On the down low

I've had an interesting experience trying to recruit women of color for my anthology, particularly African American women. Several of the more seasoned writers (over 30 or 40) have expressed reluctance to write about their sex lives openly, expressing concern that as black women writers, they will be judged differently than the other women writing about sex in the collection, because of the charged racial/sexual history/associations with black women. Two writers said nearly the same thing in the same words--really made me feel ignorant and uninformed. In my view (or, my former view), all the writers in the anthology would be taking an equal risk by exposing their sexual and emotional quirks and experiences--all is equal on the page. But, obviously, it isn't. There's an interesting article or even a whole book on this phenomenon, somewhere.

In any case, I want to include women who are unlike me in this book (in other words, not just white, middle class, Jewish, etc., etc.). I'm finding it to be the biggest challenge of putting together the collection--a mark of how limited my working and social world is, ethnically, class-wise and racially. Something to think about--I hope this book opens my world a bit, or rather, pushes me to open my world.
Ciao!