Valentine's Day is tomorrow. So I'm spotlighting the couple, Dr. Ravi Perry and Paris Prince, who were part of history last year when JET Magazine profiled their wedding in their popular "Weddings" section.
When it comes to the topic of gay marriage, the African American community has been slower than the rest of America to change their attitude about the issue. According to a Pew Research Poll from October 2011, 62% of black protestants oppose same-sex marriage.
Isn't that crazy?! Blacks more than anyone in this country should be more empathetic to the concept of equal rights for all.
I'm not gonna dwell, though. We are progressing. With the President's supportive stance on same-sex marriage, Black organizations like the NAACP have progressed to a more supportive role in favor of gay marriage while more current surveys are showing an increase in the number of blacks in support of gay marriage.
So, back to Dr. Ravi Perry and Paris Prince. As JET Magazine's first gay male couple to be celebrated, they've give a face to homosexuality in the black community. By doing so, they've inspired other black gay couples to stand openly and proud while dispelling or at least putting in perspective the destructive stereotypes of black men on the DL.
Keep in mind that that Pew Research poll was BEFORE President Obama supported Gay Marriage openly. After that announcement, support for gay marriage went up significantly among African Americans.
ReplyDeleteA lot of which didn't support it because no one ELSE was supporting it and they didn't want to look bad. Once the President voiced his support it was like people thought it was okay.
It goes back to the Prop 8 myth about African American largely voting it down - it was a division tactic. Months later researchers found that African American had voted, largely, along mainstream lines. A majority voted against Prop 8 in California.