Lift the legacy: Black Trailblazers that inspire us

Black History Month is upon us again; This year we cannot let it begin without recognizing where we come from as a movement. The LGBTQ+ movement for equality is an effort that spans decades, transferred from generation to generation. However, what comes before it has tense centuries. The LGBTQ+ movement would not be where it is today as a human rights effort, if not for the civil rights movement and the many efforts on gender equality led by black people. This year we want to celebrate our black queer and trans trailblazers and basic leaders who helped shape what the movement for an intersectional society looks like today.

Miss Major Griffin Gracy has contributed tremendously through his proponent of transritels. From her efforts that support society on Stonewall riots to her proponent of public health during the AIDS epidemic to becoming the first CEO of Transgender Gender Variant Intersex Justice Project, her inheritance reminds us of the power of intersectionality in creating meaningful change. At Equality North Carolina, we are especially moved by her continued dedication to fighting for trans rights and power.

One of Miss Maj’s most powerful messages is encapsulated with her words from a gripping interview with vice, “We have to rebel, and we have to regain who they are the fuck and let these people realize before they came along, We were honored and worshiped and appreciated and loved.

We encourage you to learn more about Miss Major Griffin-Gracy and her trailblazing efforts through ViceAt Women and the American story or by going to your local library for her memoir, Miss Major Speaks: Conversations with a Black Trans Revolutionary. Let’s honor their inheritance by committing to emerging to our Black Trans community this year at the local level by getting involved in local advocacy efforts, supporting the work of organizations such as Equality North Carolina or educating ourselves on transraries in North Carolina.

Pauli Murray is one of North Carolina’s most notable LGBTQ+ trailblazers. As native in Durham, Pauli Murray’s efforts was multifaceted. He/she was the first black person to earn a JSD (Doctor of the Science of Law) degree from Yale Law School, a founder of the National Organization for Women, and the first black person who is perceived as a woman who is ordained for an episcopal priest. Pauli’s inheritance reminds us of the power of intersectionality by creating meaningful change. Equality North Carolina has gratitude for Murray’s contribution to our legal landscape, religious diversity and acceptance of the LGBTQ+ community, feminist studies and practice and poetry and literature.

One of Murray’s most potent, resonant messages is: “Hope is a song in a tired neck.” Pauli’s words call true when we fight for equality and inclusion in our society.

Today her legacy lives on throughout North Carolina, primarily through Pauli Murray CenterA space for people to participate in art, activism and learning and sharing black history and the story of other social justice movements, a noble tribute to what she gave us, but never enough for comparison. You can learn more about Pauli from his own words in his memoir, Sang in a tired throat.

Fannie Lou Hamer’s work reminds us that in order for us to succeed, we must remain rooted in the experiences and expertise of the most targeted members of our society. Fannie Lou Hamer grew up in poverty, sharkropping in childhood, and was prone to a plantation -tafter in adult age. She became active in the southern organizing movement after reversing forced sterilization of a white doctor. She began organizing with leaders from the non-violent coordination committee and Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC). She was known as one of the founders of Freedom Summer, one of the most monumental voter registration efforts in the south. When we navigate the realities of voter oppression and unlike representation in our governing structures, Equality North Carolina is proud to continue the legacy of the voter’s advocate and protection in the coming years.

There are many good things given to us by Hamer, but this quote continues to emphasize: “Sometimes it seems to tell the truth today is to risk being killed. But if I fall, I fall five feet four inches forward in the fight for freedom. I’m not backing back. “We honor her words through our efforts to ensure that Northern Caroliners are informed and protected when exercising their right to give the truth to power.

We encourage you to learn more about Fannie Lou Hamer and their inspiring journey by reading History.comAt National Women’s History Museumor some of her Speaking or Biographies encapsulated the work of her life.

