We Are More Than Our Sexuality
It is 2015. The nation’s first Black President has appeared on the cover of Out, an LGBT magazine. A 2012 report by Gallup revealed that African-Americans are the largest group of people who identify as LGBT. Yet, many within the LGBTQI Community still fail to see LGBTQI Women of Color past the one dimensional characteristic of our being that is our sexuality. While our sexuality may provide us with similar points of interest among our non-minority LGBTQI peers, it is not the only battle that many of us are fighting. While I cannot speak personally for the disabled or the impoverished, I can say that many of the representatives speaking on behalf of the members of the LGBTQI Community miss the mark in recognizing that sexuality is not the only cross that we bear.
I would think it would be clear to most that People of Color, more specifically Women of Color, are dealing with quite a bit more than many of the loudest voices within the LGBTQI Community. In light of the recent incidents at #Mizzou and the ongoing attacks being waged against People of Color that have sparked hashtags such as #BlackLivesMatter, there are also those facing immigration-related and/or socio-economic issues, which are documented through hashtags such as #FightFor15, #ProfessorsinPoverty, and #UndocumentedandUnafraid.
With all of these layers being part of the existence of LGBTQI Women of Color, I cannot help but to scratch my head at this notion that we are one dimensional beings and/or that we should primarily be focused on issues relating to our sexuality. As many have argued before me, being LGBTQI is not something that is always evident upon seeing someone. However, gender, race, and/or ethnicity, typically are. We are more than our sexuality. Though who we love and choose to spend our romantic moments with is important, it is not the all of who most of us are. For many of us, it is yet another hurdle that we are having to jump over. Being told what we should care about because we are LGBTQI seems somewhat ridiculous in light of the fact that we are dealing with so much.
The emotional toll that living in the body of a female person of color takes on an individual can make it hard to embrace this notion that our biggest battle is same-sex marriage. Though it is horrible that state-based legal systems are still working against the LGBTQI Community for religious or personal reasons, this same system is incarcerating, deporting, and allowing for the unprosecuted deaths of our loved ones. Our lives cannot be dedicated to pursuing equality in marriage when we are still fighting for equality in existence. It is hard to dedicate your lives to a cause when your lives are constantly at risk.
Though I respect the push for the enforcement of the Supreme Court’s decision on marriage equality, I want the greater LGBTQI Community to recognize that they have a large number of members who may not live to see the legal age that allows them to marry. While raising a family and being able to adopt (if so compelled) is important, that is not as important as the need to be able to clothe, feed, and provide for oneself. We are not all living with the fairy tale “happily ever after” ending in mind. Many of us are living with our livelihoods, our next meals, and our next breaths in mind.
When I first began a conversation with one of my followers on Twitter about how we are seen as one dimensional, as nothing more than our sexuality, the conversation seemed to hint at this treatment coming primarily from heterosexual peers. As I sat down to write, I realized that a lot of this emphasis on sexuality and push for involvement in sexuality-based struggles comes from our peers within the LGBTQI Community.
Though I continue to support the efforts taken and strides made by various sexuality or lifestyle-focused groups around the world, I also recognize why not all Women of Color who identify as LGBTQI are on the front lines in these efforts. Perhaps it is time that our community stop focusing solely on our sexuality as what binds us and recognizes the concerns that exist for some of us that are more pressing than being able to exchange vows.
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About the Author: Sherea Burnett
