HypatiaSwan
Posts: 24
Joined: 12/12/2004
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For what it's worth, the gay leather community practices (to this day) a somewhat more military style of leather protocol - depending of course on the area and the local scene. I mean, there is protocol in place for various rituals - pinnings, patches, how to wear certain pieces of leather, flagging, protocol when meeting someone, honorifics, earning leathers and club colors etc. There is also an emphasis on leather history. Most of this preservation of protocol and tradition is really driven by the leather title contests and leather clubs which are still alive and well. For instance, in my club, NJ Andromeda, new pledges are given assignments, mostly involving learning leather history and they are still inducted into the club "the old fashioned way" with a sort of hazing and having to grunt work. There are also quite a few large and well-known (queer/gay) leather families that keep traditions alive more in the gay and queer communities. Now, of course we aren't marching in lockstep. Some communities are more relaxed than others and in the privacy of small groups, protocols are relaxed some. It seems to me to be a function of the number of leather groups and leather contests in a given area that really makes the difference. The more you have, the more you'll probably have protocol that is more normalized and this usually happens around larger cities with larger LGBT communities (my experience). As you said, the protocols, while somewhat consistent, aren't perfectly congruent across the board. A bit hodgepodge, for sure. But I think the general ideas are in place. Some of the finer details get lost in the cracks or are just different from area to area. For instance, while the proverbial leather vest is the standard identifying piece of clothing, some clubs might say wear runs pins on the left, others on the right etc. And then, like any other community, there are those that just don't use much protocol at all. They just come out for the social aspect of it and could care less about norms and rituals.
Old Guard? I liked MsSilvie's definition. Usually people throw the term around when they are trying to puff themselves up by implying they've had some kind of special training. As far as I am concerned, Old Guard really refers to "the way it used to be." It was, from my understanding of leather history, no better, no more "formal" and no more protocol-oriented than it is today. I guess we (in the gay leather community) can credit our mostly ex-militaryleather biker/rough-sex, outcast elders with the distinction of forming the first sort-of-kind-of cohesive groups of gay leatherfolk. As always, the usual disclaimers apply. This is just my take and YMMV. I am, as always, still reading and learning about our leather roots and I am happy to learn from those who may know more than I do.
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"Once we meet and talk, we are brothers and sisters." - Okinawan Proverb
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