Red Jordan Arobateau (November 15, 1943 – November 25, 2021) was an American author, playwright, poet and painter. Largely
self-publishing
Self-publishing is the publication of media by its author at their own cost, without the involvement of a publisher. The term usually refers to written media, such as books and magazines, either as an ebook or as a physical copy using POD (pr ...
over 80 literary works—often with
autofiction
In literary criticism, autofiction is a form of fictionalized autobiography.
Autofiction combines two mutually inconsistent narrative forms, namely autobiography and fiction. An author may decide to recount their life in the third person, to mod ...
al elements—Arobateau was one of the most prolific writers of
street lit, and a proponent of transgender and
lesbian erotica
Lesbian erotica deals with depictions in the visual arts of lesbianism, which is the expression of female-on-female sexuality. Lesbianism has been a theme in erotic art since at least the time of Culture of ancient Rome, ancient Rome, and many ...
.
Born and raised in
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
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, coordinates =
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, subdivision_name ...
, Arobateau moved to
San Francisco
San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...
in adulthood because of its
LGBTQ+ friendly culture, where he
transitioned and became a
trans man
A trans man is a man who was assigned female at birth. The label of transgender man is not always interchangeable with that of transsexual man, although the two labels are often used in this way. ''Transgender'' is an umbrella term that incl ...
. Most
indie
Indie is a short form of "independence" or "independent"; it may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
Gaming
*Independent video game development, video games created without financial backing from large companies
*Indie game, any game (board ...
and
LGBTQ+
' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity.
The LGBT term is ...
publishing houses rejected his manuscripts. Arobateau worked odd jobs to finance his self-publications, and sold hand-stapled books in
lesbian bar
A lesbian bar (sometimes called a "women's bar") is a drinking establishment that caters exclusively or predominantly to lesbian women. While often conflated, the lesbian bar has a history distinct from that of the gay bar.
Significance
Lesb ...
s,
feminist bookstore
Feminist bookstores sell material relating to women's issues, gender, and sexuality. These stores served as some of the earliest open spaces for feminist community building and organizing.
Prior to the spread of feminist bookstores, bookselling ...
s and on the
streets
Streets is the plural of street, a type of road.
Streets or The Streets may also refer to: Music
* Streets (band), a rock band fronted by Kansas vocalist Steve Walsh
* ''Streets'' (punk album), a 1977 compilation album of various early UK punk ba ...
. He spent most of his adult life in
poverty
Poverty is the state of having few material possessions or little income. Poverty can have diverse social, economic, and political causes and effects. When evaluating poverty in ...
. Arobateau appeared in documentaries such as ''
Before Stonewall
''Before Stonewall: The Making of a Gay and Lesbian Community '' is a 1984 American documentary film about the LGBT community prior to the 1969 Stonewall riots. It was narrated by author Rita Mae Brown, directed by Greta Schiller, co-directed by ...
'' (1984) and his writings were intermittently published in anthologies like ''
Daughters of Africa
''Daughters of Africa: An International Anthology of Words and Writings by Women of African Descent from the Ancient Egyptian to the Present'' is a compilation of orature and literature by more than 200 women from Africa and the African diaspora, ...
'' (1992).
Arobateau's prose contained themes of
butch lesbians
Butch is most often a term used to describe a lesbian, or sometimes a bisexual woman, who exhibits a masculine identity.
Since the lesbian subculture of 1940s America, "butch" has been present as a way for lesbians to circumvent traditional ...
,
transsexuality
Transsexual people experience a gender identity that is inconsistent with their assigned sex, and desire to permanently transition to the sex or gender with which they identify, usually seeking medical assistance (including sex reassignment ...
,
streetlife,
philosophy
Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. Some ...
,
social issue
A social issue is a problem that affects many people within a society. It is a group of common problems in present-day society and ones that many people strive to solve. It is often the consequence of factors extending beyond an individual's cont ...
s and
social justice
Social justice is justice in terms of the distribution of wealth, opportunities, and privileges within a society. In Western and Asian cultures, the concept of social justice has often referred to the process of ensuring that individuals fu ...
, and his poetry was
spiritual and
religious
Religion is usually defined as a social system, social-cultural system of designated religious behaviour, behaviors and practices, morality, morals, beliefs, worldviews, religious text, texts, sacred site, sanctified places, prophecy, prophecie ...
. Critical reception was mixed; his
progressive
Progressive may refer to:
Politics
* Progressivism, a political philosophy in support of social reform
** Progressivism in the United States, the political philosophy in the American context
* Progressive realism, an American foreign policy par ...
characters and
realist storylines received praise, while criticism was directed at his unrefined
writing style
In literature, writing style is the manner of expressing thought in language characteristic of an individual, period, school, or nation. As Bryan Ray notes, however, style is a broader concern, one that can describe "readers' relationships with, t ...
. The life and works of Arobateau have been
analyzed in various areas of
social research
Social research is a research conducted by social scientists following a systematic plan. Social research methodologies can be classified as quantitative and qualitative.
* Quantitative designs approach social phenomena through quantifiable ...
, including
sociology of literature
The sociology of literature is a subfield of the sociology of culture. It studies the social production of literature and its social implications. A notable example is Pierre Bourdieu's 1992 ''Les Règles de L'Art: Genèse et Structure du Champ ...
,
transgender studies
Transgender studies, also called trans studies or trans* studies, is an interdisciplinary field of academic research dedicated to the study of gender identity, gender expression, and gender embodiment, as well as to the study of various issues of ...
,
feminist theory
Feminist theory is the extension of feminism into theoretical, fictional, or philosophical discourse. It aims to understand the nature of gender inequality. It examines women's and men's social roles, experiences, interests, chores, and feminist ...
,
identity
Identity may refer to:
* Identity document
* Identity (philosophy)
* Identity (social science)
* Identity (mathematics)
Arts and entertainment Film and television
* ''Identity'' (1987 film), an Iranian film
* ''Identity'' (2003 film), ...
and
black studies. An early figure in the history and development of street lit, Arobateau inspired writers
Ann Allen Shockley
Ann Allen Shockley (born June 21, 1927) is an American journalist and author, specialising in themes of interracial lesbian love, especially the plight of black lesbians living under what she views as the ‘triple oppression’ of racism, sexism ...
and
Michelle Tea
Michelle Tea (born Michelle Tomasik, 1971) is an American author, poet, and literary arts organizer whose autobiographical works explore queer culture, feminism, race, class, sex work, and other topics. She is originally from Chelsea, Massachuset ...
