In the author’s note, Black reveals that his father was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s in 2013, dashing any hope Black had they would ever hash out their past hurts and disappointments. Nearly three decades since Jacob grabbed Isaac by the collar, looked him in the eye and asked, “Do you want to be a sissy, boy?” Nearly 30 years have passed since Isaac paraded across the elementary-school stage in a flaming red wig, arms flinging about, singing at the top of his lungs. “There was something wrong with you, something you needed to explain to me, and I meant for you to do it,” Jacob Swinton writes to his son, Isaac, in 2003. Embedded in this impactful story about one man’s experience growing up Black in America is an examination of the changing definition of masculinity and how it influences his ability to relate to his gay son. “Don’t Cry for Me” by Atlanta author Daniel Black is a revealing ode to a son from a father seeking forgiveness for a lifetime of castigation and estrangement.
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