#ITLQBM - The Erasure of Black Queer Lives in Media #HERO

Intersectionality Through the Lens of a Queer Black Man

"Take all of those factors and apply which ever resonates to you individually now add to it being out and Gay. We still have to deal with those stigmas that our heterosexual counterparts have to deal with and then some. We are attacked by those who look like us for not cosigning what I described earlier as what it means to be a strong Black man, we are told that because of who we are that we do not exist. IN FACT, we do have the same issues and then we are treated as if we are no longer Black and are still niggers in the eyes of society on a systemic and structural level."

Over the past Couple of weeks the fight to save the Houston Equal Rights Ordinance went into overdrive and that meant the mobilization of supporters and opponents alike. With that being said, queue the erasure of people of color by all sides, I mean it is so blatant! I recently recorded a video about it...

One of my biggest issues about HERO is the media coverage, where they only show specs of minorities and has been very Whitewash and Cisgender in nature. We don't see very many Trans persons, let alone Trans People of Color in recent and overall news coverage. The lack of Persons of Color being represented in this fight to protect an ordinance that is supposed to protect ALL Houstonians is a fatal flaw. We witnessed Council Member Boykins say that the LGBT community is not involved in issues pertaining to the Black community. That was a statement of erasure, erasure that I have always talked about at length. It is a big problem to be a Black man out here fighting for rights of groups that are representative of one's intersections, only to be told by both sides that "you do great work," and then be erased in the same breath. It is not a serious surprise to me that this is happening, because it always has and I for one am tired of it!

This issue has taken on national attention and with national attention comes national media coverage of various forms. One of the biggest issues that I see is that when Black and Brown people are shown at length and often, it is usually the opposition and that feeds into the idea that the Black community is inherently homophobic. The funny thing is that this isn't the first time that I had to address the issue. Last year, Outsmart magazine published an edition of its magazine with a big spread on HERO and I was pissed at the time, at the lack of People of Color. It was in that moment I started a hashtag called #BlackPeopleWhoShowUp in an effort to show that there was actually support from the Black community for HERO. Ironically I gathered all the Black folk around in the lobby of City Hall and we took pictures, which prompted the Mayor Parker to hop in  and it wound up in the news paper!

We need to see a diverse coalition representing HERO going forward, not just behind the scenes, a united front in every way possible. I testified to the existence of People of Color at the most recent council meeting:

My #HERO testimony 8/4/15 catch the shade fest...
Posted by Ashton P. Woods on Tuesday, August 4, 2015

Which brings me to the preview of the new movie about the Stonewall Riots Which is full of erasure as well. According to Wikipedia, "Very few establishments welcomed openly gay people in the 1950s and 1960s. Those that did were often bars, although bar owners and managers were rarely gay. At the time, the Stonewall Inn was owned by the Mafia.^[5][6] It catered to an assortment of patrons and was known to be popular among the poorest and most marginalized people in the gay community: drag queens, representatives of the transgender community, effeminate young men, male prostitutes, and homeless youth. Police raids on gay bars were routine in the 1960s, but officers quickly lost control of the situation at the Stonewall Inn. They attracted a crowd that was incited to riot. Tensions between New York City police and gay residents of Greenwich Village erupted into more protests the next evening, and again several nights later. Within weeks, Village residents quickly organized into activist groups to concentrate efforts on establishing places for gays and lesbians to be open about their sexual orientation without fear of being arrested."

The recent trailer depicts a very different vision of the Stonewall events, in the context that the events were led by Cis, White men and I guess we have to wait for the damn movie to verify whether it is inclusive or not.

To be continued...

#ITLQBM - Blackness & Equality Under Attack (Video Update)

Intersectionality Through the Lens of a Queer Black Man

Waller, TX

Houston City Council

In recent posts, I have discussed at length the Sandra Bland case and on a macro level about how #BlackLivesMatter. On the flip side of the coin, my involvement with the #HERO (Houston equal rights ordinance) has been very active, especially since a rushed ruling just came down from the Texas Supreme Court. These are the intersections that I and many of my counterparts of Color speak of when we are doing the work to demand respect and the decriminalization of Blackness. As of today, I am faced with a choice to testify at Houston City Hall tomorrow during the Council meeting on behalf of HERO or be in Waller county to meet with my cohorts in front of  the county jail to stand in solidarity for our fallen sister Sandra and discuss next steps beyond our planned event on August 9th.