.
Life
Red Jordan Arobateau was born on November 15, 1943, in
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
, image_map =
, map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago
, coordinates =
, coordinates_footnotes =
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name ...
. He was the only child of a Christian
Honduran immigrant father and a mother of
African American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
descent. He was raised as a female.
Arobateau started writing when he was 13 to escape a
turbulent home life;
his mother was
abusive
Abuse is the improper usage or treatment of a thing, often to unfairly or improperly gain benefit. Abuse can come in many forms, such as: physical or verbal maltreatment, injury, assault, violation, rape, unjust practices, crimes, or other t ...
towards him.
When he was 15, he read a
pulp magazine
Pulp magazines (also referred to as "the pulps") were inexpensive fiction magazines that were published from 1896 to the late 1950s. The term "pulp" derives from the cheap wood pulp paper on which the magazines were printed. In contrast, magazine ...
that had a brief mention of a lesbian character – feeling seen for the first time, he began to identify as a
butch lesbian
Butch is most often a term used to describe a lesbian, or sometimes a bisexual woman, who exhibits a masculine identity.
Since the lesbian subculture of 1940s America, "butch" has been present as a way for lesbians to circumvent traditional ...
.
Arobateau spent time on the streets, in
queer areas and
dive bar
A dive bar is typically a small, unglamorous, eclectic, old-style drinking establishment with inexpensive drinks; it may feature dim lighting, shabby or dated decor, neon beer signs, packaged beer sales, cash-only service, and a local clientele. ...
s, and developed
alcoholism in adolescence.
His parents divorced when he was 17 and he moved with his father.
Arobateau enrolled in a college but left after a year, stating that it was too much a "social affair".
Arobateau's birth name had been "Suzanne Ilsa Robateau". He took "Jordan" from his grandmother's last name for its
religious connotations and relations to his
African-American heritage. "Arobateau" was based on his given surname with an "A" added to the original form. After he got his hair dyed red, he conceived that the color represented "his attention to passion and eroticism as a writer";
thus he adopted "Red" as his first name.
Citing
persecutory
Persecution is the systematic mistreatment of an individual or group by another individual or group. The most common forms are religious persecution, racism, and political persecution, though there is naturally some overlap between these terms ...
policies of then-mayor
Richard J. Daley
Richard Joseph Daley (May 15, 1902 – December 20, 1976) was an American politician who served as the Mayor of Chicago from 1955 and the chairman of the Cook County Democratic Party Central Committee from 1953 until his death. He has been cal ...
, Arobateau decided to move out of Chicago.
He shifted to
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
before moving to
San Francisco
San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...
in 1967—where he spent the rest of his life—largely because of its
LGBTQ+ friendly culture.
In 1969, Arobateau helped establish
Gay Women's Liberation, an organization dedicated to
lesbian feminist
Lesbian feminism is a cultural movement and critical perspective that encourages women to focus their efforts, attentions, relationships, and activities towards their fellow women rather than men, and often advocates lesbianism as the logica ...
activism. He taught self-defense and karate to its members.
Formerly an
atheist
Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no ...
, Arobateau became a Christian and joined the
Metropolitan Community Church
The Metropolitan Community Church (MCC), also known as the Universal Fellowship of Metropolitan Community Churches (UFMCC), is an international LGBT-affirming mainline Protestant Christian denomination. There are 222 member congregations in 37 ...
after the death of his father in 1973. He operated a
storefront church
A storefront church is a church, usually in the North American context of the United States, and to a much lesser extent, Canada, that is housed in a storefront or strip mall building that formerly had a commercial purpose.
Often, the interior o ...
where he would preach
the gospel
The gospel or good news is a theological concept in several religions. In the historical Roman imperial cult and today in Christianity, the gospel is a message about salvation by a divine figure, a savior, who has brought peace or other benefits ...
.
His
conversion
Conversion or convert may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
* "Conversion" (''Doctor Who'' audio), an episode of the audio drama ''Cyberman''
* "Conversion" (''Stargate Atlantis''), an episode of the television series
* "The Conversion" ...
alienated some of his friends who were concerned about the social and political implications of a rise in
Christian fundamentalism
Christian fundamentalism, also known as fundamental Christianity or fundamentalist Christianity, is a religious movement emphasizing biblical literalism. In its modern form, it began in the late 19th and early 20th centuries among British and ...
across
the country
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...
. Arobateau
used drugs until his hospitalization, after which he had become
clean.
Arobateau began
self-publishing
Self-publishing is the publication of media by its author at their own cost, without the involvement of a publisher. The term usually refers to written media, such as books and magazines, either as an ebook or as a physical copy using POD (pr ...
in the 1970s, with ''The Bars Across Heaven'' (1975) being his first novel.
He worked different jobs to fund each publication, and had experience working as an office assistant, factory worker, karate teacher, nurse's aide, cashier and cook.
Arobateau could write a novel in a month; he would then make photocopies and staple the manuscript together with a book cover.
Relying
on the grapevine, Arobateau sold his works in off the record lesbian channels, and limited physical distribution of his copies to
lesbian bar
A lesbian bar (sometimes called a "women's bar") is a drinking establishment that caters exclusively or predominantly to lesbian women. While often conflated, the lesbian bar has a history distinct from that of the gay bar.
Significance
Lesb ...
s,
feminist bookstore
Feminist bookstores sell material relating to women's issues, gender, and sexuality. These stores served as some of the earliest open spaces for feminist community building and organizing.
Prior to the spread of feminist bookstores, bookselling ...
s and the
streets
Streets is the plural of street, a type of road.
Streets or The Streets may also refer to: Music
* Streets (band), a rock band fronted by Kansas vocalist Steve Walsh
* ''Streets'' (punk album), a 1977 compilation album of various early UK punk ba ...
.
Prior to the publication of his short story "Suzie Q" in poet
Judy Grahn
Judy Grahn (born July 28, 1940) is an American poet and author.
Inspired by her experiences of disenfranchisement as a butch lesbian, she became a feminist poet, highly-regarded in underground circles before achieving public fame. A major influe ...
's anthology ''True to Life Adventure Stories'' (1978), every
indie
Indie is a short form of "independence" or "independent"; it may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
Gaming
*Independent video game development, video games created without financial backing from large companies
*Indie game, any game (board ...
and
LGBTQ+
' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity.
The LGBT term is ...
publisher Arobateau approached had refused to publish his work.
