Commentary
Seeta08 Black Kos Contributor
Life can be an enigmatic, enchanting mystery filled with beautiful memories, some less than beautiful memories, and moments of cognitive dissonance. I can recall a few.
I can recall the day I came out to my parents. They were the last to be 'officially' told. It was almost ten years ago. It was one of the most liberating moments of my life. They embraced me. For that I am fortunate.
I can recall the day I witnessed my mother extending kindness to my then-partner at the time. Not that she had ever been unkind to her, but she had never really treated her the same way she treated my sister's boyfriends, for instance. It was Christmas time. I walked into the kitchen as they were making rum cake and holiday cookies. I was speechless. It was surreal. My mother is not a very emotive person. It was a big deal -- my mother was making an effort. Even my sister said jokingly, "girl, mom is being nicer to her than she is to you."
But I can also recall the pain of how my parents have valued my sister's relationships more than they have mine, solely because her partner happens to be of the opposite sex. That's the thing about being queer. Your own, biological, family sees you as being "different." Not that there's anything wrong with being different of course. Differences are to be celebrated. But clearly, some folks are afraid of "different." I cannot change my queerness any more than I cannot change the color of my brown skin, brown eyes, thick-curly hair, or place of birth. And, of course, I wouldn't want to.
I can recall that my mother and I have always had a strained relationship, long before I ever even came out to her. My father, on the other hand, is the more emotive one. I can recall that in 2008, when I would parade around in my Obama attire - shirt, buttons, bumper stickers, etc., my father was genuinely worried for my safety. And this was in NYC. "You know, I don't know about you wearing this Obama shirt all over the place. There are all kinds of crazy people out there and you don't know what they are capable of."
I can recall that crisp, unseasonably warm, beautiful Tuesday morning, Nov. 4, 2008. My father and I drove to the voting site together. My father had not voted for anyone in years. As we left the voting booth, we crossed paths with another family of color, and then another. Without ever uttering a single word, we smiled knowingly and proudly at each other. Too many people for too many hundreds of years had died so that I could share that simple, wonderful, proud moment with my father.
I can recall that when election night rolled around, I opted to stay in and watch the results with my family instead of getting together with "my crew" at a bar. I had a bottle of champagne ready and waiting. My father was trying to get me to eat dinner -- who could eat, I thought?! We were all so anxious. He said, "Look, I want you to be prepared for the worst tonight." My father didn't want to see me disappointed. My father has been on the receiving end of too much racism and xenophobia to even fathom that what was happening was, indeed, actually happening.
When Ohio results came in, of course the whole damn world knew what had just happened. I sprang up and I was ready to open the damn champagne. My mother said, "Wait! We have to wait until California closes. Don't jinx it." She had a point. The trauma of the two previous elections was still very raw.
Eleven o'clock rolled around. Barack Hussein Obama elected President. President of the United States of America. Jubilant as ever, my mother and I embraced. Like I said, my mother is not very emotive. I can't even remember the last time we embraced before then. It was not just a magical night for the Nation. It was a magical night for my family.
I can recall that It felt like sunrise. The feeling of infinite possibility reborn. A quote from the I-Ching (The Book of Changes) immediately sprung to mind:
"change is certain. peace is followed by disturbances; departure of evil men by their return. such recurrences should not constitute occasions for sadness but realities for awareness, so that one may be happy in the interim." (i ching)
As our President has said time and again "Power does not concede." Despite my joy, I already knew the war had only just begun. And that the backlash was already brewing. Cognitive dissonance. Joy tempered with reality.
When I was taking constitutional law, my Professor, a very silver-haired black man, said to the class, "so what do you think happened after Brown v. Board of Ed was decided?" His eyes twinkled and he deadpanned "There was jubilation in the streets." Of course we all knew that was not the case. I wrote to him the next morning, tears streaming down my face like a fool, and said "Do you remember what you said in class about Brown v. Board of Ed.? Well, last night people were literally dancing in the streets." He wrote back instantly and said, "Now we can stop the bleeding."
A few weeks later, probably after the Inauguration, I would get together with my girls, my women of color group. My Trini friend would say to me, "What is all this crap about living in a post-racial society? Shit, somebody forgot to send me the memo." Of course it was a rhetorical question that didn't need answering. But I would say, "Only non people of color seem be living there. Funny how that works?" And of course I was worried, very worried about what would come to pass. That after 8 years of the Bush Regime and 30 years of Conservative rule -- the country was burning and the ashes had not even begun to settle before Barack Obama would be blamed for every ill of society, every law written by the heterocentrist-white-male-patriarchy, and blamed for every failed, oppressive institution that they created.
2009 came to pass.
Samuel Jackson's character in "A Time to Kill" said "America is a war." And Walt Whitman once said, "The real war will never get in the books." But America is also a concept. America is also about possibility. America is about what is still unwritten, despite its dark, damaging past.
Politics is not a game as the all-white-male faces of the talk-shows of the major corporate-owned, homogeneous media would have any of us believe. It's about our human relationships. Relationships with loved ones. And how those relationships are challenged and affected by laws and cultures propagated and perpetuated by an oppressive white-heterocentrist-patriarchal-system. It's about our mothers and fathers.
Our brothers and sisters.
It's easy to get caught up in the hoopla of the 'crisis' of the day as the flames are fanned by the power interests.
