In a candid interview with Instinct, Adult Film Star Diesel Washington spoke out about the struggles of being a gay porn actor of color in an industry catered to whiteness.
At what point did you realize there was a major lack of diversity within the industry, or did you go in knowing that already?
I went into the Industry with something to prove. I studied the studios that I wanted to work with. I already knew there weren't many models of color on the mainstream side, and I came ready to shake up things in this industry.
Were there any specific examples that you dealt with regarding this issue, and how did you handle it?
Where to begin? From the start, I wasn’t doing any stereotyping roles. This includes No Thug/Homie/Homeboy/Gangsta… none of that. I was NOT trying to play characters who had to be black. Then it was overcoming models who had racial hang-ups… which is still a problem. How can I thrive or get work if some models had racial hang-ups? I had to prove how valuable I am by promotion and consistently turning out hot scenes that pushed the limits of this Industry. I had to stand out in every single one and create a brand known for high intense scenes.
So, basically, I had to work five times harder than your average white model. My body had to be on point all the time. Each performance had to be better than the last one. I wanted the respect from my peers as a performer/model, I wasn't some token black model inputted in scenes just to give the movie some color. I’m not just some BBC on the screen… it was a long road and a lot of work to reach this level.
What is your take on the industry now, and what can they do to improve itself on becoming more diversified?
I have seen some improvement in the last ten years, but we still have a long road before the industry becomes really diversified. Sometimes gay porn is locked in a time warp. So, it takes a while for gay porn to reflect on what is happening in today's society. It's still locked into these outdated cliches/ideas. Studios would need to take a risk and actually push a model of color instead of every average looking white model. Instead of allowing models to dictate whom they want to work with like a dating service or something. Studios need to put their foot down and stop allowing models to run casting like an E-Harmony or something. This is not Christian Mingling… you’re paid to do a job so do it.