Arobateau attributed those refusals to the prominence of sexual content in his works, which he claimed was relatively unacceptable even for feminist and LGBTQ+ publishers of the time.
His writings were occasionally published through publications like ''
On Our Backs
''On Our Backs'' was the first women-run erotica magazine and the first magazine to feature lesbian erotica for a lesbian audience in the United States. It ran from 1984 to 2006.
Origin
The magazine was first published in 1984 by Debi Sundahl ...
'', although he remained mostly self-published throughout his life.
By and large, Arobateau lived his adult life in
poverty
Poverty is the state of having few material possessions or little income. Poverty can have diverse social, economic, and political causes and effects. When evaluating poverty in ...
and on
unemployment benefits
Unemployment benefits, also called unemployment insurance, unemployment payment, unemployment compensation, or simply unemployment, are payments made by authorized bodies to unemployment, unemployed people. In the United States, benefits are fun ...
.
In 1984, Arobateau appeared in
Greta Schiller
Greta Schiller is an American film director and producer, best known for the 1984 documentary '' Before Stonewall: The Making of a Gay and Lesbian Community''.
Personal life
Schiller received the US/UK Fulbright Arts Fellowship in Film and grants ...
's ''
Before Stonewall
''Before Stonewall: The Making of a Gay and Lesbian Community '' is a 1984 American documentary film about the LGBT community prior to the 1969 Stonewall riots. It was narrated by author Rita Mae Brown, directed by Greta Schiller, co-directed by ...
'', where they discussed his life and challenges before the
Stonewall riots
The Stonewall riots (also known as the Stonewall uprising, Stonewall rebellion, or simply Stonewall) were a series of spontaneous protests by members of the gay community in response to a police raid that began in the early morning hours of Ju ...
of 1969. He went on an 11-year hiatus before authoring ''Lucy & Mickey'' in the 1990s.
Around that time, Arobateau
transitioned his gender, underwent a
sex reassignment surgery
Gender-affirming surgery (GAS) is a surgical procedure, or series of procedures, that alters a transgender or transsexual person's physical appearance and sexual characteristics to resemble those associated with their identified gender, and alle ...
and began to identify as a
trans man
A trans man is a man who was assigned female at birth. The label of transgender man is not always interchangeable with that of transsexual man, although the two labels are often used in this way. ''Transgender'' is an umbrella term that incl ...
.
Arobateau's "Nobody's People"—an essay about
social alienation
Social alienation is a person's feeling of disconnection from a group whether friends, family, or wider society to which the individual has an affinity. Such alienation has been described as "a condition in social relationships reflected by (1) ...
felt by people of
mixed-race heritage, including himself—was a part of ''
Daughters of Africa
''Daughters of Africa: An International Anthology of Words and Writings by Women of African Descent from the Ancient Egyptian to the Present'' is a compilation of orature and literature by more than 200 women from Africa and the African diaspora, ...
'' (1992), edited by
Margaret Busby
Margaret Yvonne Busby, , Hon. FRSL (born 1944), also known as Nana Akua Ackon, is a Ghanaian-born publisher, editor, writer and broadcaster, resident in the UK. She was Britain's youngest and first black female book publisherJazzmine Breary"Let' ...
. Arobateau wrote an erotic lesbian
retelling of "
The Shoes That Were Danced to Pieces
"The Twelve Dancing Princesses" (or "The Worn-Out Dancing Shoes" or "The Shoes that were Danced to Pieces") (german: Die zertanzten Schuhe) is a German fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm and published in ''Grimm's Fairy Tales'' in 1815 ( ...
" for
Michael Thomas Ford
Michael Thomas Ford (born October 1, 1968) is an American author of primarily gay-themed literature. He is best known for his "My Queer Life" series of humorous essay collections and for his award-winning novels ''Last Summer'', ''Looking for It ...
's ''
Once Upon a Time: Erotic Fairy Tales for Women'' in 1996.
Excerpts from his books have been a part of several anthologies, including ''Cum With Me Lucy'' in ''Off the Rag'' (1996) by
Lee Lynch and Akia Woods,
''Lay Lady Lay'' in ''Best Lesbian Erotica 1997'' by
Jewelle Gomez
Jewelle Gomez (born September 11, 1948) is an American author, poet, critic and playwright. She lived in New York City for 22 years, working in public television, theater, as well as philanthropy, before relocating to the West Coast. Her writing ...
and
Tristan Taormino
Tristan Taormino (born May 9, 1971) is an American feminist author, columnist, sex educator, activist, editor, speaker, radio host, and pornographic film director. She is most recently known for her book ''Opening Up: A Guide to Creating and Susta ...
,
and ''The Nearness Of You/Sorrow Of The Madonna'' in ''Hot & Bothered'' (1998) by
Karen X. Tulchinsky.
Arobateau experienced
homelessness
Homelessness or houselessness – also known as a state of being unhoused or unsheltered – is the condition of lacking stable, safe, and adequate housing. People can be categorized as homeless if they are:
* living on the streets, also kn ...
"for a while" until moving in with his then-wife in
Oakland
Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third largest city overall in the Bay A ...
. After getting divorced in 2003, he shifted back to San Francisco.
Arobateau's books were not circulated in Canada until at least 2004 due to tight
pornography laws in the country that bar the entry of "obscene material".
In 2007, Arobateau appeared in Martin Rawlings-Fein's ''Clocked: An Oral History'', where he gave personal anecdotes in context of the history of the
transgender rights movement
The transgender rights movement is a movement to promote the legal status of transgender people and to eliminate discrimination and violence against transgender people regarding housing, employment, public accommodations, education, and health c ...
.
By that year, he had published 80 novels, plays, collection of short stories and poetry.
Tom Waddell Health Center in
Tenderloin, San Francisco
The Tenderloin is a neighborhood in downtown San Francisco, in the flatlands on the southern slope of Nob Hill, situated between the Union Square shopping district to the northeast and the Civic Center office district to the southwest. It encom ...
was the first primary care clinic in the US to offer
transgender health care
Transgender health care, also known as gender-affirming care, includes the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of physical and mental health conditions, as well as sex reassignment therapies, for transgender individuals.Gorton N, Grubb HM (2014) ...
services; Arobateau was one of 12 patients to feature in its 2012 documentary, ''Transgender Tuesdays: A Clinic in the Tenderloin'' by Mark Freeman and Nathaniel Walters. He also presented the film at the 2012
Transgender Summit.
As of 2013, Arobateau had painted 60 paintings.
