Links (Too Black, Too Gay)

You know you love my titles

by j. brotherlove

Yeah, I know. Quiet week for thebrotherlove. I meant to wish everyone a happy Love Day. But you know sometimes Life Happens. Links anyone?

The Phyre celebration I wrote about kicks off Sunday with After The Phyre; A Panel Discussion on the Past, Present, and Future of Black Queer Community. Also, they are also encouraging the global black LGBT blogging community to write about black LGBT history in some way.

Per the email I received from Charles Stephens:

You could discuss your personal history as a black lgbt person or you could discuss a historical figure i.e. Audre Lorde, Pat Parker, Essex Hemphill, James Baldwin, etc…. or an organization: Other Countries, GMAD, ZAMI, Fire and Ink OR an event or moment in history..the organizing around Rashawn Brazaille or Greg Love for exampe.

I admit to being behind in my feeds and blogs. Has there been much discussion on artist Rory Golden’s exhibit See Related Story: The Murder of J.R. Warren? I’d love to read about someone’s first-hand experience after viewing the artistic exploration of the murdered gay, black man.

Queerty reports on the eloquent reaction of newly out John Amaechi to the bigotry of NBA’s Tim Hardaway. In case you missed it, Hardaway’s a self admitted homophobe, stating on a Miami radio show:

You know, I hate gay people, so I let it be known. I don’t like gay people and I don’t like to be around gay people. I am homophobic. I don’t like it. It shouldn’t be in the world or in the United States.

Despite his honesty (which is oddly refreshing), Hardaway may just win this week’s award for knuckleheadedness. I may even delete those naked locker room pics of him from my hard drive (on second thought, no need to get hysterical).

Oh, and despite some scheduling conflicts, the Atlanta Black Gay Blogger Meetup is still on.

I’ll see if I have enough brain cells left to write something re: PHYRE.

And methinks Tim Hardaway doth protest too much. People who live in glass closets shouldn’t throw stones.

And we still want pictures when you ATL BGBs meet up.

Like W.E.B. Dubois and his 1900 exhibit in Paris showcasing African American people in all their variety and their acheievements to challenge stereotypes, I do understand the power of image and, like Langston Hughes, the power of words. I want gay black men to know that they have so damn much to be proud. I want them to know how handsome they are. It sounds silly I guess, but I am proud to be a black gay “race man,” the same as Hughes. Sometimes I wonder if I should care about gay and lesbian black folks so much. But, I do care. Go ahead and tease me now.

Hardaway’s words and opinions disgust me but it’s better the devil you know than the devil you don’t as the saying goes. It’s the people who tell you what you want to hear but secretly hold entirely different beliefs that one has to worry about.

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