Black Gay Pride fights to ‘let liberation ring’
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Posted By: Cyanide Cynic on September 09, 2005 Activists focus on abusive churches, internalized conflicts From: http://thebigblackblog.blogspot.com By RYAN LEE Friday, September 09, 2005 Standing in front of the steps of the Georgia State Capitol on Monday, Montee Evans evoked memories of a previous civil rights leader from this state who used his booming voice and eloquent rhetoric to call his people to the fight for liberation. “We as black same-gender loving people and transgender individuals don’t realize that it’s our America too, and Atlanta —‑which we claim to be the black Mecca — this is our Atlanta too,” Evans said during a rally following the fifth annual Stand Up & Represent March, one of the final events of Atlanta’s Black Gay Pride held last weekend. About 150 people took part in the Sept. 5 march, which was sponsored by In The Life Atlanta, the group that organized Pride events throughout Labor Day Weekend. The march started at the Martin Luther King Jr. Center, wound through the Sweet Auburn neighborhood and ended at the state Capitol. Evans was the final speaker during the rally at the Gold Dome, and implored those attending to work to make the world better for all gay, lesbian and transgender people. “We must let liberation ring, and free up those brothers, sisters and transgender youth who feel like they have to hide part of themselves in order to proclaim their wholeness to the world,” Evans said. The early morning march attracted participants from as far away as Alabama, Virginia and Tennessee, as well as several politicians running for office in Atlanta. Kwanza Hall, a member of the Atlanta School Board and candidate for the Atlanta City Council, courted gay support for his District 2 campaign, as did gay candidate Keisha Sean Waites, who is running for the District 12 seat. Montrell Walker, a candidate for District 10 on the city council, and council member at-large hopeful Dwanda Farmer also made campaign pitches at the Stand Up & Represent march. Gay state Rep. Karla Drenner (D-Avondale Estates) and Rep. “Able” Mable Thomas (D-Atlanta) were the only elected officials to participate in the march, although several politicians made appearances at ITLA events throughout the weekend. Standing up to churches For the third time in her tenure, Mayor Shirley Franklin welcomed about 300 people to the city during ITLA’s opening ceremony at the Sheraton Midtown Hotel at Colony Square. Franklin was showered with applause after giving brief remarks about how she was elected to represent all Atlanta residents to the best of her ability. City Council member at-large H. Lamar Willis participated in a Black Pride luncheon Sept. 3, explaining that his close relationship to gay and lesbian voters and organizations stems from a gay man helping his single mother raise three young children when Willis was younger. “I feel like the reason I can fight for your issues is because about 90 percent of your issues are identical to mine,” Willis said. The luncheon touched on a host of issues, including gay Muslims, the HIV rate among black gay and bisexual men, gay inclusion in the Millions More Movement and how to combat the homophobic rhetoric endemic to many black churches. “It’s not going to end until the LGBT community [stands up] and says, ‘Preacher, enough is enough,’” Rev. Kenneth Samuel, a heterosexual pastor at the gay-friendly Victory Church in Stone Mountain, told those attending the luncheon. “I tell you what, open the Bible again, and find something in there … about love, and less about homophobia and hatred. Until that time, we’re going elsewhere,” Samuel said. But during a question-and-answer session following the luncheon, black gay men and lesbians were called to task on the way transgender individuals are treated — including being left off the panel for the luncheon. “You’re talking about bridging the gaps, you’re talking about communications —‑I just could not understand why there is not one transgender person sitting up there as we’re talking about bridging this gap,” said Earlene Bud, a transgendered woman from Washington, D.C., who was in town to conduct a workshop for ITLA. ITLA officials did not have attendance estimates for the weekend by press time Wednesday, but said the figure should be similar to the estimated 32,000 people who participated last year. If you enjoyed this article, Join HBCU CONNECT today for similar content and opportunities via email! |
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Cyanide Cynic
From St. Croix, VI Howard University class of 2006 Member Since August 2005 |
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