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Speaker
Challenges Notions of Race, Sexuality
by Dwayne Brice
On Thursday, author and former special assistant to
President Clinton Keith Boykin, gave a lecture entitled Sex,
Lies and Race in America. As a part of the Black History Month
celebration, Boykin raised many issues that were vital not only to
the black population in general, but also to people of color in the
lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans-gendered communities. In addition
to being the former Executive Director of the National Black Lesbian
and Gay Forum and a Lambda Literary Award writer, Boykin was the highest-ranking
openly gay person in the Clinton Administration.
Boykin commenced his talk by honoring Oberlins abolitionist
past, noting that the school was an important part of the development
of the Underground Railroad, and, subsequently, AfricanAmerican
selfhood. Integral to his agenda for the evening was a prospectus
entitled The Seven Deadly Lies. Key to his discussion
were the following falsities as they pertained to the African-American
community: discrimination is a thing of the past; race is about status
and sexual orientation is about behavior; homosexuality is a white
thing; African-American people are more homophobic than whites; racism
is not a problem in the LGBT community; AIDS is no longer an issue;
and homosexuality and spirituality are inconsistent. For the
most part, his Seven Deadly Lies could not have been more
apropos to what is occurring in todays society, first-year
Donnell Kelly said.
Central to Boykins arguments was a deconstruction of societys
biased notions of the African American gay experience. In his elaboration
of homosexuality is a white thing, Boykin stressed that
homosexuality is a human thing. Mentioning such esteemed
members of the African American gay and lesbian community as George
Washington Carver, James Baldwin and Bayard Rustin drew shocked silence
from the audience. Boykin stressed African-American gay history as
a means of debunking heterosexist stereotypes, but also as a way to
give relevance to the long history of the African American gay liberation
movement. It didnt seem to me that he was trying to manipulate
statistics to prove a selfish point. Presenting them the way he did
left you wanting to do further research, sophomore James Anderson
said.
When commenting on the AIDS epidemic, Boykin noted a number of statistics.
The Bush Administration has allotted about $396 billion dollars to
defense, while AIDS research has yet to see even millions. Proportionally,
AIDS is soon to become the largest known pandemic disease in the history
of the Earth. I am also grateful that Boykin has stepped out
of the boundaries of single-issue politics and used his
intelligence to further causes other than those specifically related
to sexuality, Anderson said.
When talking about the misconception that homosexuality and
spirituality are inconsistent, Boykin made sure to stress that
the Bible, with its own array of inconsistencies, should not be taken
as an anthropological database. The Bible is not trying to explain
and answer history, Boykin said. In this vein, he brought up
the ironic point that the Bible, once a tool used for African American
oppression, is today used by certain black people to oppress LGBT
African Americans.
In raising this point, Boykin urged African-Americans as a community
to remember the commandment: love thy neighbor as thou would love
thyself. His message of love always a message of hope
for me is irrefutable, Residential Life and Services
Area Coordinator Ehrai Adams said.
Boykins speech served as a point of discussion for pressing
issues that have yet to be addressed by the African-American community
at large. He fielded many questions from the audience and intertwined
his responses with personal anecdotes. I liked the structure
of the overall presentation. By that I mean Keith Boykin used various
methods to make his points. He told stories and personal accounts,
used statistics, etc. I think this allowed those with various learning
styles to enjoy some aspect of his talk, Multicultural Resource
Center Afrikana Coordinator Kwame Willingham said.
Fielding tough questions about being post-gay and the
use of his Harvard Law degree, Boykin shone through with thoughtful
and incisive answers. I wish more of us who consider ourselves
allies had been present to hear and be reminded of what that experience
is like on a daily basis. Please bring him back, Adams said.
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