Kort said most of the men had found their way to the group via the TikTok videos he has created to spread the word. Posts by sides young and old come from around the world. In the last eight months, however, membership has doubled to reach 5,000. Things began slowly for the group, with members first joining by the tens, and then by the hundreds. I’ve been calling myself that for 50 years “I wanted to help people get rid of the loneliness and the shame.” Sides have always been here. “I wanted to create a community,” he said. Eighteen months ago, Dr Kort made a private Facebook group page called Side Guys to give the men a forum for acceptance and, perhaps, to start a movement. The term side was coined in 2013 by the sex therapist and author Dr Joe Kort, but only in the last year has it gained glimmers of acknowledgment in the wider gay world. “You’re made to feel like you’re less than a full gay person.”
“A lot of people feel stigmatized,” said Lucien Samaha, 64, of New York City, who identifies as a side. Many sides say they’re subjected to widespread rejection and misunderstanding in the gay community, whose members often view them as immature, lazy or even asexual.
