The Down Low

I was watching this show on BET and about men on the "Down Low”, like many people I was confused about what this word had meant, I heard the word before but didn't really understand the meaning of it. This show was an hour documentary on about men who live double lives. The men that were interviewed on this show were men who were married with wives but on the down low lived a gay lifestyle. The term “Down Low" meant when someone is doing something secretly, now it means men who pretend to be straight but secretly enjoyed being with men. Some of the stories that I heard were just heartbreaking! A woman who had been married to her husband for twelve years found out that he was on the down low for about 3 yrs after they meet. They had a family with 3 children. One day she walked in on her husband with another man. She says that she then went to the clinic to get tested for any STD's and the Doctor told her she tested positive for HIV. She later found out she contracted the disease from her husband who had many sexual male partners that he didn't used protection with. When the woman was asked “why do you think he didn't use protection? She responded” because that would've meant that he had to admit to him self that he was gay, which to this day he still refuses to accept”. The women said that this kind of thing should be considered a crime, because of the fact that he put her and their children in danger. She says she believes that her case she be thought of as first degree murder because of the fact that her husband knew about his virus and put her at risk anyway, she feels that she is slowly dieing everyday.

Here is the link to the story Link

Here is a another link about men on the "Down Low"