Young LGBT San
Franciscans want answers from LeRoy

A group of young LGBT San Franciscans--backed by the city's gay and lesbian center--has demanded answers and apologies from JT LeRoy, the queer writer whose identity as a young HIV-positive former prostitute has recently been called into question. As the author of well-received novels and short stories about drug-addled street life, LeRoy claimed in media interviews that he was speaking from experience as a former hustler in the Bay Area. Following stories in The New York Times and New York magazine that accused the reclusive writer of actually being a middle-aged woman, the San Francisco Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Community Center issued a statement saying its young members were "appalled" by LeRoy's alleged deception. The group took offense at the fact that LeRoy was frequently assisted financially by celebrities and noted writers, especially after he publicly announced he was HIV-positive. "We expect an apology, not simply for defrauding the public into giving money to someone who they believed to be young, struggling, and gravely ill, but for repeatedly defaming our community, both in articles and interviews, referring to other street youth as 'sharks' and to himself as a 'dolphin,'" the statement read. "JT LeRoy promoted himself as having been pulled like a diamond from the rough. He claimed to have been discovered and encouraged as a writer by a therapist from social services, and thus rescued from homelessness. In reality, this does not happen, no such programs are in place." Most recently, LeRoy, who appears in a wig and sunglasses in public, told The New York Times through his lawyer, "As a transgender human, subject to attacks, I use stand-ins to protect my identity." Whether LeRoy is gay, female, transgender, or just make-believe, the LGBT youths of San Francisco feel duped. "Stealing our voices and using our pain for your profit is inexcusable," read their statement. "You thought we had no voice. Here is our voice." (Advocate.com)