***For some background on both issues follow these links:

http://ashtonpwoods.strengthinnumbershouston.com/2015/07/a-call-to-action-blacklivesmatter.html

http://ashtonpwoods.strengthinnumbershouston.com/2015/07/hero-interrupted-texas-supreme-court.html

http://ashtonpwoods.strengthinnumbershouston.com/2015/07/what-happened-to-sandra-bland-we-need.html

When you think about it HERO intersects with the movement for Black lives in ways that are quite interesting. Here is how: 

*The Houston Equal Rights Ordinance provides protections in employment (both public and private), housing and public accommodations for the following classes as it applies to my intersections:
- sex - race - sexual orientation - color- ethnicity- gender identity*

As a Black man I choose to be part of movements that impact all People of Color for the better and isn't it interesting that regardless of where I stand, I am under attack by the current power structure. In this case the power structure is clergy, government, law enforcement and at its foundation is homophobia, racism, prejudice and bigotry. In a previous post I said "...Honestly, the factors that I have just pointed out are a primer for the real discussion about being a “Black Queer Man.” Take all of those factors and apply which ever resonates to you individually now add to it being out and Gay. We still have to deal with those stigmas that our heterosexual counterparts have to deal with and then some. We are attacked by those who look like us for not cosigning what I described earlier as what it means to be a strong Black man, we are told that because of who we are that we do not exist. IN FACT, we do have the same issues and then we are treated as if we are no longer Black and are still niggers in the eyes of society on a systemic and structural level. Now, let me take that down to a micro level and deal with all that I previously mentioned and combine it with the issues that we experience as Queer Black Men of color. First, we still have to deal with racism from a group that we are supposedly part of and are “welcome” to, which is the mainstream LGBT community. In many ways we are shut out by mainstream White gays unless we bring something to the table that they just cannot function without, DIVERSITY...We are only needed when it’s beneficial and then we have to live in our poverty that people think we don’t experience. We work in jobs that not only attack our race systemically and structurally, now we have the vector of homophobia in the work place to deal with. In fact, the structural and systematic homophobia that plague the LGBT community at large is much worse on people of color due to the same racial barriers to access as our heterosexual counterparts. We work in low paying jobs that range from fast food to hospitality and then we have to deal with being looked down upon by the ones that look like us and are gay like us who are making some good pay and etc. There is an overriding theme that we are being attacked from all sides, do you see it?"

When I wrote this, I had no clue that it would be so relevant to my feelings and what I am currently experiencing. I feel extremely stressed out and emphasis on being under attack. Do you know what it feels like to have people vying to be Mayor of Houston, currently elected/appointed judges tell me and so many others that an ordinance that protects me as an individual in six different ways is void in the eyes of the state of Texas. It is a constant feeling of siege when I hear about the loss of a Black life at the hands of some cop who likes to use excessive force and abuses his/her power. There is no way that Sandra Bland killed herself and it is clear that this is a cover up of epic proportions. Black Lives truly do matter and intersectionally speaking, this is the time to rise up, not just for the protections from discrimination and for law enforcement to do right by us. The time is now to rise up and recognize that we are being pushed out of affordable housing while being moved to the outskirts of the city, we lack access good healthcare facilities, and our kids are sent to schools in one of the most segregated school districts in the country that has a focus on the early criminalization of students. Who expels a kindergartner? WE are under a level of attack that cant be quantified or measured, we need our voting rights restored, we need affirmative action to be protected! What good is it if I can get same sex married at city hall and walk out to the possibility of some bigot protesting my rights, a cop ready to put his bullet in my brain, the prospect of losing my job for being gay, and a host of other issues not being discussed. Lets expose the hate, racism, and bigotry where ever it may be hiding....

