AM I BLACK- Renair Amin

Sometimes we have instances where our soul cries out and for me, this is one of them:

Am I Black
It really amazes me
Totally blazes me
That I am only black if I am not gay
I know that people might say
That I am overreacting
Extracting what I want to believe to be truth
There is no use in trying to convince people
How feeble
That mentally we are all on the same level
So I will bury that with my shovel of reality
If you understand my point, will you follow me
If not, you can stop reading right now
Yes, I could crowd you with statistics
And I may do that in a minute
But first let me bear my soul
Now I will not profess to be some radical fist-pumping- afro-wearing
Feminist Lesbian wearing peace signs
While standing high on my podium holding on to my point of view
And please do not get offended as if I am talking about you
I am just saying what I am not
As I plant my anger seeds into a pot of conviction
Because I am guided by the idea that I am not black if I am gay
I listen to what people say
About how we as a community have to fight to stick together
We have to march through whatever the challenges we face
Ban together as victims of race and struggle
The numbers of racial profiling has doubled
And the man has kept us down
Gather around the burning cross that still lights the night
Listen as we hear the latest plight
One attack after another
Believe me, my heart beats for my brothers
And my sistahs
But I would be remise if I did not count my ENTIRE community
So I take it the murder of Sakia Gunn should not have mattered to me
I don’t remember too many people marching
As I matter of fact I remember people marking out reasons why this was okay
Hell she was out late that day
She had no regard for her safety
But really gets me
Is they seemingly excuse the attacker
Talking about after this is over maybe more will learn
How many more of us have to get burned
Beat like a piece of fabric needing to be cleaned
No I don’t mean to sound mean but do you realize
That when “others” have died
They came together at their side
I am telling you, I believe that I am only black if I am not gay
I don’t care if you get mad because of what I say
It is the truth
Right now we are focused on Jena 6
And I am not saying that is not important but shit
But what about our other youth that are rotting away
Defending themselves for their crime of being gay
This here ain’t happen yesterday
We all gathered for the Newark girls
Whose story was only told to their world
Portrayed as a gang…a wolfpack to be exact
If you don’t believe
Then check your facts or at least the New York Post archives
Believe me I do not lie when I speak up picking of the paper
And getting vapors as I read that Aggressive Lesbians want to be men
Or how we tend to think women are nothing but property
Yet it seems to me whenever someone is injured
The media paints the picture with their sexuality first
You can even see the invisible rainbow on the hearse as it drives on by
Do you have the heart to tell me that you think we should die because of who we are
No.
Well I still believe that I am only black if I am not gay
And I don’t care to play the games some play when they say it is not the case
That we are under one umbrella within the same race
Because statistics do not lie
If you do not know any stories
Do a search on homosexual hate crimes resulting in death
And if you look up orientation discrimination
Don’t rest until you have read every entry
I know this may sound elementary
But I am speaking to the dunce that is reading this ready to attack
In fact I guarantee that I will experience some ignorance when this is read
But do not approach me
Instead
Write your community leader
Or preacher
Teacher
Or Speaker
If you want me to be wrong
Start a petition a mile long and lay it on their desk
Yes, prove that I have all my information wrong
Put it in a song and have it downloaded a million times
Hide it in a chorus of a famous rhyme
Spread the word
Renair Amin is saying we don’t support the gays
Tell her she is wrong in spite of what she says
Please
Start a revolution speaking out against me
It doesn’t matter what their orientation may be
All revolutionaries are included
Have them meet secretly in a building
Plotting to show I am misinformed
Do
Whatever
It
Takes to show the nation
That it is about unification
And not about me
But until that day I remain free
To state my case in spite of what you may say
That I am only black if I am not gay

Copyright@Renair Amin. September 2007

ENDA Hits Snag Over Transgender Inclusion

ENDA hits snag over transgender inclusion
House Democrats likely to drop gender identity provision
By LOU CHIBBARO JR. | Sep 26, 4:57 PM

http://www.southernvoice.com/thelatest/thelatest.cfm?blog_id=14507

Matthew Sheppard Act Passes!!!!

Dear Stephaun,

I've been waiting for months to write this.

