NAACP creates HIV/AIDS Manual for Black churches

The NAACP has joined in fight to stop the rise of HIV/AIDS in the Black community. They have created a manual for church leaders to talk about HIV/AIDS with their members.

Here's more:

Shavon Arline-Bradley, the director of health programs for the NAACP, who helped oversee the manual’s creation, said it makes sense for the nation’s largest civil rights organization to be involved in the discussion of HIV and AIDS.

“People look at us as just civil right rights, and what they’re missing is that health is one of the most pressing civil rights issues of our time,” Arline-Bradley said.

Religious leaders who helped with the manual said black churches have been reluctant to talk about the disease. That’s in part because the topic is wrapped up with sex and homosexuality, often taboo topics in the church.

“Sex is not something church people like to talk about. It’s something they like to do,” said the Rev. Joseph Smith, the assistant to the pastor of the Alfred Street Baptist Church in Alexandria, Va., and one of the people who worked on the manual.

This is a good first step.

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NAACP Leader, Civil Rights Pioneer Willis Edwards has Died

This weekend we have lost a fighter. Longtime president of the Beverly Hills/Hollywood branch of the NAACP, Willis Edwards died this weekend. Willis was one of the few openly gay presidents of the organization. He was a true fighter for civil rights and the recognition of people of color. One of things he is highly known for is getting the NAACP Image Awards televised.

Karen Ocamb from LBGT/POV has more of this amazing leader:

Edwards, who was born in Texas and raised in Palm Springs, was instrumental in launching the NAACP Image Awards on national television. He contributed that expertise to panels such as “Knocking Down the Door: Black LGBT Images in Media” – a standing room only panel at the Screen Actors Guild in March 2009, sponsored by GLAAD and the National Black Justice Coalition with the panel co-sponsored by SAG’s LGBT Actors Committee and the Beverly Hills/Hollywood Branch of the NAACP. 


Willis was honored by the Black AIDS Institute and the Magic Johnson Foundation on World AIDS Day in 2010, along with former President Bill Clinton, actor and HIV/AIDS activist Blair Underwood, among others.

Last year, Willis was a respected and ubiquitous presence during the NAACP’s national convention in Los Angeles July 22-24. During the Saturday, July 23, lunch that featured a very strong keynote by Dr. Gail Wyatt, UCLA AIDS Institute, Willis took the podium and was received warmly with much familiarity and appreciative applause.  During the NAACP’s first-ever Town Hall on LGBT issues, Willis was acknowledged by NAACP panelists and civil rights icon Julian Bond – which prompted Willis to speak his mind with the authority of years from his perch in the audience.

He will be missed to us in LA and across the country.

More info on Willis is here

Melissa Harris Perry on the Biden and Romney's NAACP speeches

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Some Silly Black Clergy Org is still crying about NAACP's Gay Marriage Support

Some, and not a lot, of preachers are still whining about NAACP's support of gay marriage. CAAP
the Coalition of African-American Pastors, brought this up at the NAACP annual convention. Lead by this hater, Rev. William Owens, the group claims the NAACP was abandon the solid purpose of the organization.

Interesting, considering the core purpose of the org. was to fight bigotry and inequality.

Anywho, this preacher said a lot crap like:

"You're advocating for something that's not normal, that's not natural. It's still out of line, it's against moral law."

"Gay marriage is leading us down a bad path," Owens added. "Our young people are already hurt. They're already damaged."

These are, as usual, empty statements. Moral law? Child please, if you can't handle change, Rev. William Owens then go! Get the f**k out! I'm sick of these self-righteous freaks, talking about what's right and wrong.

The hatred and foolishness this group are pushing is wrong and if anything, that's against moral law too.

Romney BOOED by the NAACP over Obamacare

This is a great way to start the day

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Christine Quinn and Benjamin Jealous Speaks Out Against NYPD's Stop & Frisk Policy

Both Civil Rights and LGBT groups joined together to speak out against the messy Stop & Frisk Policy. Here are Christine Quinn and Benjamin Jealous GLAAD has taken the lead in getting this info out. There are more clips after the jump

Netroots Nation: NAACP's President Benjamin Jealous

 



I just thanked NAACP's president Benjamin Jealous for his support for the LGBT community. Truly a highlight of the day

Rev. Keith Ratliff leaves NAACP over Gay Rights

Fake and weak leaders are finally getting out of way of progress. Rev. Keith Ratliff is being a crybaby over the NAACP's endorsement of gay marriage. So he's leaving the organization.

