In public or in small groups of other gay men? ;-)

Lots of gay men “pass,” as it were, in public. Guys who who aren’t naturally effeminate can and often do sort of suppress the culture thing sometimes.

Around other guy guys in private, though, it’s often a different story. I guess it’s a matter of comfort.

Very effeminate gay men are a different story. Men who act very effeminate (including some straight men) often report not being able to change their mannerisms and speaking even when they try very hard.

There are lots of theories about why that is, but I don’t think anybody is quite sure how it works. Researchers are increasingly convinced that biology plays a role.

But back to learned behaviors and traditions, younger gay men are less likely to be influenced by traditional gay culture than older gay men. Meeting a twenty something who doesn’t engage in much or any stereotypical behavior is much more common than meeting a 50 something who doesn’t.

Perhaps Fred Shirley could weigh in if he can tear himself away from his Italian holiday at some point. :-) He knows a lot more younger gay men than I do.

As for my generation, at least in private, a very large majority of the gay men I’ve ever known have adopted some gay culture, including special vocabulary, mannerisms, speaking patterns, body language, etc.

Carl Rebeiro 🏳️‍🌈 is another American gay man my age. What do you think, Carl? Agree or disagree?