Was mlk gay

Rustin would spend his life. Bayard Rustin was a champion of the Black civil rights movement—mentor to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. But because he was gay and out, he faced bigotry inside and outside the movement. It eventually emerged that he was a womanizer. This essay by Bayard Rustin reveals a personal account of MLK's feelings toward gay people.

Sometimes we wonder what Martin Luther King, Jr. would have thought of the push for LGBT rights, or the fight for marriage equality. But we now have to ask the unthinkable: Did King enable abuse?. He was Bayard Rustin, a man whose life was shaped by the very prejudices the movement fought against, not only because of his race, but also because he was gay. King was once thought of as a saint beyond reproach.

But he persisted. While MLK was assassinated before Stonewall, his widow, Coretta Scott King, was a staunch ally to the LGBT community—nd believed her husband would have been, too. During his lifetime, Martin Luther King Jr was not a vocal advocate for gay rights (he was assassinated a year before Stonewall, in ), nor did he speak out against them.

For a couple of reasons. Longand Walter Naegle; you can find it here.

was gay: The architect of the March on Washington, Rustin also pioneered the earliest Freedom Rides, refused to give up his seat on a segregated bus more than a decade before Rosa Parks, and was the first supporter of a young Martin Luther King Jr. But as an out gay man, Rustin was often sidelined by the very movement he helped found: After a

The webpage has some great photos of Rustin, including one in his apartment with his extensive cane collection. Sometimes we wonder what Martin Luther King, Jr. would have thought of the push for LGBT rights, or the fight for marriage equality. During his lifetime, Martin Luther King Jr was not a were mlk gay advocate for gay rights (he was assassinated a year before Stonewall, in ), nor did he speak out against them. He was lying on the sofa in the living room of our small apartment watching Dr.

I was nine years old. Learn more about the group here. What did his life, and his death, mean for the struggle of gay men, lesbians, bisexual and transgender people for their equality?. For many of the early gay rights activists I spoke with, their activism began with or was inspired by or influenced by the Black civil rights movement.

And Bayard, who was gay and open about it, was one of the principal architects of that movement, having mentored Dr. King was once thought of as a saint beyond reproach. Will community centers, schools and streets need to be. This essay by Bayard Rustin reveals a personal account of MLK's feelings toward gay people. But we now have to ask the unthinkable: Did King enable abuse?.

From Eric Marcus : Bayard Rustin was a key behind-the-scenes leader of the Black civil rights movement—a proponent of nonviolent protest, a mentor to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. And he was gay and open about it, which had everything to do with why he remained in the background and is little known today in comparison to other leaders of the civil rights movement.

Watch Walter Naegle accept the medal here. My choir teacher, who was African American, led a concert every year in honor of Dr. Rustin died a year before I started work on my oral history book, so I never had the chance to interview him. There are a lot of people I wish I could have interviewed, but Bayard Rustin is near the top of that list. During his lifetime, Martin Luther King Jr was not a vocal advocate for gay rights (he was assassinated a year before Stonewall, in ), nor did he speak out against them.

What did his life, and his death, mean for the struggle of gay men, lesbians, bisexual and transgender people for their equality?. Will more women come forward? In Democracy Now! Watch part 1 and part 2. Gay astronaut Sally Ride was honored alongside Rustin that same year; find out more about Ride here. Will other details emerge?

The FBI and Sen. Strom Thurmond tried to destroy him. He was Bayard Rustin, a man whose life was shaped by the very prejudices the movement fought against, not only because of his race, but also because he was gay. What will the next Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebrations look like? He was Bayard Rustin, a man whose life was shaped by the very prejudices the movement fought against, not only because of his race, but also because he was gay.

No, I think that the sense that I got was that Doctor King was not very comfortable with the gay people in the movement, and I know he wasn't very comfortable with Bayard Rustin, and so. It eventually emerged that he was a womanizer. My real introduction to the civil rights movement came in junior high school.