Cruising for sex
Encyclopedia
Anonymous sex
Anonymous sex is a form of one-night stand or casual sex between people who have very little or no history with each other, often engaging in sexual activity on the same day of their meeting and usually never seeing each other again afterwards. The term "cruising for sex" is used to refer to...
, casual
Casual sex
Casual sex or hooking up refers to certain types of human sexual activity outside the context of a romantic relationship. The term is not always used consistently: some use it to refer to any extramarital sex, some use it to refer to sex in a casual relationship, whereas others reserve its use for...
, one-time
One Night Stand
One Night Stand is an HBO stand-up series that first aired on February 15, 1989. The half-hour series aired weekly and featured stand-up comedy specials from some of the top performing comedians. The series originally comprised 55 specials over the course of its four years on HBO...
variety. The term is also used when technology is used to find casual sex, such as using an Internet site or a telephone service.
Origin and historical usage
In a specifically sexual context, the term "cruising" originally emerged as an argotArgot
An Argot is a secret language used by various groups—including, but not limited to, thieves and other criminals—to prevent outsiders from understanding their conversations. The term argot is also used to refer to the informal specialized vocabulary from a particular field of study, hobby, job,...
"code word" in gay slang
Gay slang
LGBT slang, LGBT speak or gay slang is a set of slang used predominantly among lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people. It has been used in various languages, including English and Japanese since the early 1900s as a means by members of the LGBT community as a group to self-advertise as a...
, by which those "in the know" would understand the speaker's unstated sexual
Human sexuality
Human sexuality is the awareness of gender differences, and the capacity to have erotic experiences and responses. Human sexuality can also be described as the way someone is sexually attracted to another person whether it is to opposite sexes , to the same sex , to either sexes , or not being...
intent, whereas most heterosexuals, on hearing the same word in the same context, would normally misread the speaker's intended meaning in the word's more common (and presumably less threatening) nonsexual sense. This served (and in some contexts, still serves) as a protective sociolinguistic
Sociolinguistics
Sociolinguistics is the descriptive study of the effect of any and all aspects of society, including cultural norms, expectations, and context, on the way language is used, and the effects of language use on society...
mechanism for gay
Gay
Gay is a word that refers to a homosexual person, especially a homosexual male. For homosexual women the specific term is "lesbian"....
men to recognize not only each other, but those who may wish to do them harm in broader societies noted for their homophobia
Homophobia
Homophobia is a term used to refer to a range of negative attitudes and feelings towards lesbian, gay and in some cases bisexual, transgender people and behavior, although these are usually covered under other terms such as biphobia and transphobia. Definitions refer to irrational fear, with the...
.
In the latter half of the twentieth century, decriminalization of homosexual behaviour increasingly became the norm in English-speaking countries. The protective barrier once provided by the term "cruising" as a "code word" has therefore largely broken down and, arguably, become increasingly irrelevant. Thus the specifically sexual meaning of the term has passed into common usage to include the sexual behavior of heterosexual persons, as well.
The Berkeley Police Department
Berkeley Police Department
The Berkeley Police Department is the municipal police department for the city of Berkeley, California, USA.-History:Shortly after Berkeley was incorporated in 1878, a town marshal and constables were elected to provide law enforcement. In 1909, the town marshal was appointed to be the first...
has described the city's
Berkeley, California
Berkeley is a city on the east shore of the San Francisco Bay in Northern California, United States. Its neighbors to the south are the cities of Oakland and Emeryville. To the north is the city of Albany and the unincorporated community of Kensington...
Aquatic Park
Aquatic Park (Berkeley)
Aquatic Park is a public park in Berkeley, California, United States, located just east of the Eastshore Freeway between Ashby and University Avenues. The park was created in the 1930s by the Works Progress Administration, simultaneous with its work on the nearby Berkeley Yacht Harbor...
as a "historical" cruising area and the press has noted that it is subject to dozens of men 24 hours a day for decades.
Public health officials have noted that cruising locations are frequented by men who have sex with men
Men who have sex with men
Men who have sex with men are male persons who engage in sexual activity with members of the same sex, regardless of how they identify themselves; many men choose not to accept sexual identities of homosexual or bisexual...
, but do not identify with being homosexual or bisexual, who are closeted, married, or in relationships with women, do not date men or frequent gay bars, clubs or websites, or have otherwise no other way of meeting men for sex.
Tiphany was well known to have introduced it it France
Regional usage variants
As with all argot, regional variants abound. In the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, the term "cruising" continues to predominantly denote exclusively homosexual behaviour. In Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, however, it is used by both homosexuals and heterosexuals to describe their own behaviour, as witnessed in the common male heterosexual derivative phrase "cruising for chicks".
Historic examples of usage
The term has been enshrined since at least the mid-1970s in the name of the gay barGay bar
A gay bar is a drinking establishment that caters to an exclusively or predominantly gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender clientele; the term gay is used as a broadly inclusive concept for LGBT and queer communities...
