Again, rendered invisible. It’s hard to believe, given the explosion of HIV/AIDS in the black community, that the 10th annual State of the Black Union (SOTBU) symposium, held last Saturday and broadcast on C-SPAN from Los Angeles, had not a single guest on to discuss that topic—or the controversy over Proposition 8 and homophobia the black vote, both real and perceived.
Journalist Karen Ocamb has a great piece over at Bilerico that’s worth your click. A snippet:
Every year, Tavis’ SOTBU is appointment television for me. I find it informative and incredibly inspirational. This year was no exception.
But every year - other than 2005 when AIDS activist Phill Wlison and politico Keith Boykin appeared during Tavis’ “healthcare” summit in Atlanta - I come away disappointed that there are no openly LGBT African American participants. Notice I say “open” because there have been occasions when my “gaydar” went “boing!” - but truthfully, I’m not good at spotting closeted gays, especially among those who have “passed” as straight for so long.
Since the Feb. 28 SOTBU summit followed Barack Obama’s historic election as the first African American president - ushering in the promise of progressive change - I figured Tavis would surely bend toward inclusion and include LGBTs among the representatives from Black America.
This year’s theme was “Making America As Good As It’s Promise” - something the LGBT community in California (and nationwide) have been fighting for well before Proposition 8 stripped same sex couples of their “fundamental” constitutional right to marry.
And there is no bigger constitutional case than the one before the California Supreme Court on whether to invalidate Prop 8. Many civil rights groups (including the 100-year old NAACP - Raymond C. Marshall argued for them before the high court) have filed amicus briefs supporting the challenge brought by gay rights groups on the premise that NO minority should have their fundamental rights put up to a vote and eliminated by a slim majority. What then becomes of the Equal Protection Clause of the US and California Constitutions? And - who’s next?
And as I said above, it’s beyond belief that HIV/AIDS is not on Smiley’s radar. The Black AIDS Institute has been at the forefront of chronicling the disaster that is unfolding (in its report ” “Left Behind! Black America: A Neglected Priority in the Global AIDS Epidemic”) while Smiley is leaving his audiences in blissful ignorance…it’s not our problem. How wrong he is.
More below the fold.