“If we desire a society without discrimination, then we must not discriminate against anyone in the process of building this society. If we desire a society that is democratic, then democracy must become a means as well as an end.” — Bayard Rustin
Bayard Rustin was a leader in both the civil rights and gay rights movements. He organized and led civil rights protests in the 40’s, 50’s and 60’s. Most notably the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, marching with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., who recognized Rustin’s “expertise and commitment in this area” (Papers 5:390), and earning him the affectionate nickname “Mr. March on Washington” from other civil rights leaders.
Rustin also traveled to India in 1948 to expand his knowledge on non-violent strategies from Mahatma Gandhi.
Rustin was an openly gay man at a time when this was especially not accepted, dangerous even, and thus was often an “influential advisor behind the scenes to civil-rights leaders” (Wikipedia). In the 1980’s, his activism for gay rights became more public, including working intersectionally to “bring the AIDS crisis to the attention of” the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. (CCGSD)
He was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Obama.
Read more: Why The Black Community Should Proudly Support Black Queer Heroes: More people should be quoting Bayard Rustin
Photo credit:
By Leffler, Warren K., photographer; cropped by Beyond My Ken (talk) 09:59, 25 November 2010 (UTC) - This image is available from the United States Library of Congress's Prints and Photographs division under the digital ID ppmsc.01272. Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=12143472
No comments:
Post a Comment