New York, NY  Futuristic Carnival was held on Sat Aug 25, complete with acrobats, contortionist and clowns. This carnival, actually the theme of 16th Annual Latex Ball, started with a bang. Twenty five years ago the Latex Ball was a first of it's kind event in the campaign to inform, treat and prevent HIV. Then HIV/AIDS was perceived as a disease of gay white men. Today, HIV ravishes gay youth of color, our most vulnerable population.

When you hear the phrase “book club” - admit it, everyone - the first thing you might think of is “Oprah’s Book Club.” My fantasy about Oprah’s book club is a room full of middle-aged white women who are stuck in sexless marriages, and whose only joy in life is to read a good book…

Author Dwayne Vernon reviewing his first published novel "My Man, My Boyz" at the New York GBM Book Club's recent gathering. The club meeting was held at New York's LBGT Center.


Well, how about a gay black male book club? What kinds of fantasies or images come into your head when you hear that phrase? I recently discovered such a book club, and it isn’t anything like I might have expected.

The GBM Book Club of New York was founded by N. M. Pearson in 2005, because of his love of reading and knowledge.