#HERO Interrupted - Texas Supreme Court Ruling

Yesterday the Texas Supreme Court ruled in favor of the opponents of the Houston Equal Rights Ordinance. This comes as Dave Wilson's law suit to change the city charter with his rejected petition that was signed and supported by Mayoral candidate Ben Hall. You can read what I wrote about from that angle HERE and HERE. In its ruling the court ordered the Houston City Council to repeal an LGBT nondiscrimination ordinance it passed in 2014 or put a referendum opponents had sought on this November’s ballot.

 “Once the City Council received the City Secretary’s certification, it had a ministerial duty to act,” the court stated. “If the City Council does not repeal the ordinance by August 24, 2015, then by that date the City Council must order that the ordinance be put to popular vote during the November 2015 election.” 

Here is Texas Supreme court ruling: http://www.txcourts.gov/media/1047360/140667.pdf

Join

Protect HERO Meeting

Tomorrow at 12:30pm

Resurrection Metropolitan Community Church in Houston, TexasBrad Pritchett invited you to HOUequality's event

MAKE A DONATION:

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HOUequality is an information clearinghouse regarding the Houston Equal Rights Ordinance

HOUEQUALITY.NATIONBUILDER.COM

Here is some background on HERO:

During the first half of 2014 the effort to passed  HERO was under way and it was met with delays, protests and support. The ordinance on the table would protect 15 classes of citizens and give a way to affordably challenge those who commit discrimination.

*Houston Equal Rights Ordinance provides protections in employment (both public and private), housing and public accommodations for the following classes:

- sex                          - age                                         - disability
- race                         - familial status                        - sexual orientation
- color                        - marital status                         - genetic information
- ethnicity                  - military status                        - gender identity
- national origin         - religion                                  - pregnancy

Here is the Ordinance:

Since its passage in an 11-6 vote of the City Council on May 28, 2014:

In July, after thirty days of collecting signatures, opponents of the ordinance turned in a petition that they claimed to be  more than the minimum number of signatures needed to trigger a November 2014 vote on whether to repeal the measure. Once the city received the petition, the City Secretary's office had 30 days to verify the alleged 50,000 signatures that HERO opponents collected.  The required minimum threshold to beat HERO was 17,269 signatures from registered Houston voters. The issue that opponents attacked the ordinance for, boiled down to the protections it extends to Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and  mainly transgender residents.

They basically used the "the man dressed as a woman to rape women and children" argument which is disproven by this:

Houston Penal Code: Sec. 28-20. Entering restrooms of opposite sex.permanent link to this piece of content It shall be unlawful for any person to knowingly and intentionally enter any public restroom designated for the exclusive use of the sex opposite to such person's sex without the permission of the owner, tenant, manager, lessee or other person in charge of the premises, in a manner calculated to cause a disturbance. (Code 1968, § 28-42.6; Ord. No. 72-904, § 2, 6-2-72)

The community got together to do an independent count and verification of the signatures and by or count, there was fraud, forgeries and etc.  Then in the first week of August, in compliance with the city rules, Mayor Annise Parker and then City Attorney Dave Feldman released their findings on the petition count. As I was at the press conference here is what Feldman had to say: "There are simply too many documents with irregularities and problems to overlook. The petition is simply invalid." With that statement the signatures were declared to be invalidated:



We expected a court battle and got one, the lawsuit was immediately filed:


In between the filing and the final ruling this is what happened:

In this trail there was a jury verdict and a final ruling by judge Schaffer:

2014-44974 HERO Trial Verdict

Herotrial Petition Ruling by Brad Pritchett

The rest is history....

Dave Wilson - Your Campaign of HATE Will Not Win: Enter Ben Hall 4 Mayor

Previously: 

What many of you may not know, is that for the past few months Wilson has been making attempts at gathering signatures to attack the TRANSGENDER community:

"PETITION FOR A CHARTER AMENDMENT TO PROHIBIT MEN (WHO PERCEIVE OR EXPRESS THEMSELVES AS WOMEN) FROM USING WOMEN'S SEX - SEGREGATED FACILITIES OR WOMEN (WHO PERCEIVE OR EXPRESS THEMSELVES AS MEN) FROM USING THE MEN'S SEX - SEGREGATED FACILITIES."

