and the environment they grew up in.