But this incredible decentralized medium called the Internet allows us to communicate in a way that no other technology has previously enabled us to do. Like the possibility of America's future, I can imagine the things we might be able to do if we were to really harness its power. Not just to win elections. Because elections are only one small part of it. What if checked our egos, presumptions, and assumptions at the door. Since everyone's worldview is limited in some way -- no two people has the same set of experiences, privileges, or burdens. What if we were to use it to do that which it is truly capable of doing? What if we were to use it as a weapon of mass-creation? To hear each other's stories. To learn from one another. To understand one another. To see our reflection in each other. That is the starting point from which all political goals are achieved.
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commentary by dopper0189, Black Kos Managing Editor
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With Valentine's Day just recently passed, an old saying came to mind. "If you wait until Valentine's day to show your partner you love them it doesn't mean as much as if you make everyday Valentine's Day". That is why we at Black Kos have always tried to show love to all aspects of our community. So we haven't just waited until a "special occasion" comes to highlight areas that Black and GLBT news and interest coincide, because that wouldn't make sense. Think about it, Black and GLBT it's an artificial division. We all know that there are people from the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender community who are ALSO Black, so how did this idea that we are separate communities at political odds come about?
If anything we overlap, since both groups are a spectrum of people. We are at our strongest when we recognize this, and at our weakest when we don't. Washington DC's city council recognized Gay marriage because it was lead by people who were both Black and Gay, being members of both communities gave them natural insights in how to communicate with both communities. Houston's new white Lesbian mayor won enormous support in the Black community because she was seen as champion and fighting for their issues for years before she ever ran. These are examples of us working together at our finest. We don't need to rehash those times we have been at odds. But in almost every case, the root cause is a lack of long standing lines of communication and the trust that develops.
We as progressive blogging communities should have two goals. We should not only try to energize and turn out our communities, but also to reach out and teach others about our issues. I have been a long standing opponent of what I call "Silo" thinking. When you form a silo you may seem to stand "tall" but what's inside is only "your group." Coalitions need to be broad, they need to work together, and they need to understand each other. Very rarely does understanding of others come from only sitting, talking, and working, with people who think just like you. Even more importantly very rarely, does it come when you invite a person from another group to visit you. If you are never in an area where you are the minority, you don't really "get them". You need too meet people in their natural environment. If your never in a setting where you are the minority, whether that racial, gender, sexual, or political you will never really "get" the group your trying to reach out too.
That's why this project is so great. Thank you to Seeta08 for sharing your personal story that we have cross posted on diaries. Please enjoy a year worth of Black Kos stories that overlap both communities. Thank you.
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My own (dopper0189) personal story: How I stopped being a homophobe
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This is the most personal journal I have ever written. I did a lot of second guessing before I started writing it. "They" say that you should be careful about what you post on the internet for the whole world to read. "They" say it could come back to haunt you. I just felt it was time to tell this story. You see I'm Black Jamaican-American from a pretty religious back ground who became a homophobe, then stopped being one. I wish the reason I stopped being one was a great a shining moment but it was rather a weird way to have an epiphany. But I also thank my friend JA who helped me along the way knew that was the best way to reach me. Well here goes. read more here -->
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Interesting...Gender-bending Internet personality B. Scott, with his lengthy eyelashes, high cheekbones and long hair (usually his own, sometimes not), is amassing fans in unlikely places: straight black men. TheRoot.com: To Love B. Scott.
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On his "Foxxhole" radio show, (Jamie) Foxx declared, "I love B. Scott. He’s very attractive. He looks like a cross between Prince, Rosario Dawson and Lenny Kravitz."
On cue, the show’s co-host jeered that all of the heterosexual men were running away. In response, Foxx said, "Listen, you can’t be paranoid. You know what I like. I like vagina .... I’m not worried about that. I can be in a room full of gay men and not feel any type of way about it."
Foxx isn’t the only straight man publicly professing his love for the YouTube diva.
According to B. Scott, straight men often come up to him to say, "My girlfriend put me on to your videos. At first I was a little hesitant, but once I got into you and realized that you had something to say then I became a fan."
B. Scott describes himself as "androgynous" and a "gender non-conformist." Although he’s constantly praised for his unique beauty, some of his viewers are still confused on how to classify him.
In his YouTube video entitled, "B. Scott Needs To Get Something Off His Chest," his message of tolerance and acceptance was lost on those too distracted by his appearance.
Black Kos, August 29th 2009
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The gender issue surrounding Caster Semenya seems to directly question race and beauty. For those who haven't followed the story, 18 year old South African Caster Semenya has blown away all competitors by huge margins. Immediately all sort of Western nations forced her to undergo gender testing. TheRoot.com: Who gets to set the standards?
In the case of 800m World Champion Caster Semenya, the International Association of Athletics Federations thinks it knows, sorta—having compelled the 18-year-old to undergo "gender testing" in order to prove that she is, in fact, female. Apparently sixth-place finisher Elisa Cusma Piccione is an expert as well. Piccione told Italian journalists, "For me, she’s not a woman. She’s a man." And fellow loser Mariya Savinova of Russia, who came in fifth, instructed journalists in Berlin to, "just look at her."