Here's more:

Ratliff has been an outspoken opponent of same-sex marriage, saying marriage should be between a man and a woman. During a March 2011 Iowa Statehouse rally by supporters of a state constitutional amendment to ban same-gender marriage, Ratliff complained that gay rights activists had “hijacked” the civil rights debate.

“There is no parallel” between gay rights activism and the civil rights movement of the 1960s, said Ratliff, whose church has a predominately black membership. “That is an insult to the civil rights movement.” He added, “Deviant behavior is not the same thing as being denied your right to vote.”

But discrimination is discrimination, Keith! You are allowing your ignorance to trump your faith. This proves your faith was weak at best. You are not a leader for the NAACP, we deserve and demand better.

Get to steppin' Rev. Keith. We don't need you!

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Gay Right Groups and NAACP join together to deal with 'Stop and Frisk'

'Stop and Frisk' is a messy ordeal. It's big in major cities like NYC and Baltimore. If fact, it's been reported that the New York Police Department has stopped and questioned over 684,000 people; most of them were people of color.

Once this news got out, groups (Gay and straight) got together to plan a protest.

The Washington Post has the scoop

Gay rights groups are speaking out in support of a silent march being held later this month to protest the New York Police Department’s street stop policy.

Representatives from groups including Empire State Pride Agenda and Human Rights Campaign joined the Rev. Al Sharpton and National Association for the Advancement of Colored People president Benjamin Todd Jealous at an event Tuesday announcing they’d take part in the June 17 march.

I hope this is televised.

Dr. Martin Luther King's Niece & other Supposed Leaders denounces the NAACP

I knew this heifer would show up for her spotlight moment. Alveda King, the Black Sheep of the King family is mad that the NAACP supports gay marriage:

"Neither my great-grandfather an NAACP founder, my grandfather Dr. Martin Luther King, Sr. an NAACP leader, my father Rev. A. D. Williams King, nor my uncle Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. embraced the homosexual agenda that the current NAACP is attempting to label as a civil rights agenda," said Dr. Alveda C. King, founder of King for America and Pastoral Associate for Priests for Life.

"In the 21st Century, the anti-traditional marriage community is in league with the anti-life community, and together with the NAACP and other sympathizers, they are seeking a world where homosexual marriage and abortion will supposedly set the captives free," King added.

And here are other Black leaders that no one has ever really heard of.

 "Many Black people are realizing just how far off the mark the NAACP is with regard to the real issues and the most important problems facing the black community," said Dr. Day Gardner, founder of the National Black Prolife Union. "The NAACP organization was founded by blacks who had an understanding and strong faith in God. They were people -- pastors and congregations who knew that the Bible -- which is God's final word -- was indeed very clear on the immorality and wages of homosexuality and abortion. It is appalling that this one time super hero 'civil rights' organization supports the breakdown of traditional marriage and the ruthless killing of our unborn children -- as a civil right," Gardner said. "In its decision to please the world, the NAACP has turned its back on the things of God, therefore, we must encourage those who know the truth to speak out -- to stand firmly on the solid rock -- to not look to the right or to the left. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. once said: Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter," said Gardner.

Pastor Stephen Broden, Pastor of Fair Park Bible Fellowship in Dallas, TX said, "The black community is suffering from soaring unemployment, an extraordinarily high rate of abortions, a high school drop out rate among black teenagers that is breathtaking, an exploding rate of single parent households and the decimation of black families -- yet, the NAACP is making statements about same sex marriage. The NAACP has proven again to be an irrelevant organization as it relates to issues of survival for the black community." 

These fools have no true ear to the Black community. They are not movers or shakers, so they need to shut the Hell up.  And they need to answer to the Black community on why are they taking orders from hate groups?

