St. Petersburg, FL—On March 23-24, 2013, the International People’s Democratic Uhuru Movement (InPDUM) held its annual international convention in St. Petersburg, Florida. One of the featured panels was “Black Power Meets LGBT: Protect and Defend the African Community, Gay or Straight!”
The focus of this panel was the need for same gender loving and transgender (SGLT) Africans to be included in the African Liberation Movement.
I participated in this panel alongside Cleo Manago, who has been on the front lines for decades dealing with issues such as African empowerment; behavioral health, wellness and HIV-AIDS, and same gender loving (SGL) community empowerment.
This was truly an incredible experience.
The term SGL was adopted because it is a culturally affirming identity for Africans who are homosexual. The term SGL is also free of the political baggage of the white gay rights movement, which has traditionally ignored or shown hostility towards the liberation of Africa and African people from white colonial domination.
InPDUM stands openly and defiantly against unnecessary divisions of African people
During the panel, it was correctly indentified that the causes of African oppression is colonialism, imperialism and parasitic capitalism.
Africans who are SGL and transgender get attacked and mistreated in this white supremacist system just like any other African person, regardless of their sexual orientation, and should be defended in the same manner.
White evangelical preachers and conservative family groups, with their Eurocentric patriarchal viewpoints (who just a few decades ago would not even let Africans come in the building, let alone pray beside them in church) have been pushing anti-homosexual legislation in Africa and promoting hatred in African churches all over the world.
In allowing this to happen, we have let someone else’s harsh xenophobic distrust and fear of differences influence our communities and attempt to exclude brothers and sisters from the work of liberating African people.
At the same time, the mistake of adopting and following behind the non-inclusive traditional Eurocentric LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) community was also highlighted.
The white LGBT community, since the 1969 Stonewall Rebellion has shown very little support in standing against the oppressive conditions that affects Africans every single day.
They in fact benefit from white privilege themselves, taking part in gentrification, classism and racism just like any other sector of the white community.
The language and terms used in the LGBT rights movement are also not reflective of the African community and have dominated people’s perceptions.
Derogatory terms such as “queer” were terms given in insult to Europeans. “Lesbian” comes from the Greek “Lesbos” and has nothing to do with Indigenous or African people.
Resolutions passed
In an effort to affirm our own identities, a resolution was voted on to reject the term “LGBT” and was replaced with the preferred “SGLT of African Descent.”
Another resolution stood against the medical targeting and exploitation of the community by the pharmaceutical industry, stating: “The capitalist HIV/AIDS pharmaceutical industry has targeted and exploited African SGL men and African heterosexual women for profit and experimentation, and has waged a vicious biological war making billions of dollars.”
Lastly, a resolution was passed to establish an SGL Commission whose purpose would be to advance the work of InPDUM’s Revolutionary National Democratic Program around the question of defense against sexual orientation discrimination.
All resolutions passed by unanimous vote.
In my opinion, and from the comments of the majority of the attendants at the Convention, and those who watched online, the SGLT panel was not just groundbreaking, but to quote one brother, was “life-changing.”
I truly believe that history was made in helping to heal divisions and undo damage caused by colonialism.
I salute the International People’s Democratic Uhuru Movement, which is under the leadership of the African People’s Socialist Party, for taking the correct position in protecting and defending all of our brothers and sisters in the struggle for freedom!
This is a call to arms! To stand with the Movement that sees through the smoke screens trying to split our people up.
This is a call to protect and defend all of our African brothers and sisters.
This is a call for SGL Africans to join the Uhuru Movement.
This is a call for freedom!
ALL POWER TO THE PEOPLE!
FORWARD THE REVOLUTION!
