[Matt B.]

Why do some gay men speak with an accent? I don’t believe it is the same as a geographical accent, because gays don’t all come from the same place. I don’t believe it is biological because not all gay men speak with an accent. I don’t usually care if someone is gay, but hearing the accent makes me cringe. I think it’s that it seems phony. The closest parallel I can think of is if I went around using a British accent to draw attention to myself or to seem more sophisticated or something. How can I take someone seriously if they can’t even talk with their own voice?

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Name : Matt B., Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Christian, Age : 31, City : Duarte, State : CA, Country : United States, Occupation : General Manager, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, 

[Bob L.]

I assume that what you mean by ‘gay accent’ is a certain speech pattern that may include lisping, effeminacy or exaggerated theatricality. I don’t know of any definitive answer, but it’s clear to me that the speech patterns you’re talking about aren’t really an accent – not a strong and continuous fixture of language usage – but a vocal mannerism or stylization that’s pretty much elective. Of the hundreds of gay men I’ve known, none affect this mannerism all the time, some use it occasionally for emphasis or humor, and most never use it at all.

I suspect it derives from a narrow but continuous gay urban subculture that’s been around for centuries in major cities. This subculture is what most heterosexuals think of when they think ‘gay,’ but in fact most gays go about their lives without ever taking part in or identifying with it. You probably don’t know that most of the gays you know are gay, for the simple reason that they don’t seem gay to you – don’t use that speech pattern, don’t dress very tastefully, don’t cook, like sports, are married or date girls, etc. – all those little markers that we assume divide gays from straights but actually don’t.

For a few gay men, it may be a fairly fixed habit of speech, but for most it’s ‘phony’ in the same sense that the speech mannerisms of rappers, preachers, truckers and game-show hosts are phony. They don’t have to speak that way, and most of the time they don’t. I think it’s rather different from, say, male locker-room talk about ‘babes’; most would never talk that way in front of their wives or mothers or kids, let alone their congregations, yet it’s hard to say whether their locker-room speech is ‘real’ and their cleaned-up speech is ‘phony’ or vice versa … and how can I take someone seriously if they speak with two different voices?

User Detail :  

Name : Bob L., Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Gay, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Atheist, Age : 48, City : Seattle, State : WA, Country : United States, Occupation : Administrator, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, 

[Jon Milleer-Carrasco]

Hey, Matt. For some gay guys it might really be affected, but in my 20 yrs of being out and about, I’ve known many who had NO IDEA how feminine they sounded. Not only is it intrinsic and natural to them, they think they sound like Dan Rather on the evening news. My theory, and as far as I know it is uniquely mine, is that there are more transexuals in the world than we know of, ones who never get the operation, but who deep inside their hearts, think of themselves as the opposite sex. Almost all of the men I know who are at least somewhat ‘effeminate’ (let’s keep in mind what arbitrary connations that word carries), wanted to be girls at some point in their lives. These I would say are more transexual than strictly gay; they’re basically women trapped in men’s bodies, even though they might not realize it. The middle-of-the-road masculine guys I’ve talked with can never remember wanting to be girls; people generally don’t know they’re gay until they say so(or kiss in front of them). I freely admit my test sample is small and personal and limited; these are only my observations. And my final question to you would be: Why does a feminine-sounding man bother you? Could it be that it insults your sensibilities to see a man ‘lower’ himself to womanliness? Misogyny and homophobia are 2 branches of the same river of bigotry.

User Detail :  

Name : Jon Milleer-Carrasco, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Gay, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Society of Friends, Age : 38, City : Austin, State : TX, Country : United States, Occupation : professional, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Lower middle class, 

[Joe H.]

I think folks see (or hear) a stereotype which conferms to them their beliefs. There are those who fit the stereotype (lisping, effeminacy or exaggerated theatricality) and it’s easy to judge them as gay even when we are unsure of their orientation. Many who are effeminate are not gay. If a man does not have a “gay accent” are you so sure he is not gay? It is my experence there are many men who do not talk with an “accent.” They pass as straight because they don’t fit the stereotype.

User Detail :  

Name : Joe H., Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Bisexual, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Agnostic, Age : 35, City : Minneapolis, State : MN, Country : United States, Occupation : Graphics, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, 

[Todd24651]

I have been right three times knowing a person is gay on just how they speak. I find it very odd that someone with a gay voice can be from the South or Northeast and not have that regional accent but have the gay one. But I do not believe if you talk gay you are automatically gay. It works in some cases but not in others.

User Detail :  

Name : Todd24651, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 22, City : Hays, State : KS, Country : United States, Occupation : Student, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Lower class, 

[Mike20394]

Back when Clinton was running for president, there were reports that his campaign committee suggested they stop bringing in so many staffers with a ‘San Francisco accent.’ When I first heard that, I cracked up laughing…obviously the committee felt there was an over-representation of gays on the staff and they were recognizable by their ‘accent’. People just have a natural desire to ‘fit in’ with the crowd they mostly associate with, and part of this is mimicking or copying speech habits and afflections. Many of my gay friends affect the ‘gay accent’ without even knowing it when hanging out in a gay crowd- but when hanging around a ‘straight’ crowd- well, ‘you would never know!’

User Detail :  

Name : Mike20394, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Gay, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Humanist, Age : 41, City : Santa Cruz, State : CA, Country : United States, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, 

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