Other Voices: Gay Performers on Race and Porn

Shortly after AVN Media Network decided to make a change to the 2018 GayVN Awards nominations in response to industry outcry, merging the categories of Best Ethnic Scene and Best Duo Scene, there was further consternation caused by verbiage that inadvertently suggested performers of color were a niche category in line with bears or kink fare. The team at AVN offers a sincere apology to all who were angered by this controversy and any missteps taken in explaining the original intent behind including the category. But eliminating the category would be meaningless without working toward a more inclusive environment for all participants. As part of that, AVN enlisted the assistance of Marc W., the creator of ChroniclesOfPorniaBlog.com, to reach out to performers and offer a platform to address their concerns—not only just about the awards process, but also the overall climate of the gay adult business and how to foster inclusive practices. Performers Stephan James, Cooper Dang, Jacen Zhu, Eli Lewis and Sean Zevran agreed to speak to AVN about issues they feel must be tackled at this critical juncture. Pictured above, top, are Zhu, Lewis and James; below, Zevran and Dang. (For more comments by Sean Zevran, see his essay on EFNIKS.com.) Below are their voices, views and concerns, as relayed to Marc W.: “When asked about the Best Ethnic Scene category the only way I can describe my feelings are Not Surprised! I think this is a feeling most people/performers of color experience on a day-to-day basis. I wasn’t outraged. I wasn’t upset. It was just another moment that I’ve experienced my entire life being a person of color. To me, this was just another instance of an industry that wasn’t made for us trying to be 'inclusive' without taking the proper steps to actually talk to the people it’s attempting to help. “When it comes to my overall feelings about the adult film industry there isn’t much to say. The industry is filled with over-inflated mainly white egos that have a perception of what 'beauty' is and they don’t stray from it. It is also filled with self-righteous mainly white performers who have nothing to say and hide in the shadows when it comes to social rights issues of people of color until they see a benefit for themselves in speaking out. “Lastly, I leave everyone with a motto that I’ve have to adapt throughout my life to try to make sense of the ignorance that goes on in people’s minds. ‘You can’t expect people to do better who don’t know better.’” —Stephan James (@stephanjamesxxx)   “To be honest, my initial reaction to the Best Ethnic Scene category was no reaction at all. I’m sure many performers did the same thing I did and just scrolled through to see if they were nominated for anything. I was unperturbed because most of my life I have always experienced issues with racial discrimination and sometimes do not even recognize it anymore. It was not until other performers initiated the conversation did I take a closer look at it. Upon reflection, I do think the category was tasteless and do believe all performers should be considered regardless of their ethnicity. I do not, however, think it was AVN’s intention to divide certain groups of people, but everyone makes mistakes. Their decision to pull that category shows that something was learned and for that I think is honorable. “As far as its alignment under 'fetish' I really have no comment on that. I personally believe it’s all a matter of perspective. I see being Asian as an advantage for me because it is an underrepresented ethnicity and I do not mind playing that card. “The industry has a lot of growing to do and I believe we are heading in the right direction. I have been blessed to work with some great studios and have met some great people through all of this. At the end of the day, we must understand that these studios are a business and if you were in their shoes you would want your business to be profitable. It is the audience that dictates a lot of what happens. Why are we putting blame on the studios when the viewers are the ones being racist about who they want to see?" —Cooper Dang (@cooperdang)   “If I say I was shocked it would be a lie. I would like to believe that we have solved racial issues within the industry. When I saw the awards list and came upon Best Ethnic Scene category, I laughed! Not because it's funny, but because I knew GayVN assumed they were doing the right thing. If we don't explain what inclusiveness looks like they'll create the narrative that makes them comfortable. “What was honestly more offensive was that those models of color in the Best Ethnic Scene were not nominated for Best Actor or Newcomer. When they claimed Best Ethnic Scene was to fit some sort of 'fetish' or 'niche' market, I laughed, again. This time because I knew that explanation was bogus. So, now being a model of color is a fetish?! This is the issue! When models of color do the work they get 'Oh. it's good for XYZ,' unlike other models that get an abundance of praise. We [POC], especially black men, are fighting to be identified beyond 'thug' and/or urban labeling. We aren't just those things! It's not to say we can't be those things, but would you assume that all white people are Trump-loving, Bible-thumping rednecks? Why can't POC, especially black men, be varied? “Why is it that black men are only sought after for the size of the penis? Why aren't there more black porn models that look like me? They're out there! But if we keep trying to propel this divided industry notion of 'mainstream' and 'urban' we won't get anywhere! Let's be serious, it's PORN. Unless it's an actual fetish it shouldn't be separate." —Jacen Zhu (@jacen_zhu)   “For a person of color and adult entertainer, it is not uncommon to have your work overlooked or even ignored by the industry at large. I am not fazed by the category of Best Ethnic Scene or having my line of films considered a 'fetish' because that is how we have shaped porn, as well as popular culture and media. That I am saying it does not surprise me does not mean I am not bothered by it; if anything I think the conversation needs to be continued and addressed for what it is: institutionalized racism. While I have not experienced direct racism in the industry, I believe it is commonly understood that the male gaze is limited to what we as a society epitomize as our ideal of masculine, male beauty: white, cis, men. “However, if we don't provide a platform for the 'niche' that is entertainers of color, especially because we are so few in number, I fear that our work will continue to be dismissed. The issue is bigger than porn consumption; it goes back to how we view gay men in our society. Anything that steers from the cookie cutter masculine, muscular Caucasian Adonis is fetishized and discriminated against. If we want to change the prejudice against porn performers of color, we must first address our own perceptions of male beauty and how that is not only detrimental to our consumption of media, but also to our interactions among ourselves—just no fats, fems, or Asians." —Eli Lewis (@elilewisxxx) “I don’t think GayVN had any ill intent behind having a Best Ethnic Scene awards category. On the contrary, I believe GayVN sought a way for gay porn actors of color to be recognized in an industry in which our talents often go unrecognized and under-appreciated. However, in so doing, what GayVN failed to take into account is that POC are too often fetishized and set apart from the mainstream. This feeling of ‘otherness’ is both dehumanizing and demoralizing. Unfortunately, I’m not sure what the best solution to this is right now. GayVN has since removed the category of Best Ethnic Scene. However, I now fear that it will become more challenging for actors of color to be recognized at all. As it stands, the playing field simply isn’t level, so we’ll have to set out to find more creative solutions to this problem.” —Sean Zevran (@seanzevran)