Meet Alain Phenes, a tall and handsome Haitian gentleman living in the City of Toronto, Ontario. Born in the town of Cap-Haitien, Republic of Haiti, and raised in the City of Montreal, Quebec, Alain is the son of two worlds. Educated at McGill University's prestigious School of Law, Alain aims to make his mark as an attorney in the G.T.A. The brother is tall, handsome, smart and on his way to success. What's the only thing holding him back, you may ask? Attorney Alain Phenes is bisexual, what the Black community hates the most...
For Alain, the road to success has been paved with hardship. He was one of only nineteen black male students in a class of three hundred at McGill University's School of Law. There were thirty nine black female students, one of them his former girlfriend Marguerite Saint-Preux, the tall and sexy Haitian gal who stole his heart. After graduating among the top ten percent of his law class, Alain prepped for the bar exam and applied for jobs left and right.
Alain was collecting rejection notices from recruiters and law firms when the Big Firm came calling. Waterson, Floyd & Finkelstein are quite simply the biggest law firm in all of Canada. They have a thousand attorneys, and maintain offices in Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa, Calgary and for some reason, Winnipeg. Waterson, Floyd & Finkelstein set the gold standard in Canadian legal practice. Everyone wants to work for them. Alain didn't even apply there because he thought it was a firm full of blue bloods. The Big Firm came calling, and Alain was invited to an interview at their Bay Street office in downtown Toronto.
"Welcome aboard," said Sylvie Finkelstein, the tall, blonde-haired and athletic, second-generation managing attorney who interviewed Alain. Forcing himself to be calm, Alain smiled and thanked Finkelstein, and thus his life changed. Alain would start as a Junior Associate at Waterson, Floyd & Finkelstein's Criminal Law Division. The young black man has finally made it to the big leagues. Alain decided to fly to Montreal to share the big news with his parents. That's when everything started to go wrong.
"Holy Father, guard our sons and daughters from the queer culture that tries to recruit them," shouted Pastor Luther Phenes of the Ebenezer Holy Gospel Church of Montreal-Nord, Quebec. The tall, dark-skinned and silver-haired preacher gesticulated as he ranted about the evils of homosexuality and the perils of western society. A lot of the men in the predominantly Haitian church, and most of the women, cheered the preacher on. Alain Phenes shifted uncomfortably in his seat in the front row.
"Say it loud," said Phyllis Dorvil-Phenes, and the plump, bespectacled, silver-haired Haitian matriarch pumped her fist in the air. Alain looked at his mother and flashed her a placid smile. The rest of the ceremony went on about as well as expected. Society changes but the Haitian church does not. Alain grew up hearing his father, the esteemed preacher Pastor Luther Phenes, rage against things he deemed unacceptable. This was nothing new.
After the service concluded, Alain went around shaking hands with members of the congregation. The duties of a pastor's son never end. Alain was accosted by Eugene Guerrier, an old goat who liked to hear himself talk. The man owned three barbershops, a restaurant and a laundromat, and thought this made him the Haitian Canadian version of Bill Gates. Eugene approached Alain with his wife Geraldine and their adult daughter Emilie in tow. The old buzzard wore a stylish suit, and locked eyes with Alain. Sighing, Alain braced himself for the storm.
"Alain, jeune homme, congrats on your new job in Toronto," said Eugene, and he stared hard into the younger man's eyes. Once more Alain sighed. In the Haitian community, officially, gays, lesbians and bisexuals didn't exist. The Haitian church is filled with creepy guys who make too much eye contact with other men even though, officially, they had wives, girlfriends and families. Eugene Guerrier, Montreal businessman, is a card-carrying member of the Haitian closet. The old buzzard has a wife and daughter, but he fucks younger men left and right...
"I see my parents have been talking," said Alain, and he exchanged a few pleasantries with Eugene, then excused himself. Eugene's unwavering stare made Alain uncomfortable. He'd never liked the habit that most gay men and bisexual men have of super-staring at whatever man they're interested in. At some point, prolonged and unwanted eye contact becomes invasive and creepy. Alain played it straight most of the time. Life was easier that way. A lot of gay men and bisexual men felt like sharing their private lives with the public. Alain doesn't subscribe to that school of thought. It's always good to save some secrets for oneself.
After moving away from Eugene and company, Alain greeted a few others, and then paused as he sensed someone staring at him. Marguerite Saint-Preux stood there, looking lovely in a crimson, flower-patterned dress. The tall, curvy, dark-skinned and elegant young woman looked Alain up and down. Alain sighed, and gently waved at Marguerite, but she scoffed and walked away. Alain watched as a tall young white guy with a buzz cut approached Marguerite, and took her hand. Marguerite smiled at Mister Buzz Cut, then turned to look at Alain. Nodding gently, Alain forced himself to look away.
