Events

“Generations” Celebrates Black LGBT Historical Experience

Published

12 years ago

February 13, 2014

“Generations: Black LGBT History Experience” is a free gala event sponsored by local organizations will take place Friday, Feb. 21, 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the African American Art / Culture Complex, 762 Fulton St. in San Francisco.

;There will be food, art, film and entertainment celebrating historic Black LGBT Americans that have paved and are paving the way. On display at the event will be over 100 autobiographies of Black LGBT movers and shakers from the past and present.

< p>February became “Negro History Week” in 1926, to recognize the many accomplishments of African Americans, to write back into American history the contributions of those who had been written out.

From civil rights leader Bayard Rustin and blues singer Bessie Smith to college draft pick Michael Samms, who could be National Football Leagues’ first openly gay player, the lives of Black Lesbian, Gay Bisexual, Transgender (LGBT) people are often left out of the picture.

It is time to affirm that Black LGBT people have enriched the nation’s history – and who knows this better and than Black LGBT communities?

Facing many challenges, LGBT people of African descent must continue to work on health inequities and social isolation. As HIV transmission rates continue to occur at alarming disproportionate rates in African American men that have sex with men (MSM), efforts must continue to make free and confidential, Sexually Transmitted Disease Infection (STDI) testing available.

Stigma, homophobia, and discrimination put gay and bisexual men of all races and ethnicities at risk for multiple physical and mental health problems and may affect whether they seek and are able to receive high-quality health services, including HIV testing, treatment, and other prevention services.

According to Micah Lubensky, community development manager of SF AIDS Foundations and co-facilitates support group for African American MSM group, “A sense of well-being about one’s history is important, helping internally with the feeling that it’s a positive thing to be gay.

“The reasons for high rates of HIV (mostly have to do with self-esteem issues. If people value themselves more and felt their lives were more worthy, they would protect themselves”, said Lubensky.

Chances of survival after AIDS diagnosis are less for African Americans than other racial groups. At the same time, Black people have many accomplishments to be proud of.

Most of these accomplishments are not taught in mainstream history books, which do not identify an individual as a Black LGBT person.

Even during Black history month, we learn so little about who we are from Black history.

The producers of the event believe history plays an important role in creating a healthy individual and community.

The idea of Black LGBT history started as a small event in 2010, where members of Black Brothers Esteem (BBE) were talking about the lack of Black LGBT history and desired to host a separate event within Black History Month.

Lubensky says the idea made sense to him: “Black communities are not any more or less homophobic than any other communities, but for Black LGBT, the consequences of homophobia may be more devastating, because the community’s protection on the question of race is needed”.

In a climate of continued racial oppression, pervasive homophobia and stigma, it is time to embrace the magnificent history and journey of all Black people in America, using lessons learned to inform us how we think of HIV and how we fight the disease.

For information call 510-575-8245 or email mrjessebrooks@gmail.com

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Oakland Post: Week of July 1 – 7, 2026

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of July 1 – 7, 2026

Published

16 hours ago

July 5, 2026

Oakland Post

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Arts and Culture

Prescott Circus Theatre Presents Free Summer Performance Series

Now in its 41st year, the Prescott Circus Theatre is a nationally recognized performing arts education program for Oakland youth. The circus offers safe environments that challenge Oakland youth, through circus arts training, to develop the skills and confidence to thrive on stage, in school, and in life.

Published

1 week ago

June 26, 2026

Oakland Post

Prescott Circus showcase pathways pyramid. Photo courtesy of Prescott Circus.

By Post Staff

The Prescott Circus, Oakland’s longest-running youth circus, is returning this summer with its free shows. Join the Prescott Circus’s young stars as they share their joys and talents through stilt-dancing, tumbling, juggling, and more.

At the heart of this one-hour show, which demonstrates teamwork, pride, and joy, are Oakland Unified School District students ages 8 – 17 from more than 10 different schools

This is accomplished through no-cost school and community programs for more than 300 Oakland youth each year. Performing company members from Prescott, where the program began, perform and make appearances at as many as 40 Bay Area events each year.

The summer program is funded in part by Oakland Fund for Children and Youth, California Arts Council, Port of Oakland, and the West Davis & Bergard Foundation.

Performances will be held Tuesday, July 14, 11 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. (ASL interpreted) and Wednesday, July 15, 11 a.m., at the Malonga Casquelourd Center for the Arts, 1428 Alice St., Oakland. For free reservations go to

https://PrescottCircusSummerShows.eventbrite.com

For group reservations for camps, childcare centers, senior centers, go to www.prescottcircus.org

A community show will be held Saturday, July 18, 2 p.m. to 3 p.m., at DeFremery Park,1651 Adeline St., Oakland.

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Inaugural Juneteenth Awards Ceremony Celebrates the Fillmore’s Black History, Leadership and Resilience

Addressing more than 100 Black and Asian attendees, San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie stated “San Francisco is reliant on the Black community, and we must invest in this community.”

Published

1 week ago

June 26, 2026

Oakland Post

District 5 Supervisor Bilal Mahmood, Rev. Dr. Amos Brown, Pastor Emeritus of Third Baptist Church, SF Mayor Daniel Lurie. Photo by Linda Parker Pennington.

By Linda Parker Pennington

The Fillmore Community Ambassadors held its first annual Juneteenth Wesley Johnson White Horse Awards ceremony on June 19 inside the newly reopened Fillmore Heritage Center.

The event featured awards for former San Francisco mayors London Breed and Willie Brown, along with Third Baptist Church Pastor Emeritus, Rev. Dr. Amos Brown.

The Koret Heritage lobby at the newly reopened center at 1330 Fillmore St. held a standing-room-only, culturally diverse and multi-generational audience while the art gallery featured photos of Fillmore community members in action, red Japanese lanterns, art and calligraphy, and Chinese artwork, giving the space a multicultural feel.

Addressing more than 100 Black and Asian attendees, San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie stated “San Francisco is reliant on the Black community, and we must invest in this community.”

District 5 Supervisor Bilal Mahmood acknowledged that “the Fillmore community has had a difficult history. Thanks to Rev. Amos Brown’s continuous focus on accountability and resistance, you hold us accountable and continue to inspire us.”

Mahmoud is referring to the Fillmore’s Japanese residents who were forced from their homes and sent to concentration camps during World War II. Black people occupied those homes until the return of their Japanese neighbors and then gave them back, while homes that had been unoccupied were lost. The presence of the Asian community on Juneteenth is a testament to that shared history.

In receiving his honor, Amos Brown elicited a powerful spontaneous call-and-response, where members of San Francisco’s many Black churches proudly shouted out the names: “Bethel AME! Providence Baptist! Jones Memorial! Glide!”

Awards program Master of Ceremonies Shawn Richards of Brothers Against Guns warmly introduced Breed, highlighting her many accomplishments, particularly on “March 16, 2020, when she became the first mayor to shut down a major U.S. city due to COVID-19, saving thousands of lives.”

The audience was captivated by Breed’s emotional speech touching on past traumas, present conditions, and future hopes for the neighborhood where she grew up.

She recalled another trauma of the neighborhood during the City’s redevelopment era in the 1960s, where Black residents were forced to move with a promise of being able to return that was largely unfulfilled.

“We remember when this land was just a field because they bulldozed hundreds of Victorian homes that Black people owned. They built the Fillmore Center, where most Black people can’t afford to live or start their own business. But we are still here.”