''On the Down Low: A Journey Into the Lives of Straight Black Men Who Sleep with Men'' is a 2004
New York Times Bestselling
''The New York Times'' Best Seller list is widely considered the preeminent list of best-selling books in the United States. John Bear, ''The #1 New York Times Best Seller: intriguing facts about the 484 books that have been #1 New York Times ...
non-fiction book by
J. L. King
J.L. King is a New York Times best selling author, publisher, and HIV/STD activist. Subjects of his work include the nature of human behavior, effects of health issues on minorities, and sexual orientation and its impact on schools. King's first ...
. The book was released in hardback on April 14, 2004, through
Broadway Books
Broadway Books, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a Division of Random House, Inc., released its first list in Fall, 1996. Broadway was founded in 1995 as a unit of Bantam Doubleday Dell a unit of Bertelsmann. Bertelsmann acquired Rando ...
and details the sexual lives of
African-American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...
men who are on the "
down low" or having sex with men while posing or identifying as heterosexual. When the book was initially released, King denied claims that he was
gay in both the book and in the media, but later
confirmed
In Christian denominations that practice infant baptism, confirmation is seen as the sealing of the covenant created in baptism. Those being confirmed are known as confirmands. For adults, it is an affirmation of belief. It involves laying on ...
that he was gay in 2010.
Synopsis
In the book King discusses the subject of African-American men who claim to be or otherwise consider themselves to be
heterosexual, but hold secret sexual encounters with other men. The men give an outward appearance of only being heterosexual and will hold long-term relationships with women without informing the women or anyone else that they are having encounters, some of which are
unprotected, with other men. King also discusses his own personal experience with living on the "down low", as well as what he perceives as potential risks and dangers that some forms of the lifestyle can bring.
Reception
Critical reception for ''On the Down Low'' was mostly positive, with
Booklist calling the book "a revealing look at an important social and health issue". Robert Burns, director of Brother to Brother, criticized the book, stating that it "perpetuates stereotypes" and that the down low culture was "more complex" and "doesn't just exist the way (King) explained it".
''On the Up and Up''
In 2005 King's ex-wife Brenda Stone Browder published ''On the Up and Up'', a non-fiction book that was described as both a "survival guide" and a biography of Browder's life before and after discovering King's activities.
See also
* ''
Beyond the Down Low
''Beyond the Down Low: Sex, Lies and Denial in Black America'' is a 2005 nonfiction book by Keith Boykin.
This book of essays analyzes the validity of the down low phenomenon, first publicized by J. L. King in his book ''On the Down Low''. It co ...
''
General:
*
African-American culture and sexual orientation
References
{{reflist, 2
External links
J. L. King official site
LGBT African-American culture
African-American literature
Non-fiction books about same-sex sexuality
Broadway Books books
2004 non-fiction books