No Homo
Andrew Fong
MIT 3652
Jeff Preston
March 12, 2014
According to Know Your Meme, No Homo is a slang term meaning “not in a homosexual way.” It is used with a statement that could potentially be interpreted as either seductive or homoerotic, in order to avoid any confusion or skepticism of others regarding one's sexuality. The meme originated in the early 1990's when young communities in East Harlem popularized the term. From rapper Cam'ron's 2006 album lyrics to Lil Wayne and Jay-Z, No Homo became appropriated as a way to excuse any reference that could be potentially misinterpreted as taking part in a secret gay lifestyle (Doxon). The meme spread onto Urban Dictionary, and quickly spread over message boards, rap blogs, Tumblr, and Twitter.
This meme is significant because it attributes to the evolution of language over the Internet. I am particularly interested in how memes become successful by transgressing various polite-society taboos. As I have discovered over my previous meme analysis’s, a large portion of the participatory culture surrounding memes is trolling, making fun of, and looking down on others. No Homo is a meme that flourishes because at the macro level, it shapes the mindsets, forms of behavior, and actions of social groups (Shifman, 18). As a result, this piece of cultural information changes the way people use language to express themselves, while simultaneously shapes social behavior through discriminative modes of communication.
This is an example of a meme that inserted itself into the vernacular of the masses, which spread and scaled into a shared social phenomenon where controversy about gender, race, and sexuality were at risk. No Homo “trashes” homosexuals by inadvertently emphasizing that those who use the meme are homophobic, while augmenting the perceived abnormality of being gay. Shifman's analysis of Flawed Masculinity, and his example of “Leave Brittany Alone” is crucial for the understanding of the implications of these discriminative modes of representation (78). Users who produce and share this meme whether in online image macros, or in their daily vernacular succumb to the sad reality of the negative effects of the media. Memes mediate both good and bad forms of information, but No Homo seems like another form of popular culture that bullies those who do not conform to dominant ideologies. Like other forms of media such as magazines, television, and video games, memes often reinforce the status quo and promote stereotypical normalcy.
The power of this meme to mobilize discrimination into youth today concerns me. After great controversy, the meme evolved into a social commentary of gay activism, yet videos of No Homo that attempt to be humorous still are discriminative. In a Funny Or Die skit (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q4VZcQU55CM), the actors are clearly making fun of the meme, however it continues to humiliate and antagonize the gay community. Meme creators should think about the discourse they might produce around memes. It should be about creating a world on and off the Internet in which people can feel valued and by extension have their dignity, creativity, and physical safety respected by others.