OK, but what are we looking at, or for, exactly? The thick thighs, the muscular arms, the broad shoulders, the wide jaw line, bushy eyebrows and faint mustache? Are these the physical attributes that define Semenya as inherently male, just plain unattractive or a record breaker?
The issue seems to directly question race, beauty and who gets to set the standards. White and western is more female and more beautiful, black and African is less so.
"As a beauty editor, I looked at her face and thought it's a beautiful and very interesting face," said Tai Beauchamp, 31, a beauty and lifestyle expert. "[It's] not a face that is so different from some of the African models that we love." But even that small pinch (definitely not even a handful) of women—Alek Wek, Liya Kebede—are still the exception rather than the norm to our ideas of female beauty, despite two Vogue Italia issues dedicated to black models the most recent being the "Black Barbie" issue.
Black Kos, August 29th 2009
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Why is "acceptance" such a hard concept for so many people? RedEye : For transgender people, acceptance is hard to find-even in LGBT community
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When Adrianna King was turned out of her home, she went north in search of acceptance.
A transsexual woman with a shy smile, King, 21, moved to Lakeview earlier this year in hopes that gay-friendly Boystown would offer a haven safe from the harassment and abuse she suffered in her South Side neighborhood.
But Boystown wasn't always safe, and it wasn't always friendly.
King, born a male and in transition to becoming a woman, said she was turned away from Lakeview homeless shelters because management feared she'd be harassed by other boarders. She said she spent the summer sleeping in parks, abandoned buildings, "L" trains and on the lakefront. When nowhere felt safe, King walked all night through Lakeview's streets, waiting until the Center on Halsted opened so she could crash on its couches.
"Every morning I'd come to work, and she'd be outside in the rain," said Tiffany Traylor, a clinical case manager at the center, which serves the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community. read more here -->
Black Kos, Friday Nov 20th 2009
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The Daily Beast:A Discharged Gay Vet: Let Us Back in the Army!
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Just a handful of loud town hall meetings could send politicians running away from reversing Don't Ask, Don't Tell. Anthony Woods, a veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom who was discharged under DADT, on how to implement smart policy.
On Tuesday, Admiral Mike Mullen told Congress, "I cannot escape being troubled by the fact that we have in place a policy which forces young men and women to lie about who they are in order to defend their fellow citizens." Thousands of honorable men and women discharged under this misguided policy have argued this for years. Serving your country and maintaining your integrity should never be in opposition to one another.
Black Kos, Feb 9th 2010
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A Malawian judge has rejected a bail application by two gay men charged with public indecency after getting engaged. BBC: Malawi gay wedding couple lose bail appeal.
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Nyakwawa Usiwa-Usiwa said Tiwonge Chimbalanga and Steven Monjeza would be safer in custody while they wait their trial - expected to start next week.
The pair, believed to be the first gay couple in Malawi to start the process of getting married, pleaded not guilty to the charges last week.
Homosexual acts carry a maximum prison sentence of 14 years in Malawi.
Denying them bail, Mr Usiwa-Usiwa said: "The accused have the right to bail but considering the public interest their case has generated it is the view of the court that they are safer in police custody than out there."
He said the pair would be given bail on 10 January if prosecutors had not finished investigating by then. read more here -->
Black Kos, Jan 8th, 2010
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Like anything as big as a continent views change from country to country. In South Africa same sex marriage is legal then there is this.. The Root: Should We Send Aid?
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Stumbled across this blurb over on the Atlantic (which stumbled across it on The Independent Gay Forum). Writer Jamie Kirchick doesn't think aid money should be given to Uganda, a nation with an entirely contentious relationship with its homosexual citizenry, even going so far as to make homosexuality a crime punishable by death.
"When a government actively encourages homophobia, the effect reverberates throughout society. Uganda's president, Yoweri Museveni, has accused European gays of coming to his country to "recruit" people into homosexuality. Ugandan newspapers and bloggers have seized on the proposed law to launch their own broadsides against gays, posting the names and photographs of individuals in Wild West-style "wanted" posters in print and online. A major tabloid, the Red Pepper, trumpeted an expose headlined "Top Homos in Uganda Named" as "a killer dossier, a heat-pounding and sensational masterpiece that largely exposes Uganda's shameless men and unabashed women that have deliberately exported the Western evils to our dear and sacred society."
From 2004 through 2008, Uganda received a total of $1.2 billion in PEPFAR money, and this year it is receiving $285 million more. Clearly, the United States has a great deal of leverage over the Ugandan government, and the American taxpayer should not be expected to fund a regime that targets a vulnerable minority for attack — an attack that will only render the vast amount of money that we have donated moot."
Read the rest of Kirchick on Independent Gay Forum.
Not that the US can really be considered a beacon of light when it come to gay rights, but death penalties and such take it entirely too far. What do you think? Should aid still be given?
Black Kos, Nov 27th 2009
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The story above goes even deeper. See Uganda has a truly draconian law before it's Parliament that will prescribe the death penalty to "aggravated homosexuality". The Law describes this "as engaging in homosexual relations with an intoxicated person" (translation: buy a man a drink in a bar bring him home and get hung). Promoting homosexuality "only" gets a life sentence (translation: tout same sex marriage and wind up in jail). The President of Uganda Mr. Museveni and the majority party support this law. But before readers turn this into a opportunity to bash "backwards Africans" guess who is supporting this measure. The secretive religious cult "The Family" of John Ensign and Mark Sanford fame. While many progressive have been sleeping, Evangelicals have been pushing their agenda oversees.