He was a part of
FTM International FTM International is the oldest organization for trans men in the United States. Founded by Lou Sullivan in 1986, it is dedicated to the provision of resources for FTM individuals along with creating a visible community.
History
The organization ...
,
and lived with his partner Dalila Jasmin, a
belly dancer
Belly dance (Egyptian Arabic: رقص بلدي, translated: Dance of the Country/Folk Dance, romanized: Raks/Raas Baladi) is a dance that originates in Egypt. It features movements of the hips and torso. It has evolved to take many different f ...
who often danced at Arobateau's book readings.
In 2019, Arobateau became the first person to move into
Marcy Adelman and Jeanette Gurevitch Community on
95 Laguna, an
LGBTQ+ friendly senior housing by
Openhouse and
Mercy Housing.
He died on November 25, 2021 in San Francisco, aged 78; his
memorial service
A funeral is a ceremony connected with the final disposition of a corpse, such as a burial or cremation, with the attendant observances. Funerary customs comprise the complex of beliefs and practices used by a culture to remember and respect th ...
was conducted at
Grace Cathedral on March 27, 2022.
Themes
Arobateau often depicted his experiences and those of people in his life through
autofiction
In literary criticism, autofiction is a form of fictionalized autobiography.
Autofiction combines two mutually inconsistent narrative forms, namely autobiography and fiction. An author may decide to recount their life in the third person, to mod ...
,
and his prose focused on themes of
butch and femme lesbians,
transgender
A transgender (often abbreviated as trans) person is someone whose gender identity or gender expression does not correspond with their sex assigned at birth. Many transgender people experience dysphoria, which they seek to alleviate through tr ...
people,
transsexuality
Transsexual people experience a gender identity that is inconsistent with their assigned sex, and desire to permanently transition to the sex or gender with which they identify, usually seeking medical assistance (including sex reassignment ...
and
sex work
Sex work is "the exchange of sexual services, performances, or products for material compensation. It includes activities of direct physical contact between buyers and sellers as well as indirect sexual stimulation". Sex work only refers to volunt ...
.
Arobateau wrote about "sexual activities of a human being in any given day to the same extent
e describedtheir other aspects", hence a significant portion of his writings explored
sexuality
Human sexuality is the way people experience and express themselves sexually. This involves biological, psychological, physical, erotic, emotional, social, or spiritual feelings and behaviors. Because it is a broad term, which has varied ...
and
sexual activities
Human sexual activity, human sexual practice or human sexual behaviour is the manner in which humans experience and express their sexuality. People engage in a variety of sexual acts, ranging from activities done alone (e.g., masturbation) t ...
of their characters.
Arobateau's stories were set
on the streets, in
ghetto
A ghetto, often called ''the'' ghetto, is a part of a city in which members of a minority group live, especially as a result of political, social, legal, environmental or economic pressure. Ghettos are often known for being more impoverished t ...
s and poverty. They portrayed
realities
Reality is the sum or aggregate of all that is real or existent within a system, as opposed to that which is only imaginary. The term is also used to refer to the ontological status of things, indicating their existence. In physical terms, rea ...
of those lives, which differed from works of other black women writers of the time who generally wrote idealistic fiction and academic non-fiction.
Arobateau largely wrote his characters to
communicate with themselves, and he frequently switched between
first- and
third-person narrators; the third-person narrator—represented in the text by sentimental and sympathetic positions—was sometimes himself, and it advocated for a rise in emotional intensity, such as through
behavior known to be risky.
In his works, drug use was used as a means to cope as well as a device to amplify various
sensation
Sensation (psychology) refers to the processing of the senses by the sensory system.
Sensation or sensations may also refer to:
In arts and entertainment In literature
*Sensation (fiction), a fiction writing mode
*Sensation novel, a British ...
s and
perception
Perception () is the organization, identification, and interpretation of sensory information in order to represent and understand the presented information or environment. All perception involves signals that go through the nervous system ...
s.
Based on Arobateau's personal experiences, struggles of a mixed-racial identity often formed the basis of his various fictional stories.
Arobateau's content reflected the
social isolation
Social isolation is a state of complete or near-complete lack of contact between an individual and society. It differs from loneliness, which reflects temporary and involuntary lack of contact with other humans in the world. Social isolation c ...
he endured because of growing up "poor, black, and gay", and how he developed
maladaptive coping mechanisms as a result. His characters challenged
heteronormative
Heteronormativity is the concept that heterosexuality is the preferred or normal mode of sexual orientation. It assumes the gender binary (i.e., that there are only two distinct, opposite genders) and that sexual and marital relations are most f ...
constructs of the society, and his storylines portrayed the
disfranchisement
Disfranchisement, also called disenfranchisement, or voter disqualification is the restriction of suffrage (the right to vote) of a person or group of people, or a practice that has the effect of preventing a person exercising the right to vote. D ...
and
social marginalization of non-heteronormative characters.
Motifs of contemporary
social justice
Social justice is justice in terms of the distribution of wealth, opportunities, and privileges within a society. In Western and Asian cultures, the concept of social justice has often referred to the process of ensuring that individuals fu ...
topics such as
black feminism
Black feminism is a philosophy that centers on the idea that "Black women are inherently valuable, that lack women'sliberation is a necessity not as an adjunct to somebody else's but because our need as human persons for autonomy."
Race, gen ...
,
women's liberation movement
The women's liberation movement (WLM) was a political alignment of women and feminist intellectualism that emerged in the late 1960s and continued into the 1980s primarily in the industrialized nations of the Western world, which effected great ...
and different
LGBTQ+ movements would sometimes serve as backdrops for his plots.
His works conveyed
criticism of capitalism
Criticism of capitalism ranges from expressing disagreement with the principles of capitalism in its entirety to expressing disagreement with particular outcomes of capitalism.
Criticism of capitalism comes from various political and philoso ...
, opposition of
Western embodiment and
historical revisionism
In historiography, historical revisionism is the reinterpretation of a historical account. It usually involves challenging the orthodox (established, accepted or traditional) views held by professional scholars about a historical event or times ...
of
transgender history
Transgender people (including non-binary and third gender individuals) have existed in cultures worldwide since ancient times. The modern terms and meanings of "transgender", "gender", "gender identity", and "gender role" only emerged in the 195 ...
that is more understanding of
gender dysphoria
Gender dysphoria (GD) is the distress a person experiences due to a mismatch between their gender identitytheir personal sense of their own genderand their sex assigned at birth. The diagnostic label gender identity disorder (GID) was used until ...
