Panel Considers Anti-Gay Bias in Black Community

A panel discussion held yesterday in the Science Center tackled the issue of homophobia within the black community—at Harvard and beyond.

The BOND- and Black Students Association (BSA)-sponsored event, entitled “The Perils of Silence: Homophobia in the Black Community,” was moderated by BSA political action director Fred O. Smith ’04 and included girlspot co-chair Chanda Prescod-Weinstein ’03, Eddie A. Bruce ’02, former Democratic District of Columbia representative Sabrina Sojourner and former senior Clinton adviser Keith Boykin.

The undergraduates on the panel discussed how they saw homophobia in the black community on campus.

“I was the only black woman there,” Prescod-Weinstein said about attending her first Bisexual Gay Lesbian Transgendered and Supporters Association (BGLTSA) meeting and then her first girlspot meeting.

Last year’s living wage campaign was the first time “identity groups like BSA and BGLTSA got together for a progressive cause,” Bruce said.

Despite co-sponsoring the event, few members of the BSA leadership were in attendance.

“I see the leadership of BOND here, but I don’t see the leadership of BSA here. All you see is the political action chair [of the BSA],” Prescod-Weinstein said.

Only three members of the 10-member BSA board were present, said Smith, who is also co-chair of BGLTSA.

“They all did e-mail me ahead of time and send their apologies [for not attending],” Smith said.

When the panel discussion opened to questions, many audience members took the opportunity to talk about areas in which they felt the panel fell short.

“Most of the time was spent qualifying their statement that homophobia in the black community was not more rampant than in other communities instead of focusing on the core issue of homophobia and the black community,” Cheryl Sherrod ’04 said to the group.

The panel took the audience feedback in a positive manner.

“I’m actually enjoying this interaction because it’s allowing me to refine my statements from earlier,” Prescod-Weinstein said.

Smith eventually had to limit questions because of limited time and the repartee between audience members and the panel.

The panel discussion lasted a little over two hours.

“The really interesting stuff started coming out in the last hour,” Toby D. Anekwe ’03 said. “I wish they could come back because I still had comments to make.”

Yesterday’s discussion was the first in a series of four the BSA plans for the year. The next lecture, tentatively set for December, will focus on the post-Civil Rights era.

The BSA hopes to co-sponsor events with other student organizations such as the Harvard College Democrats and Harvard Republican Club, Smith said.