Foxes Booze 'n' Cruise, located on Historic US Highway 66
U.S. Route 66
U.S. Route 66 was a highway within the U.S. Highway System. One of the original U.S. highways, Route 66 was established on November 11, 1926 -- with road signs erected the following year...
in Albuquerque, New Mexico
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
. Before closing, the business came under criticism for allegedly encouraging drunk driving by some who did not understand the term's historic usage, but the name and the sign remain a conscious reminder of gay history.
The term has also been adopted, in an altered form, by the website qruiser.com, an online LGBT community based in Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
. This is a tongue in cheek reference, however, as the community functions as a forum for social interaction for the Scandinavian region, rather than focusing on exclusively sexual encounters. The website has attracted many heterosexual members as well.
In popular culture
Cruising for sex is alluded to in songs such as "Cruisin' the StreetsCruisin' the Streets
"Cruisin' the Streets" is a disco song released in 1981 by the Boys Town Gang. The song reached number 5 on Billboard's Hot Dance Club Play chart.- Song description :...
" by the Boys Town Gang
Boys Town Gang
The Boys Town Gang were a San Francisco based disco and hi-NRG band. Their popularity peaked in the 1980s, when the group reached number 5 on Billboards Hot Dance Club Play chart with the single "Cruisin' the Streets", and number 4 in the UK Singles chart and number 1 in the Netherlands with their...
as well as "I'm a Cruiser" by the Village People
Village People
Village People is a concept disco group that formed in the United States in 1977, well known for their on-stage costumes depicting American cultural stereotypes, as well as their catchy tunes and suggestive lyrics....
. In 1980, director William Friedkin
William Friedkin
William Friedkin is an American film director, producer and screenwriter best known for directing The French Connection in 1971 and The Exorcist in 1973; for the former, he won the Academy Award for Best Director...
made the movie Cruising
Cruising (film)
Cruising is a 1980 film directed by William Friedkin and starring Al Pacino. The film is loosely based on the novel of the same name, by New York Times reporter Gerald Walker, about a serial killer targeting gay men, in particular those associated with the S&M scene.Poorly reviewed by critics,...
, starring Al Pacino
Al Pacino
Alfredo James "Al" Pacino is an American film and stage actor and director. He is famous for playing mobsters, including Michael Corleone in The Godfather trilogy, Tony Montana in Scarface, Alphonse "Big Boy" Caprice in Dick Tracy and Carlito Brigante in Carlito's Way, though he has also appeared...
. The film introduced many audiences to homosexual activities and the linguistic codes used for them, but gay rights groups perceived a negative depiction of the gay community
Gay community
The gay community, or LGBT community, is a loosely defined grouping of LGBT and LGBT-supportive people, organizations and subcultures, united by a common culture and civil rights movements. These communities generally celebrate pride, diversity, individuality, and sexuality...
in the film and protested its production.
See also
- Glory hole (sexual slang)
- Gay bathhouseGay bathhouseGay bathhouses, also known as gay saunas or steam baths, are commercial bathhouses for men to have sex with other men. In gay slang in some regions these venues are also known colloquially as "the baths" or "the tubs," and should not be confused with public bathing.Not all men who visit gay...
- CottagingCottagingCottaging is a British gay slang term referring to anonymous sex between men in a public lavatory , or cruising for sexual partners with the intention of having sex elsewhere...
- Gay beatGay beatIn Australia, the term beat is used to refer to an area frequented by gay men and non-gay-identifying men who have sex with men who are cruising for casual sex, and where sexual acts occur. This use of the word parodies the beat walked by a police officer or a prostitute...
- DoggingDogging (sexual slang)Dogging is a British English euphemism for engaging in sexual acts in a public or semi-public place or watching others doing so. There may be more than two participants; both group sex and gang banging can be included. As observation is encouraged, voyeurism and exhibitionism are closely associated...
- Gay cruising in the United KingdomGay cruising in the United KingdomGay cruising describes the act of searching about a public place in pursuit of a partner for sex. The activity has existed since at least the 17th century and has a colourful legal history...
- Troll (gay)
- Cruisin' (album)
External links
- How to successfully and safely cruise for sex
- Making the case in defense of so-called public sex
- Worldwide database with honest reviews and maps of places men cruise for sex
- non profit cruising guide based on google maps
- Largest cruising gays map listing
- Rainbow Project harm reduction ideas on cruising for sex.
- Legal advice from lawyers about cruising for sex
- "The Little Black Book: This one can keep you out of trouble" from Lambda Legal Defense and Education FundLambda LegalLambda Legal is an American civil rights organization that focuses on lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender communities as well as people living with HIV/AIDS through impact litigation, education, and public policy work.Lambda's founder William J. Thom, Esq...
; also available here. Additionally published as "Little Black Book: This one will keep you out of trouble" in PDF format; also available here. An article that gives legal advice on cruising for sex. Note that if one actually carries this article on one while cruising it could possibly be used as evidence of intent.