The injection of
race into the analysis of Proposition 8's
passage is extremely disappointing. A battle for equal
rights has now turned into an issue of whites versus
blacks. It's sad to see the smoke screen of racism
when rights are being denied from Americans who pay
taxes and have served their country.
In the beginning,
I wanted to stay out of this racialized debate on
Proposition 8. However, after I read Jasmyne Cannick's
opinion piece in the Los Angeles Times, "No-on-8's
White Bias," I felt compelled to speak up.
Cannick is someone I deeply admire and highly respect, and
she is black and gay like me; however, there is
another side of this debate from the black gay
community.
In her piece she
states, "I don't see why the right to marry should be
a priority for me or other black people. Gay marriage?
Please." Cannick adds, "Some people seem to think that
homophobia trumps racism." She explains, "There are
still too many inequalities that exist as it relates
to my race." Cannick lists important issues in the
black community such as dropout rates, poverty, and
incarceration.
As a black gay
man, incarceration rates are as important to me as gay
marriage. Dropout rates are as important to me as the fact
that, according to the CDC, 46% of black men who have
sex with men are HIV-positive. Poverty is as important
to me as the fact that there are 30 states where gays
and lesbians can be fired from their job with no
protection from their government. As a black gay man who has
endured the words "n****r" and "f****t", who lives in
this duality of gayness and blackness, I have a vested
interest in both inequalities.
Cannick argues
that the white gay community "never successfully
communicated" to blacks why gay marriage is an important
issue. I agree there was a poor strategy on
Proposition 8; however, I don't need white people to
hold my hand into believing gay marriage is important.
Black people are not docile bystanders who require whites to
communicate that discrimination is wrong. Just like I
don't need outreach from black heterosexuals to know
that poverty is important.
No, I do not
agree that blacks are at fault for Proposition 8 passing.
Still, I challenge the notion that blacks needed more
"communication." Many (not necessarily Cannick) who uphold
this "communication" argument say, "Only 6.7% of
California is black, so blacks had nothing to do with
Proposition 8," then say, "Blacks needed more
communication!" You can't have it both ways -- either
black Californians needed outreach because they were a big
enough voting bloc or they didn't.
The black
community was not completely ignored. Opponents of
Proposition 8 worked with the National Association for
the Advancement of Colored People. Sure, maybe that
wasn't enough. Still, California is only 6.7%
black. Asians voted at the same rate as whites and,
according to the last census, Asians make up 12.4%
(nearly double the black population) of the people
in California; Asians had just as little
"communication" and voted yes on Proposition 8 at 49%
-- 20 percentage points less than blacks. Do
black folks need extra-special attention for
ignorance?
I don't know if
black people are more homophobic. But what I do know is
that homophobia symbolizes manhood in the black community. I
remember walking through Harlem and saw a T-shirt in a
window that read, "A real black man is a man who loves
God. A real black man is a man who doesn't deal drugs.
A real black man is a man who doesn't have sex with
men."
Homophobia in the
black community equals a "real man." Sadly, homophobia
is a conversation that we, as the black community, are
absolutely refusing to have.
On the issue of
civil rights, some black leaders say, "Gays need to
stop comparing their struggle to blacks!" Sadly, it's the
ruling class that wants these two minority groups to
engage in comparisons of victimology. What it really
says is, "Don't you n****rs let those
f****ts think they have it worse than you!"
Funny thing,
throughout African-American history comparisons have always
been used to fight injustice. When enslaved blacks wanted
freedom in America, they used the language of the
Founding Fathers, who wanted freedom from the British
Empire. What did the white ruling class say? "It's not
the same!" When blacks demanded the right to vote,
there were often comparisons to white women, who received
the right to vote in 1920. What did many white women
say? "It's not the same!" When another community even
makes a slight comparison to the plight of
African-Americans, we are now saying, "It's not the same!"
The black community does not own the term "civil
rights."
While I know the
70% of blacks voting yes on Proposition 8 is a number
that is still being debated, regardless, even if one black
person voted yes, they should be ashamed of
themselves. My great-great-grandmother was born a
slave in Virginia, and at one point she couldn't marry.
Should I not have the right to marry, just like my
grandmother, simply because I am gay?
As a black gay
man, I am constantly torn between two communities. There
is the white gay community that is steeped with racism, the
black community that reeks of homophobia -- and the
black gay community falling in between. Three years
ago I interviewed former Real World cast member
Karamo Brown, a black gay man, and he said, "We have
to make sure that we let our churches know we are not
going to let them judge us anymore. Until we as a community
get better with our homosexuality and say, 'No more!' they
are not going to get better with homosexuality."
I don't think the
black community, gay or straight, has said, "No more."
Hip-hop artists call us fags and we still play their music
in our clubs, cars, and iPods. Gospel artists damn us
to hell and we still buy their records. We sit in
churches swallowing hate from the pulpit, knowing the
preacher isn't all hetero himself. When will we, as the
black gay community, say no more? We cannot expect the
white gay community or whites in general, to do our
work.
