J.E., Filipino: Bloomfield, NJ, 21

It was only until this summer that I found out what "DOWNE" was. There exists no such thing in the east coast. It's very big over on the west, big is an understatement, i'd say huge. haha.

A friend of mine told me being DOWNE meant being gay or bisexual on the "DOWN LOW" hush hush, dont ask dont tell kinda thing. It's very interesting to go through downelink and see all these guys as DOWNE, I find it fascinating actually.

I guess being DOWNE has a positive connotation to it, in that it doesn't label you right away as GAY. I think being GAY isn't bad, but it's a big step to say "IM GAY". I think saying Im DOWNE is a lot easier, and i also think it eases one's transition into finding oneself, in terms of their sexual orientation. I think in the END, those who are DOWNE are going to turn out GAY, or maybe it's just hyped up to be DOWNE and those who are confused get into the hype becuase they themselves dont know if they are gay or straight. that's how I feel anyways.

To say im DOWNE is kind-of empowering because it's new and exciting and not very well defined, to me it's my own definition of being a gay-straight-bi-ihavenoideawhatiam Asian male.

J.V., Filipino: Pearl City, HI, 21

Growing up in Murrieta, CA, I tended to admire white men, but I think this was only because that is who I saw on tv and movies. But today, with the rise of Asian influence in the media, i think it's just natural to want something you can relate to, along with Asian culture being more recognized in society now. Though living in a dominantly white community, I spent most of my time hanging out in San Diego, therefore I hardly would see white men there.

Downe culture to me is kind of a more masculine or enpowering image of the gay asian male. With Downelink, the online community has brought the gay asian community closer together. It's a place we can call our own and a term we can use, becuause it was created by us, for us.