; he used
aesthetics
Aesthetics, or esthetics, is a branch of philosophy that deals with the nature of beauty and taste, as well as the philosophy of art (its own area of philosophy that comes out of aesthetics). It examines aesthetic values, often expressed thr ...
to represent alternative
forms of embodiment.
Arobateau's storylines explored themes of
metaphysics
Metaphysics is the branch of philosophy that studies the fundamental nature of reality, the first principles of being, identity and change, space and time, causality, necessity, and possibility. It includes questions about the nature of conscio ...
and
alchemy
Alchemy (from Arabic: ''al-kīmiyā''; from Ancient Greek: χυμεία, ''khumeía'') is an ancient branch of natural philosophy, a philosophical and protoscientific tradition that was historically practiced in China, India, the Muslim world, ...
. His prose presented the process of gender transitioning to be inseparable from
spiritual practice
A spiritual practice or spiritual discipline (often including spiritual exercises) is the regular or full-time performance of actions and activities undertaken for the purpose of inducing spiritual experiences and cultivating spiritual developme ...
. He also relied on
spirituality
The meaning of ''spirituality'' has developed and expanded over time, and various meanings can be found alongside each other. Traditionally, spirituality referred to a religious process of re-formation which "aims to recover the original shape o ...
—as opposed to
objective truth
In philosophy, objectivity is the concept of truth independent from individual subjectivity (bias caused by one's perception, emotions, or imagination). A proposition is considered to have objective truth when its truth conditions are met withou ...
—as an explanation for his characters'
being
In metaphysics, ontology is the philosophical study of being, as well as related concepts such as existence, becoming, and reality.
Ontology addresses questions like how entities are grouped into categories and which of these entities exis ...
.
The focus of his poetry was largely on his
spiritual beliefs.
After Arobateau's conversion, it increasingly incorporated
Christian themes, which was particularly evident in his
call and response
Call and response is a form of interaction between a speaker and an audience in which the speaker's statements ("calls") are punctuated by responses from the listeners. This form is also used in music, where it falls under the general category of ...
poems.
In contrast, his prose depicted the intersection of religion with science as detrimental, especially in the relation to
transgender medicine.
Arobateau painted in a
contemporary
Contemporary history, in English-language historiography, is a subset of modern history that describes the historical period from approximately 1945 to the present. Contemporary history is either a subset of the late modern period, or it is o ...
and
expressionist
Expressionism is a modernist movement, initially in poetry and painting, originating in Northern Europe around the beginning of the 20th century. Its typical trait is to present the world solely from a subjective perspective, distorting it rad ...
style, incorporating
symbol
A symbol is a mark, sign, or word that indicates, signifies, or is understood as representing an idea, object, or relationship. Symbols allow people to go beyond what is known or seen by creating linkages between otherwise very different conc ...
ic and surreal imagery into his works.
He painted
portraits
A portrait is a painting, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face and its expressions are predominant. The intent is to display the likeness, personality, and even the mood of the person. For this re ...
and
animals
Animals are multicellular, eukaryotic organisms in the biological kingdom Animalia. With few exceptions, animals consume organic material, breathe oxygen, are able to move, can reproduce sexually, and go through an ontogenetic stage in ...
, and on subjects of
spirituality
The meaning of ''spirituality'' has developed and expanded over time, and various meanings can be found alongside each other. Traditionally, spirituality referred to a religious process of re-formation which "aims to recover the original shape o ...
and
religion
Religion is usually defined as a social- cultural system of designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relates humanity to supernatural, ...
. Arobateau practiced
social artistry
Social artistry is the attempt to address or recognize a particular social issue using art and creativity. Social artists are people who use creative skills to work with people or organizations in their community to affect change. While a traditi ...
through paintings, such as portraying
exploitation of labor
Exploitation of labour (also known as labor) is a concept defined as, in its broadest sense, one agent taking unfair advantage of another agent. It denotes an unjust social relationship based on an asymmetry of power or unequal exchange of value be ...
in ''The Pig'' (1969). Arobateau often used "pig" metaphorically as a derogatory term in his prose to refer to things such as a self-critical internal monologue and
internalization
Internalization ( or internalisation) is the process of making something internal, with more specific meanings in various fields. It is the opposite of externalization.
Psychology and sociology
In psychology, internalization is the outcome of ...
of
external pressures. Stacey Cherie Moultry interpreted ''The Pig'' in relation to Arobateau's literary "pig", and said that the painting portrays "a seemingly congenial persona who works into one's good graces long enough to gain trust before administering unconstructive criticism."
Reception
In 1982, writer
Ann Allen Shockley
Ann Allen Shockley (born June 21, 1927) is an American journalist and author, specialising in themes of interracial lesbian love, especially the plight of black lesbians living under what she views as the ‘triple oppression’ of racism, sexism ...
wrote one of the earliest reviews of Arobateau's writing. She briefly reviewed several of his works and provided a collection of his biographical details for a ''
Sinister Wisdom
''Sinister Wisdom'' is an American lesbian literary, theory, and art journal published quarterly in Berkeley, California. Started in 1976 by Catherine Nicholson and Harriet Ellenberger (Desmoines) in Charlotte, North Carolina, it is the longest ...
'' article.
In her review of "Suzie Q", Shockley wrote that it "brought a new protagonist to
black lesbian fiction, springing to life the black lesbian street woman in all her hard glaring reality." Shockley further praised the storyline for its
progressive
Progressive may refer to:
Politics
* Progressivism, a political philosophy in support of social reform
** Progressivism in the United States, the political philosophy in the American context
* Progressive realism, an American foreign policy par ...
portrayal of black prostitutes "in the personalized role of being human", that she said were otherwise cast in mainstream "as a piece of meat to be exploited in pornography";
writing for the ''
Gay Community News'', Andrea Loewenstein said that "Suzie Q" does so with "a rare combination of respect, sympathy, and realism."
LaMonda Horton-Stallings wrote in a ''
CR: The New Centennial Review'' article that Arobateau and
Iceberg Slim
Robert Beck (born Robert Lee Maupin or Robert Moppins Jr.; August 4, 1918 – April 30, 1992), better known as Iceberg Slim, was a former American pimp who later became a writer. Beck's novels were adapted into films.