NPR's Fresh Air with Terry Gross: The Secret Political Reach Of 'The Family' and interview with Jeff Sharlet.
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Here's how it can work: Dennis Bakke, former CEO of AES, the largest independent power producer in the world, and a Family insider, took the occasion of the 1997 Prayer Breakfast to invite Ugandan president Yoweri Museveni, the Family's "key man" in Africa, to a private dinner at a mansion, just up the block from the Family's Arlington headquarters. Bakke, the author of a popular business book titled Joy at Work, has long preached an ethic of social responsibility inspired by his evangelical faith and his free-market convictions: "I am trying to sell a way of life," he has said. "I am a cultural imperialist." That's a phrase he uses to be provocative; he believes that his Jesus is so universal that everyone wants Him. And, apparently, His business opportunities: Bakke was one of the pioneer thinkers of energy deregulation, the laissez-faire fever dream that culminated in the meltdown of Enron. But there was other, less-noticed fallout, such as a no-bid deal Bakke made with Museveni, the result of a relationship that began at the 1997 Prayer Breakfast, for a $500-million dam close to the source of the White N—e -- in waters considered sacred by Uganda's 2.5-million–strong Busoga minority. AES announced that the Busoga had agreed to "relocate" the spirits of their dead. They weren't the only ones opposed; first environmentalists (Museveni had one American arrested and deported) and then even other foreign investors revolted against a project that seemed like it might actually increase the price of power for the poor. Bakke didn't worry. "We don’t go away," he declared. He dispatched a young man named Christian Wright, the son of one of the Prayer Breakfast's organizers, to be AES's in- country liaison to Museveni; Wright was later accused of authorizing at least $400,000 in bribes. He claimed his signature had been forged.
"I'm sure a lot of people use the Fellowship as a way to network, a way to gain entree to all sorts of people," says Michael Cromartie, an evangelical Washington think tanker who's critical of the Family's lack of transparency. "And entree they do get."
"Anything can happen," according to an internal planning document, "the Koran could even be read, but JESUS is there! He is infiltrating the world." Too bland most years to merit much press, the breakfast is regarded by the Family as merely a tool in a larger purpose: to recruit the powerful attendees into smaller, more frequent prayer meetings, where they can "meet Jesus man to man."
In the process of introducing powerful men to Jesus, the Family has managed to effect a number of behind-the-scenes acts of diplomacy. In 1978 it helped the Carter administration organize a worldwide call to prayer with Menachem Begin and Anwar Sadat. At the 1994 National Prayer Breakfast, Family leaders persuaded their South African client, the Zulu chief Mangosuthu Buthelezi, to stand down from the possibility of civil war with Nelson Mandela. But such benign acts appear to be the exception to the rule. During the 1960s, the Family forged relationships between the U.S. government and some of the most oppressive regimes in the world, arranging prayer networks in the U.S. Congress for the likes of General Costa e Silva, dictator of Brazil; General Suharto, dictator of Indonesia; and General Park Chung Hee, dictator of South Korea. "The Fellowship's reach into governments around the world," observes David Kuo, a former special assistant to the president in Bush's first term, "is almost impossible to overstate or even grasp."
[] read more here -->
[] listen to the interview here ( ((-))) )
Black Kos, Nov 27th 2009
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Black leadership is changing the fight for gay rights in D.C. Where Blacks Lead the Fight for Gay Rights.
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The anti-gay-rights movement has long sought to use the relative religiosity of the black community to marshal its support. Anti-marriage-equality leaders often cite the results of Proposition 8 in California, which was supported by a majority of African American voters in the state, as proof that the black community as a whole is against gay marriage.
In Washington, D.C., the anti-gay-rights movement attempted to put recognition of same-sex marriages performed in other states to a citywide referendum (it was rejected by the Board of Elections and Ethics) hoping that the city's mostly black population would come out against it. This dynamic may explain why Bishop Harry Jackson, an African American religious leader, has been put forth as the face of the anti-gay-marriage movement.
There's only one problem: The face of LGBT leadership in D.C. is often black. Nationally, anti-gay-rights activists have had a great deal of success in encouraging black voters to oppose gay rights, partially because LGBT rights are seen -- incorrectly -- as a "white issue." But in Washington, D.C., the diverse composition of the marriage-equality movement means that marriage-equality activists don't have to "reach out" to the black community, because they're already part of it. That doesn't mean marriage-equality activists don't face serious obstacles in garnering support among African Americans, but it makes racial divisions harder to exploit. The lesson is clear -- when the marriage-equality movement is integrated, outreach becomes less of an issue.
Black Kos, July 3rd, 2009
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Change is coming (slowly). The Nation: Detroit Elects Openly Gay City Council President.
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On November 3 the citizens of Detroit elected a new city council. The council presidency, awarded to the candidate receiving the most votes, went to Charles Pugh. Pugh is 38, black and a political neophyte, having previously worked as a local TV reporter and radio host. More significant, Pugh will be the first openly gay elected official in Detroit's history.
