The New Face of Black Leadership: Black, Gay & Proud
The New Face of Black Leadership: Black, Gay & Proud By: Herndon
L. Davis http://herndondavis.com
As we approach MLK Day and as the country contemplates this
year's congressional races, there is a growing concern amongst
the African-American community as to its ability or perhaps its
inability to hold on to its once unshakable political power.
No longer the country's largest ethnic minority and still
reeling from forced comparisons of its civil rights legacy to
the current day struggles of gays/lesbians; the African-American
community is hard pressed to find a new collection of superstar
leaders who can pick up where retiring black politicians have
left off.
Concerns of a waning black political power may be a bit
premature. On the horizon is an array of black political
warriors who've emerged upon the campaign trail to receive the
passing torch of black leadership.
In addition to being savvy politicians who are proud of their
ethnic heritage, these men and women are also proud of being
something else. They're proud of being gay. They're black, gay
and proud and honestly don't care who knows all about it. In
fact black, openly gay candidates are running for public office
at unprecedented levels while a growing elite are actually
securing political office, erasing any doubt or fear of their
electability.
A generation ago suspected black gay politicians would be outed
after their deaths as was the case for U.S. Rep. Barbara Jordan
by Advocate Magazine in March 1996. But today many black
gay/lesbian politicians are eagerly and publicly embracing their
sexual orientation and ethnicity as part of a vibrantly diverse
political fabric that is inclusive of everyone.
In 1992 Kenneth Reeves, became the first black openly gay mayor
of Cambridge, MA. In 2003, Ron Oden became the first black
openly gay mayor of Palm Springs, a city with only a 2% black
population. Meanwhile in Atlanta, it was 1999 when Kecia
Cunningham became the first and only black, openly gay elected
official in Georgia when she became a city commissioner of the
nearby suburb of Decatur. A year earlier, political veteran,
Phil Reed was elected in 1998 and twice there after as a New
York City councilman representing Harlem.
On the national political scene, during the Clinton
Administration, lawyer/activist, Keith Boykin, served as a
Special Assistant to the President and Director of Specialty
Media. In fact, Boykin was once lauded as the highest-ranking
openly gay person in the Clinton's White House.
And for every black openly gay candidate who actually secures
political office or appointment, there are dozens of others who
unsuccessfully run for elected office, but who are still not
deterred by the staggering odds that stand against them.
Community leaders such as Keisha Waites of Atlanta, Jass Stewart
of Brockton, MA, Vivian Paige of Norfolk,VA and Carl Highshaw of
Carson, CA continue to press forward with aspirations of
eventually tearing open the envelope of opportunity for black
gay/lesbians candidates across America.
To assist them in their efforts are three national organizations
that are now fueling the rising political visibility of the
black gay community. The two year old National Black Justice
Coalition is America's only black, gay civil rights organization
dedicated to protecting the civil rights of black gay/lesbians.
The newly formed Black Caucus of The Stonewall Democrats, is a
politically focused entity dedicated to increasing visibility
and political involvement of black gays/lesbians within the
Democratic Party. Finally, The Victory Fund is a 14 year old
political organization dedicated to developing and assisting
hundreds of gay/lesbian candidates across all ethnic groups and
political affiliations to successfully run for public office.
Although much progress has been earned by black openly gay
politicians within a relatively short period of time, it ha not
been without great difficulty. Mayor Ron Oden of Palm Springs
admits that his biggest challenges have been reminding "people
in the dominant culture that I am black before I am gay" adding
that the average person relates to him first as a black man, not
as a gay man.
Oden also stresses that there are still "societally placed
barriers" for him and that it is disheartening that other gays
are not as sensitive to "the challenges of people of color and
of African Americans."
City Commissioner Kecia Cunningham adds that some of her initial
challenges in running for office came from having to deal with
"elderly African Americans who were not very happy" says
Cunningham with her openness about her sexual orientation. She
also says that keeping a balance is another challenge as "there
are a lot of demands placed upon your time and thoughts, what
people think and expect of you" adding that she also has a
family and work obligations as part of her delicate balance.
Dave DeCiccoi of The Victory Fund chimes in adding that "people
of color who are openly gay and running for office face the same
primary challenges as others - developing an effective
fundraising plan and reaching the right voters with a compelling
message, but when candidates have strong qualifications and talk
about the issues that voters care about, sexual orientation is
often not a barrier to winning office."
Oden confirms this fact by becoming mayor of a city with only a
2% black population. He credits his success to three things:
"Knowing who you are, knowing you are who you're supposed to be,
and knowing that you're doing what you're supposed to be doing."
"When you're connected and centered as a person you can't help
but be connected and centered with the universe or God" he adds.
Cunningham credits her initial success to being mentored by her
political predecessor. She adds that "the prior incumbent who
was the first African American and the first African American on
the City Commission took it upon herself to help navigate me
through the waters."
Now in her second term, she credits her success to "staying in
the community which means a whole lot of listening" and being
deliberate in her decision making. She adds that she's worked
very hard to become "more than just a label or a name" by making
a concentrated effort to be both alert and knowledgeable to the
community's issues.
If the past 10 years of political progress is any indication of
what the next 10 years will hold for the black gay community,
the face and the voice of black leadership will soon take on a
whole new degree of diversity at levels virtually unheard merely
a decade ago.
Herndon L. Davis is an author, lecturer, and TV Host of
America's First Black Gay TV Talk show. He can be reached
directly at http://herndondavis.com