Brotherhood as something that demands that I strip myself off the queerness, as a requirement for its existence.
Brotherhood as something that only becomes possible when I, a queer Black man, never wholly experience joy of teenagehood – sex, pleasure, and friendship.
Brotherhood as something that only becomes possible, only if I keep that shit away from them bros.
Brotherhood as something that only becomes possible when I, a Black queer man, do all the emotional labor, afraid of being left.
Brotherhood as something that only becomes possible when I, a Black queer man, retain all the hard masculine traits.
Brotherhood as an alter where straight heterosexual people come to confess their sins, praying to be absolved of their homophobic past.
Brotherhood: possible only because I, a Black bisexual man, will one hopefully make the right decision.
Brotherhood as something whose validity inherently lies in the idea that all parties ought to be cis heterosexual.
Ndaba is queer writer based in Johannesburg. He writes poetry, and essays.