Bayard Rustin-Activist,Community Organizer and Proud Black Gay Man

Bayard Rustin has been running through my mind as of late. Mr. Rustin,who was openly gay at a time when it wasn't acceptable in the American public eye, should be celebrated for his body of work for the cause of Civil Rights in this country not his sexuality. Bayard introduced Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. to Gandhian nonviolence made him a pioneer in the movement. Bayard travelled to India to attend a conference on Gandhi's nonviolent techniques in 1948 brought about a come in his life. Bayard committed to this cause and proceeded to clean up his community and share his vision.  Rustin's visionary advocacy and commitment to pacifism captured King's attention in the 1950's. I find that many homosexuals are vilified for their sexuality, which continues to overshadow their jobs and their healthy contributions to society. It's time you people got with the program, it's time you people recognize your own judgemental attitudes and continue to check yourself before casting judgement and it's time you people own up to our strengths in what we as Gays bring to the table.

Rustin's life has been put on celluloid, "Brother Outsider: The Life of Bayard Rustin", which weaves the story of  Mr. Rustin's complex life during a time of revolutionary change in America. The film description is as follows, "Long before Martin Luther King, Jr. became a national figure, Bayard Rustin routinely put his body-and his life-on the line as a crusader for racial justice". Although, Mr. Rustin's private life was much more complex then you would imagine, he never compromise his spirit and determination for civil rights.

Mr. Rustin influenced my life in many ways and shall continue to do so. We should celebrate Bayard Rustin's life everyday for what he started and we should finish in our lifetime.

E. Lynn Harris

E. Lynn Harris was an openly gay writer of a particular genre that brought to light the life of the closeted black gay men for millions of black women readers. His audience dutifully waited for every novel to arrive at the bookstores in anticipation of learning how to spot that elusive Closeted Black Gay Man depicted in his storyline on the subway, in the grocery store or at the gym. I remember many years ago my book club invited Mr. Harris to do a reading of his first novel. We waited with bated breath to edit, revise, counter attack and attest the poorly written piece of material that would go on to sell to millions of readers. Well, he arrived at our chosen destination and was greeted enthusiastically by my peers and then we dove head first into the book and Mr. Harris with all of his wit/humor finally shot back to us, "Write your own DAMN novel". We laughed and applauded loudly to this comment and this sealed our friendship with Mr. Harris. Since then I've seen Mr. Harris at various events around the country and enjoyed his company. It's a great loss to the community as a whole and to the devoted readers of his books who looked forward to the next episodes of his characters and their exploits. Dead at the age of 54 is too young to leave this earth. I shall never forget his quick wit and wonderful spirit.