Photo Project Shines Light on Toxic Masculinity in POC Communities

We can’t escape hearing messages these days about how Black and POC folks, especially Black men, are treated, and nor should we. It’s important to realize that Black and POC men are often in danger just walking down the street or being in the wrong place at the wrong time. But, one thing that many outside the Black community don’t realize about being a Black man is that there is this constant pressure to act masculine, “tough,” or “hard.” Christina Pittaluga wants to change all that.

“I joined the Black Actors Guild as an intern when I was a junior in high school, and they kind of introduced me to a lot of other things that made me realize that it wasn’t just theatre I was interested in, that I do a lot of different things. I’ve always been interested in fashion and all kinds of things of that nature, so I’ve just kind of taken my knowledge from all the different pieces of art and learned, and I’m just like this multimedia artist, director, actor now,” explains Pittaluga, creative director of the Black Actor’s Guild here in Denver.

The Black Actor’s Guild has a lot on its plate, between an in-person and livestreamed, socially distanced performance this August and constant, creative output of art and writing projects. But, Pittaluga had an itch she wanted to scratch when it came to highlighting male femininity and softness within the Black and POC community, so “Are We Still Cool?” was born.

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“A lot of times, Black men are expected not to show any emotion at all,” she explains. “When they go through a breakup, it’s weird if they’re crying and eating ice cream and going through all these feelings and gaining weight from being sad. All those things are just not normalized, so I’ve always wondered about that because I’ve had men of color in my life, and I love them so deeply that it’s just always been something in the back of my head.”

Mulling on those ideas, combined with her love of art and research, became the catalyst for kicking off this project. She also wanted to offer something besides the archetypes we still see too much regarding Black men: the sad man, the downtrodden, the overly strong sex symbol. She was ready for new representation.

Soon after coming up with the idea, she set to work. Pittaluga herself is queer, as was the rest of the team she worked with, but the idea wasn’t to only feature queer men in the shoot or to market just to the LGBTQ community. She wanted to show straight men, especially straight, men of color, that showing love or affection is OK.

“It was really important for there to be a good amount of straight, cis, men of color because those are the ones who are oftentimes will say, ‘Oh, that’s gay,’ you know, even some gay men who are more so ‘masculine’ will say that, or have a problem getting in touch with their feminine side, so it was really about marrying together queer and straight folks. It was about being able to coexist in this space of safety and of, like, just loving, kind, tender energy.”

She was also intentional about the outfits she picked, pairing things like dental grills and white, “wife-beater” tanks with floral patterns, rhinestones, and gauze. The idea was to demystify and destigmatize Black maleness, but also soften it through the gaze of this new project. And it was a representation that turned out to be really timely and really needed.

“Literally every, single man I talked to talked about how they’ve been discriminated against and how people seem scared of them or feel like they have to act a certain way to not be intimidating. They also feel like they have to act a certain way to be men, and that’s not the case at all; they are fully capable of being soft beings. It’s OK for them to say to each other, ‘You look beautiful today,’ instead of ‘You’ve got mad swag.’

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“Everything is a spectrum, and I really, really would love for the Black and Brown communities to understand that, because we’ve been so pressured into feeling certain ways and feeling like the men have to be the breadwinners and, like, work super hard and not show emotion; the women cry and they stay home and they cook, and that’s across everywhere, not just the POC communities,” she continues.

However, it hasn’t been all love, even from the Black and POC community. Pittaluga has noticed a lot of older, Black men and women responding negatively to seeing Black men portrayed as feminine, proving the exact point she is trying to make. At first, the Black Actor’s Guild was deleting negative comments the art received, but Pittaluga wants those to stay up.

“The idea is to start a conversation,” she says. “I hope that more queer people of color such as myself get these opportunities to make their voices heard and to talk about topics that are risky, or that kind of get thrown under the table. The fact that we can make people realize that Black Lives Matter because they see a Black man who’s soft and gentle and realize he’s a person, that’s huge. I want to continue the conversation, break down stigmas, and keep spreading love because you never know, you never know what someone’s going through, especially a person of color because we carry burdens so well. I want to continue to make space.”

For more info on the installation, check it out at Coffee at the Point this month or visit blackactorsguild.org.  

Creative Director:
Christina Pittaluga

Photographers and Editors: The Amazing Michael Board II and Nadiya Jackson

For models and all contributors, visit blackactorsguild.org.

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Come See Hype Man by Black Actor’s Guild

Hype man is a timely play by Idris Goodwin that follows a white rapper, his Black hype man, and their female DJ. In the wake of a police shooting, they have disagreements on how they should make a statement about police brutality and the unjust killing of another young, Black man.

This play will be live-streamed and performed in-house with social distancing and mask requirement at The Peoples Building in Aurora August 7 through September 16 produced by The Black Actors Guild and directed by Kevin Quinn Marchman.

Purchase virtual or live tickets at BlackActorsGuild.org