This month brought to mind one of the questions that I find my self pondering now and again. Which leather is it anyway? We talk about leather-thegear, and we talk about leather-the community, and the two are not always in sync with one another.
Why this month? Because I had the pleasure of participating in one and coproducing another rubber event. On two adjacent weekends, the Hotlanta Rubber Group and West Coast Rubber offered the Mister Southeast Rubber/Hotlanta Rubberman in Atlanta and the West Coast Rubber weekend in Los Angeles. If you haven't tried playing in rubber, you really ought to. It's one of the sexiest things you can wear, and whatever your body type, it will only make you look better, and feel better. Whether you like tight gear, or loose, there is rubber gear that will fit you the way you want your sextire to fit. It is just simply hot hot hot!
Do I sound like a rubberman to you? It's funny, at each of the contests I have run for Mr. Regiment, Los Angeles Leather, and American Leatherman, I was asked effectively the same question: "Are you a leatherman or a rubberman?" This is the source of the questions I asked above. Why must I be either? If the leather community is defined by what we wear and that requires leather gear, are people who wear denim included or excluded? It's interesting how people will talk about inclusiveness in the leather community until they meet someone who wears a different fetish.As it happens, I am involved in organizations that gear themselves toward no less than five different fetishes/kinks: leather, bondage, bdsm, rubber, uniforms. Am I not a Leatherman because I have these various interests? Then why ask me if I am one at a contest. It's also interesting that we have many who define Leather as including these various kinks, but then gasp if you should express them in the context of a leather contest. Can International Mister Leather ONLY wear leather? Can American Leatherman never wear a uniform?
It's particularly interesting that we seem, as a community to make exceptions for uniforms, and not perceive them as less Leathery than leather, yet, should someone wear a rubber uniform in a leather contest, he or she is immediately disregarded as not being appropriately attired.
My personal opinion is that we shouldn't be talking about the 'leather' community. It has too many constraints which inhibit its reasonable use. It is often perceived as referring only to gay men, frequently not including women in the process. It often excludes those who have other gear fetish pleasures. And, it often creates a wall between those who are BDSM players from those who are simply into gear sex.
This is why I created OpenKink with no specific reference to leather or any other kind of gear or specific type of activity. Kink generally does not have a close association with sexual orientation, and it embraces gear and play together and separately.
Is a bar a leather bar if all the patrons are in jeans and t-shirts? Is a man a leatherman if he never wears leather but throws the wickedest whip west of Wyoming?
Think about it...