Early life
Robert Ma ...
had mastered "the skill of
transgressing gender and sexuality". Reviewing ''Lucy & Mickey'', Heather Findlay summarized that the novel was "deeply philosophical and powerfully erotic",
and
Lillian Faderman
Lillian Faderman (born July 18, 1940) is an American historian whose books on lesbian history and LGBT history have earned critical praise and awards. ''The New York Times'' named three of her books on its "Notable Books of the Year" list. In addi ...
remarked that Arobateau was "the
Thomas Wolfe
Thomas Clayton Wolfe (October 3, 1900 – September 15, 1938) was an American novelist of the early 20th century.
Wolfe wrote four lengthy novels as well as many short stories, dramatic works, and novellas. He is known for mixing highly origin ...
of
lesbian literature
Lesbian literature is a subgenre of literature addressing lesbian themes. It includes poetry, plays, fiction addressing lesbian characters, and non-fiction about lesbian-interest topics.
Fiction that falls into this category may be of any genr ...
".
For a ''
Maximum Rocknroll
''Maximumrocknroll'', often written as ''Maximum Rocknroll'' and usually abbreviated as ''MRR'', is a not-for-profit monthly zine of punk subculture. Based in San Francisco, ''MRR'' focuses on punk rock and hardcore music, and primarily featur ...
'' article, Vince Larussa described ''Autumn Changes''—considering it a representative of Arobateau's ''
œuvre
Oeuvre(s) or Œuvre(s) may refer to:
* A work of art; or, more commonly, the body of work of a creator
Books
* ''L'Œuvre'', a novel by Émile Zola
* ''Œuvres'', a work by Emil Cioran
* ''Œuvres'', a work by Auguste Brizeux
* ''Oeuvres'', a wor ...
''—as "figuratively an unorthodox fairytale, philosophically a manifesto, and literally, 'a testimony of his first transition years intermixed with remembrances of things past.'" Randy Turoff characterized ''Dirty Pictures'' as "engaging, passionate, and emotionally moving". He praised its depiction of sexual longing, betrayal and the power dynamics involved in race and class issues.
Arobateau was self-critical of his writing, saying that he was aware that he "needs an editor to help refine
iswork".
In an article of ''
The Lesbian Review of Books
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...
'', Stephanie Byrd was critical of his unfiltered writing style—in particular, of his poetry—and stated that he "struggles to put
is'vision' on paper". Byrd said of ''Laughter Of The Witch'' that "the metamorphoses that Arobateau chronicles in these poems is not easily accessed due to an overabundance of metaphor and imagery".
Discussing the readability of ''The Bars Across Heaven'', Loewenstein said that its unconventional dialogue "works amazingly well within the context of the novel", but added that his
writing style
In literature, writing style is the manner of expressing thought in language characteristic of an individual, period, school, or nation. As Bryan Ray notes, however, style is a broader concern, one that can describe "readers' relationships with, t ...
makes it apparent that Arobateau "did not attend the school where many of us learned 'how to write'".
In her 2005 book ''
Funk the Erotic'', Horton-Stallings criticized Arobateau's prose for its poor quality. However, she emphasized the novelty of his transgender and transsexual characters, elaborating that "their intersection, or lack thereof, with a more mainstream transgender movement should also garner some attention for the novels' historical importance, if not for their literary merits."
Nisa Donnelly defended Arobateau and said that his "raucous and raw and rough-hewn" writing was reflective of the qualities of his characters and storylines.
Lynch assessed Arobateau's writing as "
iconoclastic
Iconoclasm (from Greek: grc, εἰκών, lit=figure, icon, translit=eikṓn, label=none + grc, κλάω, lit=to break, translit=kláō, label=none)From grc, εἰκών + κλάω, lit=image-breaking. ''Iconoclasm'' may also be conside ...
and
idiosyncratic
An idiosyncrasy is an unusual feature of a person (though there are also other uses, see below). It can also mean an odd habit. The term is often used to express eccentricity or peculiarity. A synonym may be "quirk".
Etymology
The term "idiosyncra ...
" in his 1995 review of contemporary LGBTQ+ literature for ''
Lambda Book Report
The Lambda Literary Foundation (also known as Lambda Literary) is an American LGBTQ literary organization whose mission is to nurture and advocate for LGBTQ writers, elevating the impact of their words to create community, preserve their legaci ...
''. He further opined that Arobateau "is the graffiti artist of lesbian literature, not respectable by a long shot, but chronicling for us the raw material of
isworld". Noting difficulties Arobateau faced in getting his books published "as an erotic writer of street-class butch life", Thyme S. Siegel commended him for continuing to write and self-publish works in his unique style.
Research
Analyzing
semantic shift
Semantic change (also semantic shift, semantic progression, semantic development, or semantic drift) is a form of language change regarding the evolution of word usage—usually to the point that the modern meaning is radically different from t ...
of the word "cum" in a ''
Sexuality & Culture'' article, Sara Johnsdotter traced the first mention of "female cum" to Arobateau's ''Hobo Sex'' (1991). Ute Rupp's (
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...
, 2001)
comparative literature
Comparative literature is an academic field dealing with the study of literature and cultural expression across linguistic, national, geographic, and disciplinary boundaries. Comparative literature "performs a role similar to that of the study ...
doctorate discussed that writings of
Daniel Paul Schreber
Daniel Paul Schreber (; 25 July 1842 – 14 April 1911) was a German judge who was famous for his personal account of his own experience with schizophrenia. Schreber experienced three distinct periods of acute mental illness. The first of th ...
,
Djuna Barnes
Djuna Barnes (, June 12, 1892 – June 18, 1982) was an American artist, illustrator, journalist, and writer who is perhaps best known for her novel ''Nightwood'' (1936), a cult classic of lesbian fiction and an important work of modernist litera ...
,
Kathy Acker
Kathy Acker (April 18, 1947 isputed– November 30, 1997) was an American experimental novelist, playwright, essayist, and postmodernist writer, known for her idiosyncratic and transgressive writing that dealt with themes such as childhood trau ...
and Arobateau offer an unconventional reading of
the Symbolic
The Symbolic (or Symbolic Order of the Borromean knot) is the order in the unconscious that gives rise to subjectivity and bridges intersubjectivity between two subjects; an example is Jacques Lacan's idea of desire as the desire of the Other, ...
in the
Name of the Father The name of the father ( French ') is a concept that Jacques Lacan developed from his seminar ''The Psychoses'' (1955–1956) to cover the role of the father in the Symbolic Order.
Lacan plays with the similar sounds in French of ' (the name of th ...
