It saddens me that I've never heard of this amazing and courageous gentleman. The black community continually omits any positive gay black leaders. This man was a HUGE part of the civil rights movement and we know nothing about him. There are thousands of books, news reels, news articles, movies, documentaries, text books, lectures, poems, etc detailing everything about the Civil Rights Movement and none of those historical accounts mentioned his name at all. As a black gay man, growing up in the south with very religious parents, I had a very tough time accepting who I was, which fostered self-hatred and deep depression. If I was aware of Bayard Rustin and taught about his role in the civil rights movement, that would've had a huge impact on my life and the way I felt about myself. That's why it's so important to expose those positive gay African American figures to let young adult closeted gay men and women see that they are not alone.
