Keith Boykin's family was cautious when, as a Harvard Law student, he first came out and told them about his homosexuality. They warned him to be careful who he told and worried that such a revelation might jeopardize his future career. But Boykin's sexuality has been anything but secret since then, as he has become one of the most prominent and influential gay black men in the United States. Boykin spoke Tuesday night to about 30 students and faculty members, representing a diverse mix of cultures and ages, in the Annenberg School for Communication. Entitled "Black and Gay in America," the speech was one of a series of events held as part of the Bisexual Gay Lesbian Transgender Awareness Days. Formerly the executive director of the National Black Gay and Lesbian Leadership Forum, Boykin also worked on the 1992 Clinton-Gore campaign. He then became a White House staffer, working specifically with the president on gay and lesbian issues. Boykin's address focused on the wide variety of prejudices that a gay black person may suffer in society. "We need to pull apart the threads that make up the fibers of oppression," he said. He also discussed the need for each person to find their own lifestyle, adding that "it's important to understand what's important to you as an individual." Boykin entertained the audience with stories about some unusual experiences that occurred throughout his career, including his participation with an openly gay group in the Million Man March in Washington in 1995. "No one did or said anything [negative], except for one man, out of a million people in the Mall," Boykin said. The poorly-documented historical tradition of homosexuality in the black community was another topic Boykin touched on. "There's a widespread belief that gay equals white and straight equals black," Boykin explained. citing Benjamin Banneker, Langston Hughes and James Baldwin as examples of famous gay or bisexual blacks. Reconciling religion and homosexuality is one of the most emotionally charged issues in the gay community, Boykin said. He claimed. however, that he is personally secure with his Christianity and homosexuality. "Jesus Christ says nothing about homosexuality in the Bible," Boykin said. "It doesn't matter how many Bibles you have, it's the truth." Boykin is also the author of the book One More River to Cross, which explores the tension surrounding the black experience within the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community. College junior and B-GLAD planning committee member Steven Huang said Boykin's book "gave me a new outlook on the gay black community." The African American Resource Center, Connaissance and the Greenfield Intercultural Center co-sponsored the talk.
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