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The Rock wore a beige handkerchief in his back pocket—here's what that means in the Hanky Code

The Rock wore a beige handkerchief in his back pocket—here's what that means in the Hanky Code

dwayne johnson the rock wrestler Close up folded bandanas beige on top
Mark Fann/Shutterstock; shutterstock Creative

Dwayne Johnson is keeping the Hanky Code alive in his new GQ cover!

Flagging is officially back!

Fast and Furious and Jumanji franchise superstar Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson is on the cover of GQ'sMen of the Year issue, and he's showing off an accessory that sends a pretty loud message in the queer community.

In the cover image, and several images throughout, Johnson is wearing blue jeans and a white t-shirt – a classic American outfit – and he's accessorizing with a beige handkerchief.

Sometimes the handkerchief is in his hand, but sometimes it's in his back right pocket, which happens to be one of the pockets used for flagging.

If you aren't familiar, flagging refers to using the Hanky Code, a fashion and way of communicating invented by gay men in the 1970s.

Due to the illegality and taboo nature of same-sex relationships at the time, gay men needed a way to subtly communicate with each other that they were available and what they were looking for.

Thus, the Hanky Code was born. Now, men could wear different color handkerchiefs in either their back right or back left pocket, and the color and placement would signal to other gay men what they are interested in.

As you can see on this chart explaining the Hanky Code in a museum, light brown, or beige, is for... *drumroll* rimming!

What's more is that the side you wear the hanky in also explains something about you, and with left meaning bottoming and right meaning topping. Johnson's placement states loud and clear that he likes to rim.

Rimming, also known as anilingus, is oral stimulation of the anus. Many people simply call it "eating ass." And now, GQ wants to tell the whole world that The Rock is ready and looking to eat all of our asses?!?!

Thank you to GQ and The Rock for performing this public service!!

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Mey Rude

Mey Rude is a journalist and cultural critic who has been covering queer news for a decade. The transgender, Latina lesbian lives in Los Angeles with her fiancée.

Mey Rude is a journalist and cultural critic who has been covering queer news for a decade. The transgender, Latina lesbian lives in Los Angeles with her fiancée.