Cleo Manago

Cleo Manago (born September 21, 1960) is an African-American activist and social architect who coined the term same-gender loving (or SGL) as an alternative for African-descended or black people who do not wish to identify as gay or lesbian due to the perceived Eurocentric nature of the latter terminology and community practices. Along with his activism, he is also a blogger and columnist. Manago rejects the terms gay, bisexual and lesbian because he believes they are white, Eurocentric-constructed identities which do not culturally affirm the culture and history of African-descended people.

Early life and other activities Manago is a native of south-central Los Angeles and began a vocation in social services when he was 16 years of age. In 2011, he co-authored, produced, directed and starred in the educational documentary I AM A MAN: Black Manhood & Sexual Diversity.

Although usually referred to as a "social activist", Manago dislikes the term "activist" when applied to him. He believes black LGBTQ activism to be "tethered to mainstream white privilege, ideology, and single-focused gay organizations," which he views as culturally dissonant and too limited in scope to be meaningful and beneficial to African-American LGBTQ communities and the larger black community.

AmASSI Health and Cultural Centers A.m.A.S.S.I. or AmASSI (The African, American Advocacy, Support-Services & Survival Institute) was founded in 1989 by Manago.

According to Manago, "In the midst of a need for affirmation and acknowledgment from the 'gay' community, same-gender-loving Black people are subject to sexual objectification, discrimination, white supremacist treatment and indifference." The SGL movement also objects to the pink triangle, the rainbow flag and the lambda symbol, which they view as symbols of white gayness, "none of which is African- or black-identified."

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