New Book by ‘Brother’
Hassan Hartley Reveals Truth about Black Male Prison Sexuality.
Following
his own journey of self-discovery and acceptance, ‘Brother’ Hassan Hartley
exposes the shocking truth behind the sexual identity politics of black men in
the U.S prison system.
Contact:
Hassan Hartley
brotherhassan@hotmail.com
(773)655-0125
For Immediate Release
Chicago, IL – While the media often
paints a picture of a U.S prison system which thrives with rehabilitation and
convict reform, many of those who have been inside report a dismal and shocking
reality of sexual exploitation, homophobia and disease. Having experienced the
dark side of the U.S criminal justice system first-hand, Hassan Hartley exposes
the truth in his new book; WHEN THE LIGHTS GO OUT: The Truth About Black Male
Prison Sexuality.
The Chicago native
was sentenced to three years in a Virginian prison. However, Hartley’s journey
of self-correction was coupled with a deep personal study of black men around
him. Noticing that many were at different levels in the self-awareness of their
own sexuality, the seeds of his book were sewn.
“This book is a study into the human sexuality, and
sexual identity politics of black men in American prisons. It examines the
cultural, moral, and social implications of sexual behavior in prisons due to
millions of black men being trafficked in and out of the criminal justice system
each year” Says Hartley, who has spent the last six years researching
incarcerated black men at prisons all over the United States.
He continues, “I explore the impact of
religion and education on how black men view sex in prison, as well as the
dangers of HIV and other STD infections that occur. I discuss how heterosexual,
bisexual and gay men deal with each other, as well as my own unique and
controversial journey that led me to write this book.”
Hartley’s work is the culmination of
thousands of personal inmate interviews and online correspondence, during which
he both confirmed his own beliefs and was enlightened with new, often
disturbing information.
Aside from the personal identity of incarcerated black
men, When the Lights Go Out also
examines the impact that prison-spread sexually transmitted diseases have on
the wider black community, and the United States as a whole.
“The
homophobia that exists within the black community makes this discussion even
more difficult, and my book serves as a bridge to promote healthy, intelligent,
nuanced dialogue” Hartley adds.
The book is already garnering much interest among
followers of Hartley’s blog. Providing an insightful narrative on the embedded
homophobia surrounding current news and affairs, the blog is proving itself as
an educational eye-opener on modern America.
For more information on WHEN THE LIGHTS GO OUT: The Truth About Black Male
Prison Sexuality, please visit
Brother Hassan Hartley’s website:
www.hassanhartley.com
About
The Author
Hassan
Hartley, a.k.a. "Brother Hassan", is a college educated writer born and raised in
Chicago, Illinois, who embarked upon the journey of discovering the nuances of
human sexuality among black men primarily as a result of his own journey to
self acceptance and awareness. Having been a college student at Tuskegee
University, a former member of the Nation of Islam, and having served time in a Virginia Correctional facility, his
own life mirrors much of the complexity of
black men and sexual identity politics discussed in this book.
Struggling
with his own sexual identity in the early 1990's when images of black gay men
were all but non-existent in any media format, Brother Hassan lived in two
worlds at the same time: One, a world of strict discipline in the Nation of
Islam, where he hoped to one day become a Minister in the mold of Malcolm X or
Minister Louis Farrakhan. The other world, that of a same gender loving man in complete denial about what his desires
for men in an organization not known for being anywhere resembling sympathetic
to gays and lesbians.
Hassan's
entire world was absorbed in the Teachings of the Most
Honorable Elijah Muhammad and the
Honorable Louis Farrakhan, while his desires for men grew gradually stronger
and stronger throughout his teenage years and into adulthood. As a teenager, he
joined the Black Muslim sect and became a part of the Fruit
Of Islam, the name given to the military training of men who belong to the
Nation Of Islam in North America.
Brother
Hassan joined a group within the Fruit of Islam in Chicago
known as the Taskforce, a squad of
young men ages 16-25 who were being groomed to rise in leadership in the Nation
Of Islam for its future. Having joined the N.O.I. at its headquarters in
Chicago, he frequently saw, met, and heard Minister Farrakhan and even traveled
with the Taskforce to provide security for the Nation Of Islam leader. A shy,
timid and quiet teenager, Bro. Hassan felt overwhelmed by such nearness to so
much going on in such a controversial organization, but eventually adapted.
After
graduating from Whitney M. Young Magnet High School in Chicago, Brother
Hassan moved south to the prestigious
Tuskegee University, where he would study for the next 5 years Political
Science and Business Administration.
An
internal scandal within the Nation Of Islam's own headquarters in March, 1993
involving Hassan's squad, the Taskforce,
culminated in a suicide of a top lieutenant in the squad, as well as the
revelation that nearly two dozen
young men within the same squad were allegedly involved in homosexual activity
with each other. Those that were not excommunicated
from the organization for Fornication and Sodomy, left the Nation Of Islam before they could stand
trial in the Nation of Islam's stringing Restrictive
Laws of Conduct. Brother Hassan,
ironically, was not involved in any of these activities, despite his own sexual
orientation becoming clearer to him as years passed. The scandal was kept out
of the media, for obvious reasons.
In
August 1994, Hassan was awarded a partial scholarship from Minister Farrakhan
personally to assist in his college tuition and studies. After a bloody,
near-fatal, and tumultuous split with
the Nation of Islam in November 1994, however, Bro. Hassan came to terms with
his sexuality, although he would wander deeper and deeper into a 7 year chasm of criminal activity that
culminated in a 3 year prison sentence in Virginia. During this time, Hassan
began not only began the arduous process of self correction, but began studying
those black men around him who were at different levels in their awareness of
their own sexuality, and thus the basis of this book was born.
Hassan's
research would not only extend to those around him in prison while
incarcerated, but to those in many other prisons all over the United States
after his release in August 2006. With
the help of correctional officers that bent more
than a few rules to allow him to interview inmates, internet websites
designed to establish pen pal relationships with inmates, and other useful
tools, he interviewed thousands of inmates in a 6 year period, confirming some
theses he already had, and being enlightened on others. This book is Volume 1
of that research, and proves to be controversial, enlightening, entertaining
and revealing, much like its author, Brother
Hassan.
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