National
Journalist Discovers 4th Rail of Politics: The LGBT Debate
By Jazelle Hunt
NNPA Washington Correspondent
WASHINGTON (NNPA) – It was a typical Friday night when journalist, author, and political analyst, Sophia A. Nelson did what she typically does: She posted a photo on her Twitter account. It wasn’t a typical photo and it did not draw a typical response.
Nelson posted a satirical photo of three injured soldiers saying, “PLEASE EXCUSE US. WE ARE ON OUR WAY TO THANK BRUCE JENNER FOR BEING SO COURAGEOUS.”
A devout Christian, Nelson called Bruce Jenner’s transition a woman now known as Caitlyn Jenner as “detestable,” “distasteful,” and “confused,” and proposed that Jenner’s Olympic medals be revoked because “Caitlyn Jenner did not earn them.”
And in case anyone missed the point, Nelson wrote, “Bottom line: Caitlyn Jenner is a man biologically and based on her DNA. No surgery can change that. Calling a man a woman is an insult.”
With that, Nelson became an active target of insults.
Among the Tweeted comments: “You are absolute garbage” and “You’re disgusting, please drown.” One person called her a “c—t” in a Tweet that has since been deleted.
Hundreds of responses poured in over the next several days, some in support, but many sharply critical.
“The anger! When did everybody get so angry? That’s what shocked me so much,” she said. “I would ask my fellow Americans in the LGBT community – if you want people to respectfully engage with you and treat you the same, then you have to be willing to extend that to others who don’t think the way you do. We’ve got to get to a place where we can be civil in our discourse.”
Civil discourse around LGBT issues is Rev. Cedric Harmon’s work. An ordained pastor, Harmon is co-director of Many Voices, a Washington, D.C.-based organization that helps create LGBT-safe, inclusive conversations within Black churches and communities.
“I think that some of the negative backlash comes from the very sincere hurt and harm visited on trans folks every day,” he explained. “On the other hand, the transgender experience is just now getting a full public hearing. So people are coming at this with a whole lot of questions.”
Kylar W. Broadus, lawyer, educator, activist, and director of the Transgender Civil Rights Project of the National LGBTQ Task Force, the nation’s oldest LGBTQ advocacy group, also has trying to mend fences between the straight and LGBTQ community.
“Words are very harmful, particularly when you’re dealing with marginalized communities. Trans communities are hugely impacted by violence, particularly trans communities of color,” he says. “So if we allow people to say what they want, those words roll into bigger hate. And if we don’t dispel the notion immediately, it ramps up.”
The National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs finds that trans women of color accounted for 72 percent of all LGBTQ people murdered in 2013. At the start of 2015, a Black trans woman was murdered every week for six consecutive weeks. The National Center for Transgender Equality finds that almost half of all Black trans women have been incarcerated at some point, and several groups report that the rate of suicide/suicidal thoughts and attempts among transgender people is around 40 percent.
Ronald Moore serves as president and co-founder of the LGBT Faith Leaders of African Descent, said. “You can have different opinions, that’s just the reality. When you start to act on those feelings or say things that impact other people, that’s when it becomes problematic.”
The political conversation around LGBTQ issues has advanced dramatically over the past three decades. One by one, states have been grappling with same-sex marriage. A Supreme Court decision on the matter is imminent.
Nelson recalled, “Back in 2012 when I was covering the White House…the president switched his position. It caused an uproar in a lot of communities, the Black community, the faith community. Like a lot of people of faith, [I said] don’t believe that marriage between two men or marriage between two women is Biblical and allowable under God’s law.”
Professor Michael Eric Dyson referred to Nelson and others as “sexual rednecks.” Later, MSNBC hosted a televised debate between the two, during which Dyson apologized. But some people on social media weren’t so amicable. Nelson said she has received written threats, even her home.
Nelson, who also holds a law degree, has always felt that LGBT Americans should enjoy a range of civil and human rights, from living and worshipping in peace to adopting children.
“If I were on the Supreme Court I would vote for same sex marriage even though I don’t agree with it, because under the law…I believe the Supreme Court has no other outcome,” she said, adding that an exception should be made for clergy who do not wish to officiate same-sex marriages, and that the law should define marriage as just two adults.
Rev. Harmon said in the case of transgender people, strangers will even cross the line of what is socially acceptable with questions and comments about genitals.
“The burden of having to check every one of those very normal activities is a huge burden every day,” he said. “That’s not a fair or comfortable way of living.”
According to the Pew Research Center, 51 percent of Americans support gay marriage and 42 percent oppose. Also, 72 percent of Americans feel it will be “inevitably” legalized, up from 59 percent in 2004. For the first time, a majority of Americans (63 percent) believe LGBT people should be accepted by society and that people cannot change their orientation (60 percent).
Still, 53 percent of Americans either do not believe or are unsure about whether gender and sexuality are set before birth. And among the 13 percent of Americans who don’t know any LGBT people, 58 percent oppose same-sex marriage.
“This gay, lesbian, transgender community has power that I’ve never seen before. And they have the power to shut down anything with threats of, ‘If you speak out, we will curse you, we’ll attack you, we’ll label you.’ I’ve had a couple corporate engagements canceled…because I don’t agree with same-sex marriage,” Nelson stated.
“I’m old enough to remember when Bruce Jenner was on my Wheaties box and I admired him. For me to not be able to voice my opinion that a man, who has a penis still, can now call himself a woman and I have a problem with that, and I have to get called vile names – it’s like come on. I didn’t say anything that wasn’t factually accurate.”
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Activism
Oakland Post: Week of May 15 – 21, 2024
The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of May May 15 – 21, 2024
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PRESS ROOM: New AARP Pennsylvania Poll: Black Voters 50+ Say Social Security, Inflation, and Medicare Will Influence 2024 Vote
NNPA NEWSWIRE — “With inflation and the rising costs of living squeezing all Pennsylvania households, Black voters 50+ are clearly looking for leaders with a plan,” said Bill Johnston-Walsh, AARP Pennsylvania State Director. “Candidates would be wise to listen to their opinions and concerns if they want to win in November.”
The post PRESS ROOM: New AARP Pennsylvania Poll: Black Voters 50+ Say Social Security, Inflation, and Medicare Will Influence 2024 Vote first appeared on BlackPressUSA.
AARP Pennsylvania’s first 2024 election survey shows that candidates should pay close attention to Pennsylvanian voters ages 50 and older and highlights the priorities and concerns of Black voters ages 50 and older that will likely influence the outcome of the 2024 elections. Seventy-nine percent of Black voters in Pennsylvania are extremely motivated to vote this year. When asked about the issues that are important as they decide whom to vote for this November, older Black voters cited Social Security (92% say extremely or very important), Medicare (89%), policies to help seniors live independently at home as they age (87%), the cost of prescription drugs (86%) as key issues. Social Security and Medicare emerged as their top priority issue in their vote for Senate this year, with nearly twice as many Black voters 50+ choosing Social Security and Medicare as any of the other dozen issues tested.
“With inflation and the rising costs of living squeezing all Pennsylvania households, Black voters 50+ are looking for leaders with a plan,” said Bill Johnston-Walsh, AARP Pennsylvania State Director. “Candidates would be wise to listen to their opinions and concerns if they want to win in November.” Among Black voters 50+, President Joe Biden (D) leads former President Donald Trump (R) by a large margin: 84% to 8%. In the race for U.S. Senate, Senator Bob Casey (D) leads Dave McCormick 87% to 7%.
Other key takeaways include:
- 96% of Black voters 50+ say they are more likely to vote for a candidate for the U.S. Senate who advocated making sure workers get the Social Security they paid for through a lifetime of hard work.
- Four of the five issues measured as cost concerns are important to many Black voters 50+: health care/prescription drugs, utilities, food, and housing; and
- 58% of Black voters 50+ are worried about their financial situation including 63% of women. Health care/prescription drugs and housing are the biggest cost concerns.
- 66% of Black voters 50+ and 73% of Black voters 65+ say Social Security is or will be a major source of their income.
AARP commissioned the bipartisan polling team of Fabrizio Ward & Impact Research to conduct a survey. The firms interviewed 1,398 likely Pennsylvania voters, which includes a statewide representative sample of 600 likely voters, with an oversample of 470 likely voters aged 50 and older and an additional oversample of 328 Black likely voters aged 50 and older, between April 24-30, 2024. The interviews were conducted via landline, cellphone, and SMS-to-web. The margin of sampling error for the 600 statewide samples is ±4.0%; for the 800 total sample of voters 50+ is ±3.5%; for the 400 total sample of Black voters 50+ is ±4.9%.