, which in turn develops "new types of subjects, laws, reals, imaginaries, and similar psycho-somatic fictions" within
Lacan
Jacques Marie Émile Lacan (, , ; 13 April 1901 – 9 September 1981) was a French psychoanalyst and psychiatrist. Described as "the most controversial psycho-analyst since Freud", Lacan gave yearly seminars in Paris from 1953 to 1981, and ...
ian frameworks.
Horton-Stallings credits the work of Arobateau and
Toni Newman
Toni D. Newman (born December 3, 1962) is an African-American transgender author, sex workers' rights advocate, Director of The Coalition for Justice and Equality Across Movements at NMAC, and the Former Interim CEO of the Black AIDS Institute an ...
for constructing a
transgender theory of
subjectivity
Subjectivity in a philosophical context has to do with a lack of objective reality. Subjectivity has been given various and ambiguous definitions by differing sources as it is not often the focal point of philosophical discourse.Bykova, Marina F ...
which considers factors of "race, culture, and pleasure" – factors she said were overlooked by contemporary models.
In a
literature review
A literature review is an overview of the previously published works on a topic. The term can refer to a full scholarly paper or a section of a scholarly work such as a book, or an article. Either way, a literature review is supposed to provid ...
published in ''
American Quarterly
''American Quarterly'' is an academic journal and the official publication of the American Studies Association. The journal covers topics of both domestic and international concern in the United States and is considered a leading resource in the ...
'', Mecca Jamilah Sullivan indicated that the content and themes of Arobateau and Newman demonstrate how
sexual practice
Human sexual activity, human sexual practice or human sexual behaviour is the manner in which humans experience and express their sexuality. People engage in a variety of sexual acts, ranging from activities done alone (e.g., masturbation) ...
is a vital component of the
concept of self
In the psychology of self, one's self-concept (also called self-construction, self-identity, self-perspective or self-structure) is a collection of beliefs about oneself. Generally, self-concept embodies the answer to the question ''"Who am I? ...
, and that it provides "
narrative alternatives" to
transmedicalism
Transmedicalism is the idea that being transgender or transsexual is contingent upon experiencing gender dysphoria or requiring medical treatment to transition. Transmedicalists believe individuals who identify as transgender, do not experience ...
. Julie R. Enszer discussed the issue of
lesbian erasure
Lesbian erasure is the tendency to ignore, remove, falsify, or reexplain evidence of lesbian women or relationships in history, academia, the news media, and other primary sources. Lesbian erasure also refers to instances wherein lesbian issues ...
within the transgender community in ''
Journal of Lesbian Studies
''Journal of Lesbian Studies'' is a peer-reviewed interdisciplinary academic journal published by Taylor & Francis. It examines the cultural, historical, and interpersonal impact of the lesbian experience on society. The journal is a forum for rese ...
'', citing experiences and works of Arobateau, among others.
Holly Ann Larson's doctoral dissertation (
Florida Atlantic University
Florida Atlantic University (Florida Atlantic or FAU) is a Public university, public research university with its main campus in Boca Raton, Florida, and satellite campuses in Dania Beach, Florida, Dania Beach, Davie, Florida, Davie, Fort Lauderd ...
, 2003) was a
feminist
Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...
standpoint epistemological discourse on how
financially weak women and individuals like Arobateau tackle
structural gender biases. Larson concluded that those experiences led to development of
knowledge of resistance unique to them, and that individuals like Arobateau attempted to reclaim
agency
Agency may refer to:
Organizations
* Institution, governmental or others
** Advertising agency or marketing agency, a service business dedicated to creating, planning and handling advertising for its clients
** Employment agency, a business that ...
by exerting
sexual capital
Sexual capital or erotic capital is the social Power (social and political), power an individual capital, individual or social group, group accrues as a result of their sexual attractiveness and social charm. It enables social mobility independent ...
in their writings. In her doctoral dissertation, Naomi Extra (
Rutgers University
Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a Public university, public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's ...
, 2021) explored a more inclusive understanding of
sex-positive feminism
Sex-positive feminism, also known as pro-sex feminism, sex-radical feminism, or sexually liberal feminism, is a feminist movement centering on the idea that sexual freedom is an essential component of women's freedom.
Sex-positive feminism cen ...
and the early
sex-positive movement
The sex-positive movement is a social and philosophical movement that seeks to change cultural attitudes and norms around sexuality, promoting the recognition of sexuality (in the countless forms of expression) as a natural and healthy part of th ...
; noting that development and early history of those movements mainly credited works of white women, Extra advocated for literary recognition of writings of black writers Arobateau,
SDiane Bogus and Shockley and their contributions. The dissertation also presented their work as a literary aspect of black feminism and medium for expression of sexuality by black women – areas that have been insufficiently researched according to her.
American studies
American studies or American civilization is an interdisciplinary field of scholarship that examines American literature, history, society, and culture. It traditionally incorporates literary criticism, historiography and critical theory.
Sch ...
doctorate of Moultry (
University of Iowa
The University of Iowa (UI, U of I, UIowa, or simply Iowa) is a public university, public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is org ...
, 2019) focused on influences a mixed-race identity had on writers and artists of 1960–89, and how they reconciled their racial
hybridity Hybridity, in its most basic sense, refers to mixture. The term originates from biology and was subsequently employed in linguistics and in racial theory in the nineteenth century. Young, Robert. ''Colonial Desire: Hybridity in Theory, Culture and R ...
when the
one-drop rule
The one-drop rule is a legal principle of racial classification that was prominent in the 20th-century United States. It asserted that any person with even one ancestor of black ancestry ("one drop" of "black blood")Davis, F. James. Frontlin"W ...
(legal and social practice of classifying individuals under only one race) was still in effect. Moultry categorized Arobateau's expression of hybridity as
liminal
Liminal is an English adjective meaning "on the threshold", from Latin ''līmen'', plural ''limina''.
Liminal or Liminality may refer to:
Anthropology and religion
* Liminality, the quality of ambiguity or disorientation that occurs in the middle ...
(or ambiguous), and said that Arobateau "actively resists
normativizing protocols" by not adhering to cultural stereotypes of the time.
For her
Doctor of Psychology
The Doctor of Psychology (Psy.D. or D.Psych.) is a professional doctoral degree intended to prepare graduates for careers that apply scientific knowledge of psychology and deliver empirically based service to individuals, groups and organization ...
, Lauren Nicole Logan (
Alliant International University
Alliant International University, often called Alliant, is a private for-profit university with its main campus in San Diego and other campuses in California. It offers programs in six California campuses – in San Francisco, San Diego, Los Ang ...
