What's in a label?: Multiple meanings of ‘MSM’ among same-gender-loving Black men in Mississippi

Details

• Alternative Title:
  Glob Public Health
• Personal Author:
  Truong, Nhan ; Perez-Brumer, Amaya ; Burton, Melissa ; Gipson, June ; Hickson, DeMarc
• Description:
  Men who have sex with men (MSM) and other same-gender-loving (SGL) men continue to be disproportionately affected by HIV and AIDS, particularly among the Black population. Innovative strategies are needed to support the health of this community; however, public health efforts primarily approach MSM as a monolithic population erasing the diverse identities, practices, and sexualities within and beyond this category. To better understand diversity within MSM in a geographic region with the largest proportion of Black Americans in the U.S.A. and among the most heavily affected by the epidemic, the Deep South, we conducted four focus groups (n = 29) with Black men who reported having sex with other men residing in Jackson, Mississippi. Results suggest multiple overlapping usages of MSM as identity and behaviour, reflecting internalisation of behavioural categories and co-creation of identities unique to the Black community. These narratives contribute to the literature by documenting the evolving understandings of the category 'MSM' among Black men to reflect intersections between race, socioeconomic status, sexual behaviour, sexuality, subjectivities, and social context. Findings suggest the current monolithic approach to treating MSM may limit public health efforts in developing effective HIV prevention and promotion programmes targeting SGL Black men in the Deep South.
• Subjects:
  • Adult
  • Black or African American
  • Focus Groups
  • HIV Infections
  • Homosexuality, Male
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Mississippi
  • Qualitative Research
  • Risk-Taking
  More +
• Keywords:
  • African American
  • MSM
  • identities
  • HIV
  • United States
• Source:
  Glob Public Health. 11(7-8):937-952
• Pubmed ID:
  26950431
• Pubmed Central ID:
  PMC5020906
• Document Type:
  Journal Article
• Funding:
  P20 GM103476/GM/NIGMS NIH HHSUnited States/ ; R25 MH083620/MH/NIMH NIH HHSUnited States/ ; T32 HD049339/HD/NICHD NIH HHSUnited States/ ; U01 PS003315/PS/NCHHSTP CDC HHSUnited States/
• Volume:
  11
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/41292/cdc_41292_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 320.90 KB]
• Collection(s):
  CDC Public Access
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:6a770425fde62197b587fdf2d8a1ea0184b0fdf9aca38d0b7d127153a30d70c3584cc75e1134ee2903c199cec333d7b16c5f6bcc88335a27b5988bb4cdc4362a