Paris Is Burning

“You have three strikes against you in this world. Every Black man has two, that they’re just black and they’re a male. But you’re Black and you’re a male and you’re gay. You’re gonna have a hard fuckin’ time. If you’re gonna do this, you’re gonna have to be stronger than you ever imagined.” & [Abridged] “A ball is, the very word, whatever you want to be, you be. You can become anything and do anything right here, right now, and it won’t be questioned.” & “It’s like a physical high. And you know, it’s a good high. It’s an addictive high, like all highs in the long run turn out to be, but it’s a high that won’t hurt you. If everybody went to balls and… did less drugs, it’d be a fun world, wouldn’t it?” & “Black people have a hard time getting anywhere. And those that do are usually straight.” & “When you’re a man and a woman, you can do anything. You can almost have sex on the streets if you want to. The most somebody will say is, “Hey, get a hump for me,” you know. But when you’re gay, you monitor everything you do. You monitor how you look, how you dress, how you talk, how you act.” & “Some of them say that we’re sick, we’re crazy, and some of them think that we are the most gorgeous, special things on earth.” & “This is… white… America. Any other nationality… that is not of the white set, knows this and accept this, till the day they die.” & “Everybody wants to leave something behind them, some impression, some mark upon the world. And then you think… you’ve left a mark on the world… if you just get through it… and a few people remember your name. Then you left a mark. You don’t have to bend the whole world. I think it’s better to just enjoy it. Pay your dues… and enjoy it. If you shoot an arrow and it goes real high… hooray for you.” & “I think all men are dogs. I honestly do. You know, every man starts barking sooner or later.” & “In a religious community, they want to pray together a lot, right? Well, this gay community might wanna… Or-or they, like, wanna be together.” & “So this is New York City, and this is what the gay life is about. Right?”