Andre Leon Talley is near and dear to North Carolina’s heart. Although Talley was not born here, Talley was bred by his mother’s grandmother, Bennie Francis Davis, who performed depot work for Duke University. His love for fashion grew over the years and he received his high school and university education at High and North Carolina Central University. He later worked with influential artists and fashion writers such as Diana Vreeland, Andy Warhol, W, Ebony and the New York Times. In particular, Talley became the first African American male creative director during his lifetime and continued to contribute to pop culture and fashion for the rest of his life. Equality North Carolina remains incredibly grateful that Talley showed the world that North Carolina is full of brightness and creative ingenuity.

Talley reminds us of the critical significance of having a supportive society with his words: “I know what it is like to be bred with unconditional love. In my life it came from my grandmother. “

We encourage you to read his editorial work or memoir, The Chiffon Trenches: A Memoir, to learn more about his contribution to the fashion industry.

Loving North Carolina’s influence on southern organization means to love Mandy Carter’s work. Mandy Carter has been and remains a lighthouse for strength and hope for the southern LGBTQ+ movement. Mandy was bred At orphanages and care care systems in New York and did not become acquainted with southern organization until she learned about cattle through the American friends Service Committee. Their summer work camp exposed Carter to the southern -led civil rights efforts. Throughout his life, Mandy has dedicated himself to building southern organization. She is one of six co -founders of South Lenders at New Ground, a co -founder of National Black Justice Coalition, and even worked for Equality North Carolina for some time!

Students: If you have a college library card, go to David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & ScreenScript Library to get a view of privileges for Mandy Carter Papers Collection. Otherwise you can learn about Carter’s work on LGBTQ Religious Archives Network or Outhistory. In Durham you can look Mandy out and around; She has made the city her home.

Did you know that a black gay man organized the march at Washington? One of Dr.martin Luther King Jr.’s closest advisers, Rustin was a power center for the civil rights movement. Rustin’s rise from his youth, where he navigated in the fighting to have a challenging home life while holding onto his quaker “values”, led him to New York City, where he devoted himself to several pursuits in the arts and eventually joined to the young communist league, an act that lands him on the FBI’s radar. Rustin dedicated his life to organizing, helping to launch the congress of racial capital in 1943, talking about what he believed in, and even landed in prison for draft evasion. It was not until 1956 when he was in his 40s that he associated with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. To Montgomery Busboy Cotter. He continued to serve the civil rights movement despite attacks on his character and his sexuality and served as a most important organizer in the historic march against Washington.

As a writer and artist, Rustin has given the world many gripping thoughts, including this one, “If we want a peace for peace, we cannot achieve such a society through violence. If we want a society without discrimination, we must not discriminate against anyone in the process of building this society. If we want a society that is democratic, democracy must become a means as well as an end. “We appreciate Rustin’s continued dedication to serving our society beyond many. We aim to keep his heritage of centering peace for everyone in the heart of our work.

Go to National Museum of African American History and CultureAt PBSAt National Park Serviceor Read from his own words.

Zora Neale Hurston was a powerful southern storyteller, anthropologist, folklorist and documentary filmmaker. Born in Alabama and raised in Florida, Hurston eventually was trained and served degrees from Morgan College, Howard University and Barnard College. Her dedication to studying and sharing the story of black culture continued all her life and often traveled to learn more about African religions and cultures throughout the diaspora. Her studies bleeding in her fiction and served as a snapshot of what we could imagine that life was as for African Americans and African people navigating earlier times with slavery and colonialism. Some wonder She was even a secret student at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, but it’s not yet validated. However, she served as a teacher at North Carolina College for Negroes (later to become known as North Carolina Central University) and spoke at the Carolina Dramatic AssociationThere met on UNCS Campus.

Hurston always reminds us of doing our research: “Research is formalized curiosity. It is pirring and curious with a purpose. It is a seeker that he who wants can know the cosmic secrets of the world and those who live there.” In this spirit we encourage you to learn more about Hurston through Her official websiteAt National Women’s History Museumand the many works she has gifted us throughout his career and postum.

Who are trailblazers in your community that we are going to elucidate this year? Tell us that!