Now look closer at the petition, which he mailed out to Houstonians:

- He already has their voter registration info on the form with a bar code.

- All they have to do is sign an date

This petitions for a charter amendment that would require the city to change all policy so that gender is interpreted as the gender a person was assigned at birth. It would also require "all entities doing business with the city to abide by the same definition."

******THIS IS AN ALL CALL TO THE LGBT COMMUNITY TO TAKE A STAND AGAINST DAVE WILSON, SHOULD THE CITY OF HOUSTON ACCEPT THIS PETITION *******

I want you to know that, regardless of how this scenario goes, this is a warning to the community at large that we need to be ready for challenges to our rights. Yes, we now have HERO and even the right to marry, but Wilson and his friends will try to chip away at us and we need to be ready.

**********************UPDATE************************UPDATE*****************************UPDATE**********************

Not long after making the original post above, THIS HAPPENED:

Then today (7/10/15): "After the city rejecting his petitions, Dave Wilson has filed a lawsuit against the City of Houston.

So yes, another lawsuit with an end goal that would damage our city's reputation.

It should be noted that Dave Wilson is a current Houston Community College Trustee, but rather than gaining notoriety doing his elected job, his quest to deny LGBT people equality is what he has become famous for." - HOUequality

HERE IS THE LAW SUIT:

Wilson Lawsuit by Brad Pritchett

ENTER HOUSTON 2015 MAYORAL CANDIDATE BEN HALL

While I was in Phoenix, AZ it was reported by a couple of organizations HOUequality & Houston Stonewall Young Dems that none other than Ben Hall Signed the petitions that my last post talked about:

Now at this point I have always made it known that a vote for Ben Hall is a vote against yourself! He released a statement on his website stating that he signed the petition:

 

Ben Hall you are a BIGOT and you need to come to terms with that and soon, these are not "false accusations" that we are aiming at you. You said, "I proudly signed the petition" which means that you are continuing the disproved and idiotic assertion that the Houston Equal Rights Ordinance allows a "male sexual predator to simply dress up as a woman to gain access to a woman’s restroom." You know that what you are saying is baseless and is a straight up lie used evoke an irrational fear of transgender Houstonians.

Houston Penal Code: Sec. 28-20. Entering restrooms of opposite sex.permanent link to this piece of contentIt shall be unlawful for any person to knowingly and intentionally enter any public restroom designated for the exclusive use of the sex opposite to such person's sex without the permission of the owner, tenant, manager, lessee or other person in charge of the premises, in a manner calculated to cause a disturbance. (Code 1968, § 28-42.6; Ord. No. 72-904, § 2, 6-2-72)

The Houston Equal Rights Ordinance provides protections in employment (both public and private), housing and public accommodations for the following classes:

- sex                          - age                                         - disability
- race                         - familial status                        - sexual orientation
- color                        - marital status                         - genetic information
- ethnicity                  - military status                        - gender identity
- national origin         - religion                                  - pregnancy

I ask you to reconsider if you plan on voting for Ben Hall, He is not the right person to lead Houston and for more  thoughts please check out what Monica Roberts had to say on Transgriot...

Dave Wilson - Your Campaign of HATE Will Not Win - UPDATE

Once again the haters in Houston have nothing better to do but to attack the LGBT community, more specifically the Transgender community.  I for one am tired of all of Anti - LGBT rhetoric that you and your elected and clergy friends are trying to use against me and community. At this point in the game YOU LOST, you lost against HERO (so far), and you damn sure lost your fight against LGBT community gaining the right to get married. 