Detroit is not known for its friendliness to the LGBT community. Local pastors preach that homosexuality is a sin; former Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick stated that he didn't want his children exposed to "the homosexual lifestyle"; and in 2007 the death of an openly gay resident, in what appeared to be a hate crime, was met with near-silence by officials. A few openly gay candidates had previously run for public office, but none successfully.
Yet, according to local LGBT advocates, most Detroiters don't fear gays so much as what can await those who openly support them. Public defenders of homosexuality face condemnation, ostracization, even charges that they they themselves are gay. "I would call Detroit 'closeted' in their support of LGBT people but not homophobic," says Alicia Skillman, executive director of the Triangle Foundation, a Detroit-based LGBT rights organization. In Detroit, like many places, religiously derived antipathy toward gay people is deeply ingrained and difficult to extricate. While some of Detroit's pastors may countenance homosexuality privately, they hesitate to defend it from the pulpit, fearing the wrath of their flock. "There are pastors who say one thing on Sunday and say something else the rest of the week," said Skillman. "I think it's very hard to move a congregation from a traditional, biblical belief to being welcoming and affirming." This leads to a culture of mutually reinforcing silence. read more here -->
Black Kos, Friday Nov 13th 2009
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Commentary by Deoliver47, Black Kos Editor
To my Feminist, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Two Spirit, Trans and Gender Non Conforming loved ones, family members, community members here on the BKOS porch, friends and comrades in the greater Dkos community.
This is not a rant. I tore that version up. It was going to be a short angry rant. I tore that up too. It is now very long. It will meander. Bear with me please.
I am going to try to set a few things straight from my perspective. I tend to get angry when someone attacks a loved one. I rarely get angry when someone attacks me – I simply defend myself, and move on. But when people I love are attacked I go on the offensive, and I’ve been on the offensive for 50 years, and I’m 62 years old.
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Why Black Folks Should Celebrate Houston’s Gay Mayor This weekend Houston made history, electing Anisse Parker the first openly gay mayor of a major American city. The Texan coup was a clear victory for advocates of civil rights and marriage equality, but also stands to erode the consistent—and incorrect—presumption that black Americans are reflexively anti-gay. Parker won the runoff election with nearly 54 percent of the vote in a city that is 25 percent African American—against an African-American opponent, no less. Despite a series of mailings and smears targeted at Parker and engineered by conservatives, the 40 percent of black voters who were undecided in mid-October seem to have gravitated toward Parker and pushed her over the top. What’s more, late-stage polls suggest that 77 percent of voters "didn’t care about Parker’s sexuality."
Black Kos, Tuesday's Chile December 19th 2009
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In a retrospective at the Studio Museum Harlem, a close-up of the celebrated video artist Kalup Linzy. Part America’s Funniest Home Videos, part Lil’ Kim, the collection of 17 videos offers captivating commentary on celebrity, masculinity and sexuality.
The Root === How Video Made an Art World Star
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There is nothing virtuosic about 32-year-old artist Kalup Linzy's videos.
The lighting is harsh, the editing perfunctory, the costumes, at times, haphazard. The style is best described as a pastiche of public access television, YouTube, daytime soap operas, hip-hop and Web pornography. To the average person, the videos would be better described as America's Funniest Home Videos crossed with Liam Sullivan (of Shoes fame), layered with a generous helping of Lil' Kim.
With this unusual combination, Kalup Linzy transitioned from being one among a group of emerging black artists, to being the standout star in quick and dramatic fashion.......More
Black Kos, June 5th 2009
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Commentary,
Deoliver47, Black Kos Editor
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The end of this month marks the anniversary of the death of one of our greatest writer's and social commentator's. For those who knew him he was simply "Jimmy". For those who did not, and only know of him by his unparalleled body of work, he was James Baldwin.
He's been on my mind a lot recently, and I've been re-reading his novels and essays. As the right-wing ramps up racist and phobic rhetoric, I wish his voice had not been stilled by death, but we can assure that he lives on, if we would simply read (and heed) his words.
"Ignorance, allied with power, is the most ferocious enemy justice can have."
Black Kos, Nov 24th, 2009
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Commentary, Deoliver47, Black Kos Editor
Denial is not a river in Egypt and AIDS is a problem we can’t sleep on.
We have got to stop denying we have a problem – with HIV/AIDS. AIDS is not a gay disease. AIDS is not a straight disease. AIDS is just a disease that is killing more black people in this country than folks want to think about – yet we still have folks that don’t want to talk about sex and multiple sex partners, don’t want to talk about homosexuality, don’t want to talk about intravenous drug use.
Black Kos, Nov 10th 2009
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To mark Black AIDS Awareness Day, The Root.Com is partnering with the Black AIDS Institute to publish an exhaustive analysis of the epidemic—and what can be done about it.The State of AIDS in Black America
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he young senator was just a few months away from launching his improbable bid to become the 44th president of the United States, and he needed to demonstrate his ability to walk on the global stage. So he’d chosen to swing through Africa as his first major diplomatic foray, with a grand return to his father’s homeland as the highlight. And it was there, in Kenya, that he offered up his family as a deeply personal example of leadership in the fight against HIV.
"One of the reasons that we’re here today," Obama began, having quieted the thousands that gathered around him at a tiny mobile clinic, "is because HIV and AIDS have ravaged the community." He explained that he and Michelle were about to take HIV tests together—and if they could do it, so could everyone else present. "I am so happy now because I know [our] status," Obama declared after the test. "We are both negative, and I can take control of my family and all tasks that lie ahead of me."