, 2010) conducted a
psychological research
Psychological research refers to research that psychologists conduct for systematic study and for analysis of the experiences and behaviors of individuals or groups. Their research can have educational, occupational and clinical applications. ...
into
minority stress
Minority stress describes high levels of stress faced by members of stigmatized minority groups. It may be caused by a number of factors, including poor social support and low socioeconomic status; well understood causes of minority stress are in ...
coping mechanisms of
masculine
Masculinity (also called manhood or manliness) is a set of attributes, behaviors, and roles associated with men and boys. Masculinity can be theoretically understood as socially constructed, and there is also evidence that some behaviors con ...
African-American lesbians, especially people like Arobateau who
identify as multiple minorities; Logan found that Arobateau and others utilized "social support, activities,
avoidance coping
In psychology, avoidance coping is a coping mechanism and form of experiential avoidance. It is characterized by a person's efforts, conscious or unconscious, to avoid dealing with a stressor in order to protect oneself from the difficulties the s ...
, drugs and alcohol, and
self-acceptance
Self-acceptance is acceptance of self.
Definition
Self-acceptance can be defined as:
* the awareness of one's strengths and weaknesses,
* the realistic (yet subjective) appraisal of one's talents, capabilities, and general worth, and,
* feelings ...
" to cope with the minority stress.
Legacy
Arobateau was one of the earliest writers and proponents of
street lit, transgender and
lesbian erotica
Lesbian erotica deals with depictions in the visual arts of lesbianism, which is the expression of female-on-female sexuality. Lesbianism has been a theme in erotic art since at least the time of Culture of ancient Rome, ancient Rome, and many ...
. A 2018 profile in ''
Vice
A vice is a practice, behaviour, or habit generally considered immoral, sinful, criminal, rude, taboo, depraved, degrading, deviant or perverted in the associated society. In more minor usage, vice can refer to a fault, a negative character tra ...
'' described his content as "writing that helped pave the way for inclusive depictions of Black sexuality".
For his entry in ''
Encyclopedia of Contemporary LGBTQ Literature of the United States'' (2009), Emmanuel S. Nelson summarized that "arguably Red Jordan Arobateau is the first and probably most prolific female-to-male transsexual writer of African American descent."
According to Shockley, characters Arobateau depicted had been "largely ignored or glossed over in the whole of
Afro-American literature by black female writers."
In ''
To Write Like a Woman'' (1995),
Joanna Russ
Joanna Russ (February 22, 1937 – April 29, 2011) was an American writer, academic and feminist. She is the author of a number of works of science fiction, fantasy and feminist literary criticism such as ''How to Suppress Women's Writing'', as w ...
characterizes works such as Arobateau's fiction to be "a few of the marvelous things that exists outside the pale of the
dominators".
Michelle Tea
Michelle Tea (born Michelle Tomasik, 1971) is an American author, poet, and literary arts organizer whose autobiographical works explore queer culture, feminism, race, class, sex work, and other topics. She is originally from Chelsea, Massachuset ...
concluded that "if our culture wasn't sickened with so many ''
isms'', he would be much more well-known, studied, and respected."
Shockley and Tea have mentioned Arobateau as one of their inspirations.
Bibliography
;Novels
* ''A Blackman Is Not A Windup Doll''
* ''A Hillbilly Girl Is Like A Butterfly''
* ''A Small Retrospect Of My Art Paintings''
* ''Acts Against The Power Of Authority''
* ''Ashcan Betty''
* ''At An Early Age''
* ''Autumn Changes''
* ''Barrio Blues''
* ''Blossoming of Gifts''
* ''Boogie Nights/Party Lights''
* ''Boy Center''
* ''Can't Go On Another Day''
* ''China Girl''
* ''Come With Me Lucy''
* ''Compassion''
* ''Daughters Of Courage''
* ''Dirty Picture''
* ''Electro Shock Doktor''
* ''Empire!''
* ''Ephemeris – The Book Of Time''
* ''Flash! On The Hustler''
* ''Fisherpeople''
* ''Fleamarket Molly''
* ''For Want Of The Horse The Rider Was Lost''
* ''Garbage Can Sally''
* ''Ho Stroll''
* ''Hobo Sex''
* ''How's Mars?''
* ''I Am A Soul''
* ''In The Strange Embrace Of A Prodigal''
* ''Jailhouse Stud''
* ''Journey'' series
* ''Ladies' Axiliary Of The Left/Champagne, Firecrackers, Gunshots & The Smoke From The Death Factory''
* ''Lamentations In The Cool Of The Evening''
* ''La Vida''
* ''Lay Lady Lay''
* ''Leader Of The Pack''
* ''Light At Dawn''
* ''Lucy & Mickey''
* ''Man Gone/Starvax''
* ''Mein Theory''
* ''Missio Dei''
* ''My Continuing Journey Into Artistic, Spiritual, and Revolutionary Thoughts''
* ''Obedience to the Call of Art''
* ''Outlaws!''
* ''Passage'' series
* ''Prisoner Of Hearts''
* ''Saints''
* ''Satan's Best''
* ''Stage Door''
* ''Street Fighter''
* ''The Bacchanalias Society Bash''
* ''The Bars Across Heaven''
* ''The Big Change''
* ''The Black Biker''
* ''The Blood Of Christ Against The Lies of Babylon''
* ''The Clubfoot Ballerina/The Prima Dona''
* ''The Great Heart Bank Robbery''
* ''The Man From The Blax Galaxy''
* ''The Nearness Of You/Sorrow Of The Madonna''
* ''The Rich/The Poor In Spirit''
* ''To The Man With His Hat In His Hand''
* ''Tranny Biker''
* ''Vengeance!''
* ''Westpoint Of The Universe''
* ''Where The World Is No''
* ''White Girl''
;Short story collections
* ''Alexander D'oro''
* ''Boys' Night Out''
* ''Doing It For The Mistress''
* ''Rough Trade''
* ''Stories From The Dance Of Life'' series
* ''Street Of Dreams''
* ''Suzie Q''
;Plays
* ''Carnivalla''
* ''Daughters Of Courage''
* ''Higher Ground''
* ''How Don Juan Died''
* ''In The Malestrom''
* ''Inhabitants Of A Ghettoized Population''
* ''Lavandarette Of My Solitude''
* ''Our Dyke House''
* ''The Love Lament Of Peter Pan''
* ''The Maids''
;Poetry collections
* ''Laughter Of The Witch''
* ''The Age of Om''
* ''The Iron Woman''
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Arobateau, Red Jordan
1943 births
2021 deaths
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