For some time you have made attempts to disrupt the live of millions of people, not just LGBT folks. Your last attempt at office was a sham, yes, you won at the expense of a predominantly Black community who lacks the resources to research and properly vet who they are voting for. You are a predator of the worst kind, with full awareness of the cost associated with your attempts to get were you want in order to do nothing with the power you desire. In Wilson's own words, when challenged by KHOU during their story on his PRETENDING TO BE BLACK to get elected to the HCC Board of Trustees: "Every time a politician talks, he's out there deceiving voters."

"Wilson, a gleeful political troublemaker, printed direct mail pieces strongly implying that he's black. His fliers were decorated with photographs of smiling African-American faces -- which he readily admits he just lifted off websites -- and captioned with the words Please vote for our friend and neighbor Dave Wilson.

One of his mailers said he was Endorsed by Ron Wilson, which longtime Houston voters might easily interpret as a statement of support from a former state representative of the same name who's also African-American. Fine print beneath the headline says Ron Wilson and Dave Wilson are cousins, a reference to one of Wilson's relatives living in Iowa." - KHOU

Don't you mean that every time you "talk" that you are "out there deceiving voters?' It is no secret that you are strongly anti LGBT, you thought that you were hiding in plain sight. We know who you are sir and how you have tried to spread hate for years. Parading around as a Democrat and a Republican with the same consistent platform of half assed, disproven, hate-filled anti LGBT rhetoric. It may have been successful with that 2001 proposition to ban city employee benefits for same-sex or unmarried partners, but mark my words, you WILL GO DOWN AND HARD.

From the Houston Chronicle in Wilson's own words: (11/7/2001)

"Gay rights, a theme in several city elections of the last 25 years, was the burning issue. Calling homosexuality a sin, sign company owner and conservative activist Dave Wilson forced the city charter change proposal onto the ballot by gathering signatures from more than 20,000 voters.

He started the movement in February after Mayor Lee Brown, a gay-rights supporter, proposed that the same-sex partners of city workers be eligible for the benefits. Brown put the idea on hold later with the agreement of gay leaders. But Wilson, a former candidate for mayor and councilman, pressed on with the referendum.

"We are very pleased at the outcome," Wilson said Tuesday night. "There are some things that need to happen to continue with the effort for family values and marriage in this community."
Wilson, outspent by his campaign opposition, said he would have piled up a more impressive victory if "the Christian community" had joined his cause publicly.

"Questions need to be asked" about the reluctance of conservatives to campaign for his proposition, he said.

Wilson said he spent about $100,000 of his own money on the campaign through his organization called Houstonians for Family Values, and raised about $30,000 more. His opposition, People for a Fair Houston, spent roughly three times more and was steered by Grant Martin, re-election campaign manager for Annise Parker, City Council's only openly gay member.

Martin said Tuesday night that a victory for Wilson meant that advocates of equal rights for gays need to do a better job of educating voters about such issues."

What many of you may not know, is that for the past few months Wilson has been making attempts at gathering signatures to attack the TRANSGENDER community:

"PETITION FOR A CHARTER AMENDMENT TO PROHIBIT MEN (WHO PERCEIVE OR EXPRESS THEMSELVES AS WOMEN) FROM USING WOMEN'S SEX - SEGREGATED FACILITIES OR WOMEN (WHO PERCEIVE OR EXPRESS THEMSELVES AS MEN) FROM USING THE MEN'S SEX - SEGREGATED FACILITIES."

Now look closer at the petition, which he mailed out to Houstonians:

- He already has their voter registration info on the form with a bar code.

- All they have to do is sign an date

This petitions for a charter amendment that would require the city to change all policy so that gender is interpreted as the gender a person was assigned at birth. It would also require "all entities doing business with the city to abide by the same definition."

******THIS IS AN ALL CALL TO THE LGBT COMMUNITY TO TAKE A STAND AGAINST DAVE WILSON, SHOULD THE CITY OF HOUSTON ACCEPT THIS PETITION *******

I want you to know that, regardless of how this scenario goes, this is a warning to the community at large that we need to be ready for challenges to our rights. Yes, we now have HERO and even the right to marry, but Wilson and his friends will try to chip away at us and we need to be ready.

**********************UPDATE************************UPDATE*****************************UPDATE**********************