Black Kos, Feb 13th, 2009
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YouTube.com === Wanda Sykes at the White House Correspondents Dinner
Black Kos, May 15th 2009
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In honor of Black History Month.
FAMOUS GLBT AFRICAN AMERICANS
[] Audre Lorde (1934-1992)
Lorde was a prolific poet and activist in the 1960s. In 1980 she co-founded Kitchen Table: Women of Color Press which became the first U.S. publisher for women of color. Her essay, "The Master's Tools Will Never Dismantle the Master's House" critiqued the feminist movement for its racism. She died of breast cancer in 1992.
[] Bayard Rustin (1912-1987)
A premiere architecht of the Civil Rights Movement, Rustin organized the very first Freedom Rides as well as the 1963 March on Washington. Rustin who counseled Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on techniques of nonviolent resistance, traveled to India to learn the Ghandian technique firsthand. He was openly gay and spoke out on gay rights later in his life.
[] Barbara Jordan (1936-1996)
Served as a congresswoman in the US House of Representatives from 1973-1979, the first black woman from a Southern state to serve in the House. Jordan never publicly acknowledged being a lesbian but lived with a companion, Nancy Earl for over 30 years. Jordan was also the first black woman to be buried in the Texas State Cemetery.
[] Johnny Mathis
One of the most successful artists of all time, Johnny Mathis is known best for his romantic ballads including classic 'Chances Are.' In a 1982 interview, Mathis came out saying his first love was a boy when he was 16 years old. However, he later maintained that should have been off the record.
[]Octavia Butler (1947-2006)
One of the most brilliant science fiction writers of our time, Octavia Butler authored more than 14 books that built and destroyed notions of race, class, sex and sexuality. In 1995, she won a $295,000 MacArthur Fellowship, known as the "genius grant." In 2000, she received the Nebula Award, science fiction's highest prize, for her novel 'Parable of the Talents.'
[] Angela Davis
Best known as a radical activist from the '70s who was jailed for an attempted prison break and murder of a judge ("Free Angela"). She was later aquitted. This Birmingham born Communist is an ardent feminist, socialist, author and college professor. Davis came out in 1997.
[] Countee Cullen (1903-1946)
An integral part of the Harlem Renaissance, the highly educated Cullen wrote volumes of haunting poetry with names such as 'The Black Christ' and 'Ballad of a Brown Girl.' Cullen, who married W.E.B. DuBois' daughter in 1928 divorced her two years later reportedly due to his relationships with men. He married a "good friend" ten years later.
[] Alice Walker
Self proclaimed womanist and bisexual, author Alice Walker once had a love affair with singer/songwriter Tracy Chapman whom she says she was "completely in love with." Walker received the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction for her critically acclaimed novel 'The Color Purple.'
[] Billie Holiday (1915-1959)
"Lady Day," one of America's finest jazz song stylists (and subject of the film 'Lady Sings the Blues'), was said to have had affairs with both men and women. Two of her most notable relationships included one with director Orson Welles and Tallulah Bankhead.
[] Ma Rainey (1886-1939)
Rainey is often referred to as The Mother of the Blues. Within five years of being signed to a recording contract in 1923, she recorded 100 songs. Though married to "Pa" Rainey, her 1928 song, 'Prove it on Me Blues,' made no bones about her relationships with women ("I don't like me no mens.") Rainey was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990.
[] James Baldwin (1924-1987)
Baldwin, author, essayist, poet, playwright and activist, explored issues of racial and sexual identity in his much heralded literary art. Baldwin touched on issues facing black gays and lesbians at a time when society was not yet ready to grasp the idea.
[] Alvin Ailey
One of the premiere American dancers and choreographers of our time, Ailey is the founder of the The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. His 1960 masterpiece Revalations is one of the most popular ballets performed in the 20th century. When Ailey died from AIDS in 1989, he asked that his doctor announce that he had died of terminal blood dyscrasia to save his mother -- who was always opposed to her son being gay.
[] Langston Hughes (1902-1967)
Langston Hughes, writer, activist and poet is noted as "one of the most prolific and versatile American writers of his generation" and a true man of letters. Hughes is probably one of the most famous names of the Harlem Renaissance. An intensely private person, Hughes has been "reclaimed" by the gay community in recent years, though he never officially came out during his lifetime.
[] Josephine Baker (1906-1975)
Singer Josephine Baker was the belle of Paris in the 1920s, known for her beauty and sexually charged performance. In 1947, she and her gay French husband wed (her third marriage) and adoted a "Rainbow Tribe" of 12 children. Though she loved men, Baker had many affairs with women, including Mexican painter Frida Kahlo.
[] E Lynn Harris
Harris sold his first book 'Invisible Life' in 1991 out of the trunk of his car before he landed a book deal and later went on to have nine of his books on the New York Times best seller's list. He was one of the first authors to explore being black and gay in his works of fiction.
[] Lee Daniels
Began his career as a casting director working on projects such as 'Purple Rain.' He went on to become the first sole black producer of an Academy Award-earning film with Monster's Ball. Daniels went onto direct 'The Woodsman' and 'Shadowboxer.' He identifies as gay and has two children.
