The first female chair of the NAACP

Last week, the NAACP announced their new chair following the outgoing chair Julian Bond, and for the first time it was a woman.  Rosyln M. Brock is also the youngest person to sit as the chair of the National Association for the Advancement of the Colored People (NAACP).  The Washington Post focused on the relevancy and generational shift of leadership of the NAACP, and how Brock could change things.  One thing that did stand out to me in the article was this exert:

"We have to recognize and to own that we can't be all things to all people, and that there are new players in the space that we operate in who may be able to do some things better than we can."

The article also talking about how organization president Ben Jealous has focused on improving the NAACP online presence.  As well, Jealous has pointed out that work with LGBT organizations would improve the organization presence on those issue.   Brock and Jealous both want to make the NAACP more oriented towards getting the younger generation of people involved in the organization's mission to improve the quality of life of ethnic minorities. 

However, the Baltimore Sun in an op-ed posted a question of whether or not the NAACP will focus on the LGBT agenda? They pointed out how Brock and Jealous are the youngest to hold their pedestals, but the specifics of how will the two work toward expanding the parameters of social justice to include LGBTs of color like those in the military, where they make up a large number of those discharged by "Don't Ask, Don't Tell".  The article also digs into how they can get the "rank-and-file" members to adjust their beliefs on homosexual behaviors and how that like slavery and segregation, it was taught that the bible justified it at one point. 

Personally, I feel there should be some coordination between the NAACP and other orgs on the LGBT issues, but totally partaking into the arena of it would be reaching at best.  The case and point of David Patterson be an eery reminder of what the slippery slope of running to include LGBT issues without pluralistic support will get you especially when you have orgs like Equality Virginia will burn their proverbial bridges with otherwise allies because they didn't get their way all the time.  Some of these organizations seem to have their own agenda first and forehand and then essentially abandon their "allies" in their key times of need for political support.  I would cautiously aide those when possible, but wouldn't throw myself under the bus for somebody that doesn't seem apt to do the same.  REAL TALK.

Poor DC and Baltimore!

I know that those "Southern cities in denial" are both getting hit hard this week by a major snowstorm that has up to 2 feet of snow on the ground in both cities and their shared metropolitan region.  However, the true test to me if a city is considered non-Southern or not is how they react to such an event.  DC failed epicly with their residents all racing to the supermarkets and retailers that sold bread, milk, and other snowstorm foods.  Instead, Baltimore did show it is more Northern than Southern since their residents were quite passe' about the snow, but the city did shutdown which is another sign of "Southern-ness" of their city.  Interesting, both cities mass transit systems are still operating, but the majority of DC Metrorail is underground.  Baltimore on the other hand is a hybrid of both subway and light rail, but they are still operating as well. 

Regardless, both cities are Southern and they can deny it until hell freezes over, but NYC, Philadelphia, etc. haven't nor doesn't shut down for anything.  Hence why they are considered Northeastern cities whereas DC and Baltimore are just pretending to be that, but they know what they really are...

An opinion that appeared in the Baltimore Sun

In this past Sunday edition of the Baltimore Sun, a teacher in the Baltimore City School district pinned his views of the distrubing behavior occuring with black youths towards the SGL/LGBT members in their ranks.  This is in response to the distrubing murder of Jason Mattison, Jr., after his body was found in an abandoned house near his aunt's home, whom he was staying with.  The author asked the simple question that I just asked last week:  Why are black folks so against black SGL males?

As a Baltimore City public school teacher, I hear about one homophobic slur an hour. Usually, this homophobia is reserved for gay men rather than lesbians, who are somewhat more accepted. Even intelligent, educated adults I meet will often surprise me with such prejudice, and this is especially true in the black community.

Usually this prejudice is justified by religious convictions, but slave owners used to go to church on Sundays and quote the Bible too. Gay people have always existed, in every culture and country in history, yet we are told their sexual orientation is unnatural and perverted. What is the threat that these people pose to the rest of us that they must be denied their full rights of citizenship? What disqualifies homosexuals from the principles of equality set forth in the Declaration of Independence as inalienable?

Further, the moral superiority that the intolerant award themselves on this issue offends me even more.

You would think that the leaders of the black community, a group that has experienced so much discrimination and prejudice over the course of American history, would be the last to turn around and stigmatize other people, but the opposite is true.

I asked myself the same question everytime I listen to certain black folks that have issues with SGL males when in reality there are so many of them amongst them just either deeply-closeted or creeping.  I can only speak for myself, that I am out to friends and a number of members of my family, so I don't have any qualms about my sexuality.  However, so many black folks frown upon the being open about yourself in the realm of acceptance or tolerance of SGL males.  Then you see the hypermusculine behavior of males even the SGLs to protect themselves from this stigma with whole faux stance of "swag", "homothugs", etc.  

Now, I don't agree with the urban myth that floats around that the heavy turnout of blacks in states like California and Florida are what mainly contributed to the passage of same-sex unionship bans on the ballot in November 2008, but black folks in general homophobic when it comes to black SGL males.  Black SGL women have much more acceptance and even fetishized by some black males over the lesbianic sexual contact, but the proof is in the pudding...



 

How many hate crimes associated with the South will we have?

First the incident in Baltimore where a black teenage male was murdered, now this incident in Houston.  Ironically, all of them are black males and the alleged assailants were black as well.  I know I usually stay out of this arena of things because it has more to do with your surroundings and the people you are around, but this got to cease and desist.

The teen's mother said since the district's officials didn't do a damn thing about the threats that teen himself informed them about before it occured that they are moving to another district.  It's so bizarre and ridiculous how people are so callous about threats when involves sexuality.

The real question I ask is "What in the hell is up with black folks in the South and the acceptance of black LGBTs?"  I guess too many black males are uncomfortable with their own sexuality that they got to throw a fit and attack someone else who is comfortable with themselves and in their own skin.  Just as I said last week, the South is home to the majority of the nation's black population, but it seems to be the worst place to be open and honest about yourself for black LGBTs aside from the cities.  Black folks, we got to get it together and stop impeding other black folks' happiness.  As the old omen says, "let it be, let it be".

Here's the video of the report from Houston CBS affiliate KHOU, Channel 11, on another teen was beatened with a pipe: