It’s not too late to celebrate Pride Month.
Every June, I try to take the time to learn more about LGBTQ+ history and support organizations doing the work to make our society more just and inclusive. As I talk to my various friends who identify as LGBTQ+, they have varying stories of their relationships with family members, and how they have had to navigate a sometimes-hostile environment at home, at work, and in the world more broadly. During the month of June, we can find ways to support an uplift for our LGBTQ+ friends and family to make our community more inclusive.
I often look to the work of Dr. David Johns, executive director and CEO of the National Black Justice Collective (NBJC), a national civil rights organization primarily serving Black lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people. The NBJC often collaborates with national civil rights groups and LGBT organizations to advocate on the behalf of the unique needs of the African American LGBT community in the United States. Their efforts continue to educate wider audiences through their advocacy and collaborations with organizations across the country. If you are inclined to support the efforts of NBJC, go to www.nbjc.org.
I also follow the work of the Griot Circle, an organization that supports LGBTQ+ elders of color. Their work is so important as we reflect on the number of LGBTQ+ elders who may have particular economic and emotional needs. I often think of my mother’s gay colleagues in the airline industry from the 1980s. When I was growing up, so many of her colleagues were disowned by family members or lost friends and loved ones to the HIV/AIDS epidemic. Those individuals were able to build a network and community of friends who became family, but we must still be aware of specific needs when supporting LGBTQ+ elders of color. If you are so inclined, you can support the Griot Circle and all they do for LGBTQ+ elders of color by going to www.griotcircle.org.
I hope that this Pride Month, we will learn about trailblazing LGBTQ+ individuals who have paved the way for a more just society. When I think about pioneers like Marsha P Johnson, Audre Lorde, James Baldwin, or even Colman Domingo, I realize there is much more I need to learn. I always say, “Black history is American history.” The two histories are inextricably linked. That being said, LGBTQ+ history is also American history. To understand the ebbs and flows of progress, we must know the LGBTQ+ luminaries who helped pave the way for a more inclusive society for all of us.
I also hope that you will take a little time this June to learn more about LGBTQ+ leaders who have made our country and our world a better place.
Christina Greer, Ph.D., is an associate professor at Fordham University; author of “Black Ethnics: Race, Immigration, and the Pursuit of the American Dream”; and co-host of the podcast FAQ-NYC and host of The Blackest Questions podcast at TheGrio.