[] RuPaul
Singer, actor and song writer RuPaul was born Rupaul Andre Charles and does "woman" better than most women. His song 'Supermodel (You Better Work)' was a huge hit in the '90s as was his beauty, eccentric personality and drag queen persona.
[] Darryl Stephens
Is most famous as the lead actor in the Showtime series, 'Noah's Arc,' also known as the black gay male 'Sex and the City.' Though initially reluctant to talk about his sexuality, Stephens confirmed that he is gay in 2007 but remains guarded about his private life.
[] Felicia "Snoop" Pearson
After meeting Michael K. Williams of HBO's 'The Wire' in a Baltimore club Pearson was invited to the set where she was introduced to producers and writers of the show and was then given a role. Her memoir, 'Grace After Midnight' spoke about her life as an aggressive or an AG (a male-identified lesbian) in her native Baltimore.
[] Paris Barclay
Paris Barclay is an acclaimed director of television, film and music videos including LL Cool J's 'Mama Said Knock You Out.' The openly gay Harvard graduate has since gone on to direct successful shows such as 'The Shield', 'Cold Case' 'CSI' and 'ER.' He has two Emmy awards, a Director's Guild of America Award and two NAACP awards for his work.
[] Andre Leon Talley
As Editor-At-Large at glossy fashion bible, VOGUE, Andre Leon Talley is the most recognized Black man in fashion. The Ivy leagued educated fashionisto is instrumental in promoting young designers of color and he has authored two books.
[] Maurice Jamal
Maurice Jamal came out to his classmates at the tender age of 16 but waited five years to tell his family. The writer, director and actor is most noted for his film, 'Dirty Laundry' with Rockmond Dunbar and Loretta Devine. He says he finds it empowering to be an openly black gay man in Hollywood.
[] Sheryl Swoopes
Three time Olympic gold medalist and three time WNBA MVP, Swoopes is often referred to as the "Female Michael Jordan". She is the first women's basketball player to have a Nike shoe named after her "Air Swoopes." She married in 1995 and had a son, but divorced and came out 10 years later.
[]Bill T. Jones
Bill T. Jones began his dance career at the State University at Binghamton as a theater major. Jones choreographed and performed worldwide before founding the Bill T Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company with his late partner Arnie Zane. He is the recipient of a Tony Award and MacArthur "genius grant."
[] Billy Porter
Also known as the "black Broadway bitch" singer-writer Porter built a strong reputation as a theatrical singer on Broadway; his one-man show 'Ghetto Superstar' was a touching tale of growing up gay in Pittsburgh.
[] Kevin Aviance
With his unique look and style, performer Aviance has become a popular personality in NYC's Gay community. In 2006, he was a victim of a vicious hate crime when he was attacked by a group of men who yelled anti-gay slurs at him. [The men later plead guilty to the hate crime charges and received sentences from 6 to 15 years in prison.]
[]Me'Shell N'DeGeOCello
N'DeGeOCello has been called the redeemer of soul music and nominated for nine Grammys. This acclaimed singer and songwriter is a longtime lover of women including writer Rebecca Walker (Alice Walker's daughter).
[]Bessie Smith (1894-1937)
Known by regal title "Empress of the Blues," Bessie Smith was the foremost blues singer of the 1920s. Though she married, she was bisexual and had many affairs with women. She also referenced same-sex love in her lyrics. In 1970, singer Janis Joplin paid for her gravestone which had previously been unmarked.
[] Jermaine Stuart (1957-1997)
Stuart was well known in the 1980s with appearances on shows such as American Bandstand and Soul Train. His most famous work was 'We Don't Have To Take Our Clothes Off.' In 1997 Stuart died due to complications from his battle with AIDS.
[] Sakia Gunn Funeral Program
Sakia Gunn was 15 years old when she was murdered at a busy intersection in Newark, New Jersey. Sakia was a lesbian who turned down a man's advances and was stabbed to death for it.
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As part of Black History Month, National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day was Feb. 7.
Though the 7th has come and gone, HIV/AIDS in the black and GLBT communities remains as a major issue of concern.
Blacks are disproportionately affected by HIV/AIDS. While making up only 13 percent of the U.S. population, they account for more than 49 percent of AIDS cases. AIDS is now the leading cause of death for Black women ages 25 to 34, and the second leading cause of death for Black men ages 35 to 44.
Phil Wilson
The Black Aids Institute, headed by Phil Wilson, was:
Founded in May of 1999, the Black AIDS Institute is the only national HIV/AIDS think tank focused exclusively on Black people. The Institute's Mission is to stop the AIDS pandemic in Black communities by engaging and mobilizing Black institutions and individuals in efforts to confront HIV. The Institute interprets public and private sector HIV policies, conducts trainings, offers technical assistance, disseminates information and provides advocacy mobilization from a uniquely and unapologetically Black point of view.
Our motto describes a commitment to self-preservation: "Our People, Our Problem, Our Solution."
Gregorio Millett, Senior Policy Adviser, Office of National AIDS Policy was recently interviewed by the Institute.
Longtime HIV researcher and activist Gregorio Millett, M.P.H., formerly with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and now working at the White House's Office of National AIDS Policy, is helping to lead the Obama administration's effort to develop our country's first National HIV/AIDS Strategy. We caught up with Millett to find out what motivates him and how the Black community figures into the plan.