Alveda and these goons are nothing but Uncle Toms. Have several seats, please.

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Rachel Maddow talks to Benjamin Jealous about NAACP's Gay Marriage endorsement

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Interesting Quote(s): Benjaimn Jealous

Benjamin is the president of the NAACP

"I hope this will be a game-changer. There is a game being played right now to try and enshrine discrimination in state constitutions across this county, and if we can change that game and help ensure that our country's more recent tradition of using federal and state constitutions to expand rights continues, we will be very proud of our work."
 ...............

"We want it to be on record that the NAACP firmly opposes all efforts to restrict marriage equality. Civil marriage, like all civil rights provided by the government, must be provided equally to all."

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Melissa Harris-Perry talks about the NAACP's endorsement of Marriage Equality

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READ NAACP's statement for endorsing Marriage Equality

“The mission of the NAACP has always been to ensure the political, social and economic equality of all people,” said Roslyn M. Brock, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the NAACP. “We have and will oppose efforts to codify discrimination into law.”

“Civil marriage is a civil right and a matter of civil law. The NAACP’s support for marriage equality is deeply rooted in the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution and equal protection of all people” said Benjamin Todd Jealous, President and CEO of the NAACP.

The NAACP has addressed civil rights with regard to marriage since Loving v. Virginia declared anti-miscegenation laws unconstitutional in 1967. In recent years the NAACP has taken public positions against state and federal efforts to ban the rights and privileges for LGBT citizens, including strong opposition to Proposition 8 in California, the Defense of Marriage Act, and most recently, North Carolina’s Amendment 1, which changed the state constitution’s to prohibit same sex marriage.

Below is the text of the resolution passed by the NAACP board of directors:
 
The NAACP Constitution affirmatively states our objective to ensure the “political, educational, social and economic equality” of all people. Therefore, the NAACP has opposed and will continue to oppose any national, state, local policy or legislative initiative that seeks to codify discrimination or hatred into the law or to remove the Constitutional rights of LGBT citizens. We support marriage equality consistent with equal protection under the law provided under the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution.  Further, we strongly affirm the religious freedoms of all people as protected by the First Amendment.

source

Read more here: http://miamiherald.typepad.com/gaysouthflorida/2012/05/read-the-naacp-news-release-naacp-passes-resolution-in-support-of-marriage-equality.html#storylink=cpy

Read more here: http://miamiherald.typepad.com/gaysouthflorida/2012/05/read-the-naacp-news-release-naacp-passes-resolution-in-support-of-marriage-equality.html#storylink=cpy
Below is the text of the resolution passed by the NAACP board of directors:

The NAACP Constitution affirmatively states our objective to ensure the “political, educational, social and economic equality” of all people. Therefore, the NAACP has opposed and will continue to oppose any national, state, local policy or legislative initiative that seeks to codify discrimination or hatred into the law or to remove the Constitutional rights of LGBT citizens. We support marriage equality consistent with equal protection under the law provided under the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution.  Further, we strongly affirm the religious freedoms of all people as protected by the First Amendment.

Black Leaders Denounces Amendment One

From Greensboro Against Amendment One facebook page

In North Carolina, leaders in the Black church are coming out in shunning Amendment One.


From News-Record.com

The black community traditonally has been more fiercely opposed to gay rights than any other demographic.

But more and more black faith leaders are opposing the state’s anti-gay marriage amendment.

Add to their voices 15 prominent ones in Greensboro, including a Muslim Imam.

• The Rev. Arnetta Beverly, St. Matthews United Methodist Church
• Bishop George Brooks, Mount Zion Baptist Church
• The Rev. Cardes Brown, New Light Missionary Baptist Church
• Apostle Wayne Clapp, Breath of God Assembly
• The Rev. Howard Chubbs, Providence Baptist Church
• The Rev. Micheal Frencher, Trinity AME Zion Church
• The Rev. Joseph Frierson, Faith Community Church
• The Rev. Gregory Headen, Genesis Baptist Church
• The Rev. Nelson Johnson, Pastor, Faith Community Church
• The Rev. Diane Given Moffett, St James Presbyterian Church
• Imam Abdel Nuriddin, Masjid Al Ummil Ummat
• The Rev. Eva Ratliff, Guiding Light Ministries
• The Rev. Clarence Shuford, St. Phillip AME Zion Church
• The Rev. James Woodson, St. James Home of Fresh Start Ministry
• The Rev. William Wright, New Zion Missionary Baptist Church

They said in a statement: “After careful and prayerful consideration, we are persuaded that the proposed Amendment One to the N.C. Constitution would further impoverish and punish so many innocent people. Therefore, we have no choice but stand against this unnecessary and unjust amendment."

