There aren’t many African American directors working in Hollywood and even fewer openly gay African American directors. However Lee Daniels, whose risen up the Tinsel Town ranks with Precious, The Paperboy and now the number one box office hit The Butler, has bucked that trend.
He recently spoke to Larry King about his movie and his experiences as a black gay man. Daniels suggests it still very tough being gay in the black community, with plenty of pressure on you not to be open about who you are.
“Black men can’t come out,” he says. “Why? Because you simply can’t do it. Your family says it. Your church says it. Your teachers say it. Your parents say it. Your friends say it. Your work says it. So you’re living on this ‘DL’ thing and you’re infecting black women. And its killing us. The black culture and the hispanic culture have a thing about [homosexuality].”
Take a look at a clip from the interview below. (Via Out)
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