18 November 2008, 2:25 pm
3 Comments
Race: Prop 8 Does Not Justify Racism
Tags: poc
There has been much recent debate on this site about the role that black voters played in the passing of Proposition 8 and the so-called black homophobia behind it. Local blogger Joey Bahamas (who has written for TNG before) shared his views on the issue on his own blog.
The post is entitled JB on Prop 8 and is worth reading in it’s entirety. Joey supplies us the following introduction and I encourage everyone to read the original post (at the above link) and give us your opinions. And when you’re done doing that, you can read about Joey’s slow transformation into Donna Summer:
Sometimes working within the LGBT movement affords one a different perspective on things. Being black, gay and an immigrant working within the LGBT movement often affords one several different perspectives…most of which people prefer not to hear.Whether people want to admit it or not, as a movement, we failed in California. And the Prop 8 fight and subsequent reaction fell victim to some of the longstanding issues around race within the LGBT community.
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Good post.
One thing that you have to remember is that the Gay movement contains the diversity of America in it. There will always be jerks that you don’t agree with. People fighting for the same cause as you will throw rocks at a church that supported Prop 8 when you desperately want them only to peacefully protest. Some gay are racists because some Americans are protests. You just have to make sure the cause, The Gay Marriage Movement, remembers and supports the diversity of its supporters.
Similarly, religion does not justify homophobia.
Thanks for your thoughts on this. I hope that we as a movement realize our missteps and grow from it. I hope that more LGBT orgs and organizers incorporate more issues of race and class in their approach. Also, we look to get more LGBT people of color in leadership positions.
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