ABSTRACT
Toward the end of Ben Hamper's Rivethead: Tales from the Assembly Line, there is an important episode that provides a clue into the sources of gender identity among male autoworkers. Hamper had started to receive attention for his columns in Michael Moore's Michigan Voice, and “[i]t all ran smoothly until the fateful day that I allowed my editor to talk me into writing a piece about deer hunting, the most sanctified of blue-collar blood rituals.” Hamper did not partake or even approve of the sport and his article “celebrated the fact that these yahoos often ended up shootin' each other's brains out in their orgasmic frenzy to go boingin' some Bambi…. lb hell with 'em. I liked deer just fine. The whole idea of slingin' a deer carcass over the hood of your Buick seemed rather unhinged.” Hamper featured a coworker named Poison, a white, 6′ 2″, 245-pound former Marine and member of the National Rifle Association in his article. When Hamper caught wind of the fact that someone had brought the journal with his article on hunting into the shop, he decided to make a preemptive strike and present Poison with a copy. After twenty minutes of reading, Poison confronted Hamper, “I should kick your worthless faggot ass!… I bet all your candy-ass writin' pals think you're clever. Let me tell you what I think. You're nothin' more than a dumb cunt with diarrhea mouth. The only way you can get your garbage printed is by suckin' up to commie assholes who've got nothin' better to do but sit around, all doped up, tearin' this country down.” Round two came after lunch, as Poison continued, “Where the hell do you get off writin' that I rented my wedding tux from Outdoor Life? … And what about this part where you state that the NRA stands for Nuts Run Amuck? Where do you come up with this crap?” Hamper replied that it was just a joke, to which Poison informed Hamper that hunters keep the deer population down and healthy. Hamper suggested, foolishly, “I think you just enjoy killing things,” and Poison exploded, “And faggots are at the top of my list!” 1