With your help, the U.S. Senate has just passed the Matthew Shepard Act! I want to thank you, personally, for everything you've done to help make this moment possible. HRC supporters sent 350,000 emails, made 30,000 calls to Congress, and wrote over 5,000 letters to local papers. Your commitment was inspiring. And even Senator Edward Kennedy (D-MA) acknowledged the work of the Human Rights Campaign during debate on the Senate floor.

Thank you, thank you, thank you for your incredible support.

But even as we celebrate this victory – we know we face a tough road ahead. The bill has to survive final negotiations between the House and Senate before it gets to President Bush. Even then, he has threatened to veto it. As you know, pressure from the radical right will be fierce the whole way. Our support must be fierce as well – so we will continue to ask for your support over the coming weeks. It's been nine years since Matthew Shepard was senselessly murdered because of who he was. HRC stands firmly committed to this being the year we finally make sure every American is protected from this kind of violence. We just made history. Thank you for getting us this far. Now, let's see it through to the end.

Warmly,

Joe Solmonese
President

***************************************************************************
MY TAKE: I am so very glad that this bill has finally passed. I have had the opportunity to advocate, research, and speak on behalf of this piece of legislation and although this is a sure sign of progress in the fight for human rights, being a Black Gay Man in this country, I know that the fight is no where near over. As it has been said before, THIS battle has been won....but the war is far from over. Thank you to all of those who have supported progress and progressive change.

Stephaun Clipper-Wallace (aka Stephaun Elite Manolo Blahnik)

Jena 6 March & Rally

This is a video clip of the recent March and Rally in support of the Jena 6 that took place in Jena, Louisiana. Additionally, some comments from three of the members themselves are included in the clip. I hope you enjoy the clip and support this cause by giving it its due attention, but also lets not neglect nor overlook the fact that the tyranny of White American supremacy and entitlement continues to have devastating impacts that can be felt around the country.

SOVO: MANOLO BLAHNIK SCHOLARSHIP

By: Ryan Lee, Southern Voice Reporter

View SOVO Article

Being mr. nice guy in a world of shade isn’t always easy, but Ajmar Millar is learning that it has its perks.

The 21-year-old Morehouse College senior first learned about the local house and ballroom scene when he was in high school and visited family who lived in Atlanta. During one of his trips, Millar came across YouthPride and started a friendship with someone who introduced him to the world of gay houses and ballroom competitions, where mostly black and Latino gay men walk the runway to battle in fashion, voguing, make-up and gender illusions.

“I met a friend there, and we’re still friends to this day, and he was involved in ballrooms,” says Millar, who eventually joined a gay house when he moved to Atlanta for his senior year in high school.

Over the past four years Millar has become part of the backbone for Atlanta’s House of Balenciaga — a trusted brother and friend to his fellow house members, and a fierce runway competitor who is better known as Ajay Balenciaga.

The ballroom category Millar competes in is “Schoolboy Realness,” where judges critique contestants on how preppy and masculine they appear. The “Realness” category is particularly well suited for Millar, who strives to remain authentic in most areas of his life.

“Some people have to act when they go up there [on the runway], but for me, I just be myself completely,” says Millar, who has won five major balls in cities across the U.S. and a handful of victories at the mini balls that take place here at Club 708 every Wednesday.

But it’s Millar’s daily performance in “Schoolboy Realness” — as someone who’s preparing to earn his English degree from one of the most prestigious historically black colleges in America — that’s earned him even more attention among his ballroom peers.

a few months ago, at the suggestion of his house father, Harold Balenciaga, Millar applied for the inaugural Tony Milan Scholarship Fund, which was created by the national House of Manolo Blahnik.

“We started it because for a long time the ballroom scene was stigmatized as all people being criminals, drug addicts and prostitutes, and so it really had a negative cloud above it,” says Damon Humes, the father of the House of Manolo Blahnik who funded the $1,000 scholarship out-of-pocket.

“We were looking for people who made an impact on the community, and who promote positive energy and a positive attitude,” says Humes, explaining why Millar was selected as the first ever recipient of the Tony Milan Scholarship. The honor is named after a Hall of Fame ballroom performer who is also a Morehouse alumnus.

“He’s an amazing person,” Humes says of Millar. “He’s very talented, very intelligent, he works from his heart, he has great energy and he helps people, so he really embodied what we were trying to accomplish.”

