On Thursday, July 16, CNN posted a commentary titled “Gay is not the new black” by Mr. LZ Granderson, an ESPN columnist. Of course, the title caught my eye, but after reading the article, it had all of us here at shesquared.com in an uproar. Here is our response.
While Mr. Granderson’s article appears to be well thought out and even GRAND it simply is not. He so conviently glosses over so many concepts that it shows the very reasons that the QUEER and Black community has problems.
Let’s take examine a few of his points a little further…
I use the term QUEER above because that is what lies at the root of the problem. Our community, as a whole, tends to segregate itself into these divided groups instead of standing behind a unified front. The term QUEER gathers everyone together into one word with out gender or race and takes power back for that word.
As an organizer of many queer events, I have never known blacks to be treated any differently than any one else at these events. I have faced these accusations of exclusion before and when asked for examples of such, nothing specific could be provided. I was always told that it was just a feeling to which I respond – Get Over It!
I do not know of the bar in Chicago called the Prop House, but I am familiar with Bulldogs in Atlanta. The author is too young to remember, but in the day, Bulldogs was a mixed bar for people of ALL colors of the rainbow. There was also a bar next door that catered specifically to black and white men together. When rumor got out that the adjacent bar was closing there was and an influx of patron coming to Bulldogs. By the time the bar closed and was torn down, Bulldogs had been taken over and the black clientele mad it very evident that the old patron were not welcome anymore.
This was never challenged because it simply wasn’t done back then. It was always better to not draw attention to things back then. I do not mean to imply that this was the correct thing to do – but it was the norm for back then.
Now let us touch on the history part and I will try and make this brief. Queer people and Slaves, (of all colors); have been around since the beginning of creation. They have both been repressed and held prisoner against their will.
While whites did in some cases go over and entrap people of color in slavery, there are just as many times that fellow black countrymen sold entire villages that had been beaten in war and captured. This does not make it right and is not an excuse, I simply state the facts.
December 1, 1955 an incredible lady named Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on a bus and the civil rights movement was born. Thirteen and a half years later on June 28, 1969, gay people took that example and rose up for their rights at Stonewall. They TOOK A STAND.
Black people as well as ALL people should be proud that Obama was elected, but even six months into office, there is nothing wrong with people taking a stand and saying…
We have waited for too long silently and we are here to put you on alert that we are going to make you keep your promises.
The problem and solution with all this is that we should learn from our history and not dwell in it. So I challenge Mr.Granderson to take my hand along with everyone else and TAKE A STAND moving past our history into our future.
Here’s a link to the article. Please post a comment below, we’d love to know what you think.
http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/07/16/granderson.obama.gays/
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