Also the head of North Carolina's NAACP Dr. William Barber also voiced his views against the anti-gay amendment.

READ: George Zimmerman's Family letter to the NAACP

Zimmerman Family letter to the NAACP

NAACP President Ben Jealous speaks at the NGLTF's Creating Change

This is just a piece of his speech. Luckily, I was there to hear it all

WATCH: NAACP addresses the Attacks on Voting Rights

The NAACP has created this video to address the attacks on the voting rights of the Black community.

Julian Bond speaks on Homophobia at NAACP LGBT Town Hall Meeting

Here is some Coverage from the NAACP LGBT Town Hall Meeting

I'm a little surprised that there wasn't a lot of coverage on the NAACP LGBT Town Hall meeting, but I managed to find something:

From FreeSpeech TV

And here is a report from People's World

Bond spoke on the taskforce's three-part mission:


* to strengthen NAACP's knowledge of LGBT issues and policies;
* to build relationships among LGBT civil rights and human rights organizations;
* to advance awareness of LGBT issues "as they relate to overarching programs and interest of the NAACP."


In his opening, Bond, a veteran civil rights leader, said, "We know sexual orientation is not a choice. We know homosexuality is not a mental illness. We know you can't 'pray the gay away.'"


The event was organized as a town hall-styled meeting with audience participation and a panel that included famous gay African Americans, like comedian and actress Wanda Sykes and CNN Anchor Don Lemon who publicly came out in his memoir, "Transparent."


Bond said gay rights are another component of civil rights.


"Sexual disposition parallels race. I was born black and had no choice. I could not and will not change it if I could. Like race, our sexuality isn't preference. It is immutable, unchangeable, and the constitution protects us all from prejudices and discrimination based on immutable differences."


Many panelists and audience members spoke about the role of the church in the Black community, and the conflicts that have arisen from that relationship on the issue of LGBT rights.


Bond said although one might be a member of a church that preaches against a religious same-sex marriage that viewpoint should not be extended to same-sex marriage in city halls, as a civil right.


Sykes said her church experience pressured her from being truthful with her sexuality because of the ingrained notion that gay and lesbian relationships were fundamentally wrong. Such sermonizing can be lethal, she said, because of bullying and violence against LGBT youth and the high level of suicides.


"You just suppress everything and become this other person. You start living that life that you think that you're supposed to do. I worked it so hard I got married! It just hit me, like, wait a minute. Why aren't my relationships going further? Why can't I really open up? And I realized oh, that's right. I forgot; I'm a lesbian! That's what it is. You don't have breasts!" Sykes said to an applauding and laughing audience.


Sykes and other panelists urged the formations of social support groups, including within churches.


Halfway through the meeting, NAACP President and CEO Benjamin Todd Jealous joined the panelists on stage.


Jealous has been an outspoken supporter of LGBT issues and spoke briefly on his adopted brother being gay, and instances of defending him during childhood from bullies.


The discussion turned to California's anti-same-sex marriage Prop. 8 that passed in 2008. Many people blamed it on African American voters who came out in big numbers to vote for Barack Obama.


But, according to Jealous-and audience members-the bigger issue was the lack of outreach to the African American community at an early stage.


Jealous criticized LGBT groups "who come to the black community late" because it sends a message of disrespect.


"If folks really wanted to win on Prop. 8, and thought the black community was so important, then they should have been organizing" outreach a lot sooner, he said.
I'm disappointed with lack of coverage on this event. But I'm also hurt by the lack folks at the session. Still, I'm glad the topic was talked about.