“in the life” – slang, a Harlem-Renaissance euphemism for a prostitute or homosexual.

To new readers and old:
I love cultures. Most recently learning about Black lesbian/gay culture has me feeling like I’ve hit the jackpot in terms of richness, depth, and ::pardon my french:: shit that’s relevant. Studying cultures is about analyzing institutions and how people make sense of their place within them. I’m a sociologist at heart. I like identity politics. I feel that Black gay (and particularly lesbian) communities and their many aspects are understudied and routinely dismissed, even by members of said communities. I’m a historian at heart, too. I can’t just let it go undocumented…at least within my own brain. So humor me, ‘k?

XOXO