Other coverage of Black AIDS Day, which you may have missed included a feature article on Cornelius Baker.
Amazing Journey: Cornelius Baker has gone from arts to advocacy, from the White House to Whitman-Walker, and is ready for more
Peruse A. Cornelius Baker's résumé, and you might get more than you bargained for. Sure, you knew he worked for the George H.W. Bush administration or that he once headed the Whitman-Walker Clinic. You may even be familiar with his work for former Councilmember Carol Schwartz (R-At Large).
You might not be as likely to know he's serving as the national policy advisor for the National Black Gay Men's Advocacy Coalition, or working as communications advisor and project director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases HIV Vaccine Research Education Initiative. Baker is the board chair of the Black AIDS Institute. He works with Us Helping US and the Campaign for All DC Families. That he's a trustee with Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, might be a bit more obvious -- after all, in school he was a self-professed "theater queen." He started political life as a Republican and is now a happily registered Democrat. And by the way, the "A." stands for Antonio.
In Chicago last month a panel discussion was held to highlight Black gay me's struggle for fairness and justice.
People from every age group and many ethnicities filled all 180 seats leaving standing room only at "Justice for All? What is Justice for the Black Gay man?," a forum held Jan. 28 at the University Center, 525 S. State. The event—in honor of National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day—was held to discuss the challenges and triumphs the gay Black community has faced.
Topics, discussed in panel format, included HIV/AIDS, same-sex marriage, discrimination within the gay community, homophobia within the Black community and economic parity.
Keith Boykin, a former aide to President Clinton and commentator on stations such as CNN, was on the panel along with E. Patrick Johnson from Northwestern University and Antonio D. Jimenez from the UIC School of Public Health.
The panel discussion was hosted by Jim Pickett, a leader in the local HIV/AIDS community, and Dr. Keith Magee, a Chicago newcomer with an education in theology.
Other news:
Prejudice, Stereotypes Make Black Men Hard to Reach
LAKELAND | When black communities organize to fight HIV/AIDS, much of the power behind that mobilization comes from women, who are being infected by the virus and dying of the disease in record numbers.
But there's a subgroup of blacks whose number of new infections is even higher: Black men who have sex with men.
That includes black men who are gay, those who are bisexual and some who don't see themselves as fitting in either category but who have had sex with other men.
Prejudice against AIDS isn't the only factor discouraging those men from being open about their status.
There's also community prejudice against black men who are gay, said Lorenzo Robertson, statewide coordinator of programs aimed at black MSM, the official acronym for men who have sex with men.
Those prejudices make it difficult for testing and treatment programs to reach those men, who had the second-highest estimated number of new infections in 2006, according to a 2009 report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It shows them as having 10,130 new infections that year, with white MSMs having 13,230 and black heterosexual women having 7,340.
The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD)has put together a Black History Month Resource Kit for media and for community groups.
While February was declared Black History Month to recognize the many accomplishments and contributions of African Americans, the lives of black lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) people are so often left out of the picture. From civil rights leader Bayard Rustin to community activist Mandy Carter to well renowned inventor George Washington Carver, black LGBT people have enriched our lives.
GLAAD, the African American AIDS Policy & Training Institute (The Institute), the Black Coalition on AIDS (BCA), Gay Men of African Descent (GMAD), the National Black Lesbian & Gay Leadership Forum (NBLGLF), the People of Color Against AIDS Network (POCAAN), Southerners On New Ground (SONG) and United Lesbians Of African Heritage (ULOAH) encourage journalists to include black LGBT people in their coverage of Black History Month.
They offer these suggestions:
Recognize that the black LGBT community is diverse and that no one voice can or should represent an entire community. Black LGBT people encompass a broad spectrum of life experiences from doctors and lawyers to hip hop artists and literary figures. Seek out their and others' stories!
Consider the daily lives of black LGBT people. So often, stories about LGBT communities of color revolve around HIV/AIDS or hate crimes. While these are important stories to tell, also try to think about positive or upbeat stories that might of interest to your readers and which reflect the daily reality of the black LGBT experience.
While it is okay to use terms like gay, lesbian and bisexual when writing in general terms about the black LGBT community, do not assume that all people identify using these terms. Some have adopted the term "Same Gender Loving" (or SGL) or other identities that are more inclusive of both sexual orientation and race. Others may not identify with any terms at all. As you would ask a transgender person which name and pronoun they would like you to use, please ask LGBT people of color how they would like you to identify their racial and sexual orientation identities.
Avoid stereotypes when covering AIDS, the black community and the "Down Low." While silence around sexual orientation stems from homophobia, one should not make the distinction that black communities are MORE homophobic than any other community or that concealing one's homosexuality is a uniquely black phenomenon. These socio-cultural complexities should be examined with respect and dignity for the people they represent
Consult with black LGBT leaders and organizations if you have questions about complex issues. When dealing with an issue that is unfamiliar, these community leaders and experts can offer invaluable resources that can assist you in providing the best possible coverage.
While most of the emphasis has been placed on black gay men and HIV/AIDS, few people have addressed HIV/AIDs risks and prevalence in the lesbian community, including increasing infections among lesbians of color. Last year GMAC issued this report:
Lesbians at Risk for HIV, GMHC Report Shows