View the full survey results at aarp.org/PApolling.
For more information on how, when, and where to vote in Pennsylvania, visit aarp.org/PAVotes.
The post PRESS ROOM: New AARP Pennsylvania Poll: Black Voters 50+ Say Social Security, Inflation, and Medicare Will Influence 2024 Vote first appeared on BlackPressUSA.
#NNPA BlackPress
Calif. Anti-Sex Trafficking Advocates Discuss Competing Bills, Strategies
OAKLAND POST — “It is time to send a thorough message that if you seek to buy a child for sex, you will pay the highest criminal penalties in this state,” said the Rev. Shane Harris, a San Diego-based activist, former foster youth and founder of the Peoples Association of Justice Advocates, (PAJA), a national civil rights organization and policy think tank. Harris, who was speaking at a rally at the State Capitol earlier this month, was speaking in support of Senate Bill 1414, authored by Sen. Shannon Grove (D-Bakersfield), which calls for people who buy sex from minors to be punished with a felony. The punishment includes a two-year prison sentence and a $25,000 fine.
The post Calif. Anti-Sex Trafficking Advocates Discuss Competing Bills, Strategies first appeared on BlackPressUSA.
By Bo Tefu, California Black Media | The Oakland Post
Advocates from across California are challenging state officials and community leaders to support legislation that provides resources and services for survivors and victims of human trafficking, as well as assistance as they transition back into civil society.
Some of those advocates are also calling for more effective state policy to curtail trafficking, a crime that has an outsized impact on Black children, particularly girls.
According to the FBI, a report covering a two-year period found Black children accounted for 57% of all juvenile arrests for prostitution. In addition, 40% of sex trafficking victims were Black and 60% of those victims had been enrolled in the foster care system.
“It is time to hold the perpetrators who take advantage of our children accountable,” said the Rev. Shane Harris, a San Diego-based activist, former foster youth and founder of the Peoples Association of Justice Advocates, (PAJA), a national civil rights organization and policy think tank.
“It is time to send a thorough message that if you seek to buy a child for sex, you will pay the highest criminal penalties in this state,” added Harris who was speaking at a rally at the State Capitol earlier this month. Harris was speaking in support of Senate Bill 1414, authored by Sen. Shannon Grove (D-Bakersfield), which calls for people who buy sex from minors to be punished with a felony. The punishment includes a two-year prison sentence and a $25,000 fine.
Harris said the PAJA is the only civil rights organization in the state that supports SB 1414.
Harris urged other Black-led groups who favor anti-trafficking legislation more focused on criminal justice reforms (as opposed to stiffer penalties), to “join the movement.”
Many of those civil rights groups fear that SB 1414 could lead to the incarceration of more Black youth.
Those sentiments were echoed in a panel discussion organized by Black women advocates on April 26 to examine the cause and effects of human trafficking in California’s Black communities. The virtual event was hosted by the Forgotten Children, Inc, a faith-based nonprofit that advocates for survivors and victims of human trafficking through anti-trafficking campaigns and initiatives.
Panelists shared the psychological impact of sexual exploitation on youth and children in the long term.
Author and educator Dr. Stephany Powell shared statistics and information revealing that African American women and girls are the most trafficked nationwide.
Powell, who serves as the senior advisor on law enforcement and policy at the National Center on Sexual Exploitation said that national data indicates that sex trade survivors are disproportionately women of color. She stated that male survivors often go unnoticed because boys rarely report trafficked crimes.
Powell said that decriminalizing prostitution in California could increase human trafficking. She argued that Senate Bill 357, authored by Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco), which was signed into law in 2022 and legalized loitering for prostitution, caused a surge in street-level prostitution.
Panelist and psychologist Dr. Gloria Morrow shared opposing views on decriminalizing prostitution. She said that decriminalizing prostitution could help survivors gain access to state resources and support.
Despite opposing views, Powell and Morrow agree that the Black community needs resources and educational programs to address human trafficking.
The post Calif. Anti-Sex Trafficking Advocates Discuss Competing Bills, Strategies first appeared on BlackPressUSA.
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