In addition to being grateful to receive more financial help to complete his studies, Millar says he is proud to be part of a new chapter in the evolution of the ballroom scene.

“It’s about progression as far as education and advancement — it’s good because it’s not just about balls and winning a trophy, it’s about doing things outside in the real world.

The Trinidad native is involved with Morehouse’s gay student group, Safe Space, the English honors society Sigma Tau Delta, and the Caribbean Student Association. A contributing writer for the Morehouse Maroon Tiger, Millar hopes to one day launch his own lifestyle magazine to empower young men.

“Something that they can read and be interested in, but yet still there’s so kind of substance to it so it’s not like some cliché music magazine out there, or the celebrity trash you read about," he says.

“PLEASE, DON’T BE AMERICAN TRASH,” jack Mizrahi pleads with the folks attending the House of Balenciaga’s “League of Extraordinary Individuals” ball in the early hours of Sept. 3. The legendary emcee from New York City informs the crowd that the ball is hosting guests from London’s burgeoning ballroom scene — which is preparing for the first international ball on Dec. 1, 2007 — and so he asks the American queens to be on their best behavior.

Held at the new Stone Mountain location of the gay nightclub Traxx, the Balenciaga Ball attracted hundreds of revelers who were in town to celebrate Black Gay Pride, including nationally known figures like Andre Mizrahi, Ivy Herrera, Jamie and Raquel Balenciaga, and Jade Cole, a former contestant on “America’s Next Top Model.”

The eight-hour event kicked off at 4:30 a.m., with hundreds of house members competing in more than three-dozen performance categories for more than $5,000 in cash prizes. The grand prize of $2,007 went to the House of Manolo Blahnik whose members conjured the spirits of Freddy Kruger, Jason, Carrie and Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” in their final number.

The crowd for the Balenciaga Ball almost filled the enormous space inside the new Traxx, underlining Atlanta’s status as a premiere host city for ballroom competitions.

“I think the scene is really growing and it’s strong,” Humes says of Atlanta. “At one point it had become like the capital of the ballroom community because of the migration of so many black gay men to Atlanta.”

As part of the host house, Millar — a.k.a Ajay Balenciaga — was ineligible to compete, although he did receive a special shout out during the opening Grand March, an elaborate procession where each member of the House of Balenciaga is introduced and walks the runway dressed to the nines.

“Whenever I walk I try to bring creativity to a category that can be dull,” Millar says. “Recently, I made some shorts out of candy because the theme of the ball was Candy Land. All kinds of candy — everything from Tootsie Rolls to peppermints.

“Ultimately, I want to bring creativity to a category where often times people don’t think outside the box,” he says.

Anticipating The Good

Anxiety About Change

When we find ourselves going through any kind of change in our lives, our natural response may be to tense up on the physical, mental, or emotional level. We may not even notice that we have braced ourselves against a shift until we recognize the anxiety, mood swings, or general worried feeling toward the unknown that usually results. There are positive ways to move through change without pushing it away, however, or attempting to deny that it is happening. Since change will occur in almost every aspect of our lives, we can learn to make our response to it an affirmative one of anticipation, welcoming the new while releasing the past with grace.

One thing we can do is change our perspective by changing the labels we use to identify our feelings. We can reinterpret feelings of anxiety as the anxious butterflies that come with eager expectation. With this shift, we begin to look for the good that is on its way to us. Though we may only be able to imagine the possibilities, when we acknowledge that good is there for us to find, we focus our energy on joyful anticipation and bring it into our experience while allowing the feelings to carry us forward.

We can also choose to do a ceremony to allow our emotions to process. Every culture has created ceremonies to help people make the transition from one phase of life to the next. We can always create a ceremony too, perhaps by burning written thoughts to watch the smoke carry them away, thereby releasing them, or we can welcome new endeavors by planting flowers or trees. Some ceremonial activities such as a farewell send-off or housewarming party, we may do automatically. Society also has built-in ceremonies, like graduation and weddings, which may satisfy the need we feel. Sometimes the shift from denial to acceptance is all that is needed to ease our anxiety, allowing us to bring our memories with us as we move through nervousness to joyful excitement about the good to come.