Now There Are 4: GA Black Gay State Rep Comes Out

Georgia State Representative Rashad Taylor,
comes out at a press conference May 27, 2011

There are now four openly gay, African-American male state elected representatives nationwide. Previously known were Marcus Brandon of North Carolina, Gordon Fox of Rhode Island and Jason Bartlett of Connecticut. State Representative Rashad Taylor of Georgia joined these three on Friday by coming out as gay at a press conference in Atlanta on Friday.

Taylor, 30, came out in order to respond to and refute charges of improper conduct which had been emailed to various state legislators from a jealous former lover of Rashad's current boyfriend. You can watch video of the press conference here.

Georgia Voice reports:

According to the national Victory Fund which works to elect openly gay officials, Taylor is only the sixth openly black LGBT person to serve in a state legislature. State Rep. Bell was the first black lesbian elected to a state legislature in 2009. 

Yesterday and in days prior, a man who is the ex-boyfriend of Taylor's partner sent an email to state legislators outing him and alleging Taylor misused his office by promising men jobs in exchange for sex. Taylor denied those allegations today, but did say the truth is is he is gay. 

"For some it may take two days, for some it take two years or 20 years [to come out]," he said.  

"I serve in public office and try to retain some semblance of a private life. This is a journey I've been on," he said. "i wouldn't want to expedite anyone else's journey. It ought to be a personal decision."

Taylor admitted that if the allegations against him had not been made he would not have come out.

"I would not be standing here today," he said, adding he considered ignoring the allegations.

But now was the time to tell the truth, Taylor added.

"I felt like honestly this was it unless I spoke the truth," Taylor said, saying he didn't want someone to feel like they had something "over his head."

He said before today, he could "count on one hand" the people who knew he was gay. Taylor also said that he came out to his mother and family in the past 24 hours. He thanked his mother for his support and she hugged him warmly after he spoke to the media.

MadProfessah has previously blogged about Simone Bell's election as the first Black lesbian state representative in December 2009. In Maryland, Mary Washington is the other openly lesbian elected state representative in the country. There are 6 openly LGBT, Black elected representatives nationwide.


Hat/tip to Wonder Man.

Appeal from NBJC Deputy Director Jason Bartlett

I recently received the following letter from the National Black Justice Coalition. I am a member of the NBJC, and so should you be. It is the only national LGBT organization devoted to organizing in the Black community.

Dear Mad Professah,

I am writing to you because I need your help! My name is Jason Bartlett, Deputy Director of NBJC and I am responsible for growing our membership and building our community.

You have been an NBJC member or have been receiving our emails, but I have not had the opportunity to find out from you directly how NBJC can better serve your needs and interests!

Now is the time for us to communicate and I am hopeful that you will take a few minutes to correspond with me, so that NBJC can serve you better.

Barack Obama’s election on November 4th was a great day for our country and a historic milestone for all African Americans. It was also a sad day for the gay rights movement with the passing of so many anti-gay propositions around the country.

In it’s aftermath we have witnessed the media and commentators speak in a variety of formats about the intersection of race and sexual orientation. The topic highlights the National Black Justice Coalition’s primary mission; to bring social justice and equal rights to LGBT African Americans and work with all to bring these worthy goals about.

In fact, we are the only national organization who for the last five years has focused on this mission and that’s why we need your help. Now is the time for us to work together and build our organization. If we do not look out for one another, who will look out for us?

We need to better identify where you live, the best way to contact you, what your interests are, if you would like us to reach out to you for political activism, social activism, entertainment and social opportunities, networking opportunities or just another vehicle to express yourself.

I need your help in hosting house parties to raise money, contacting friends to join our organization and getting organized for political activism or launching a new program to serve our community. We could especially use help in planning our 2nd Annual Convention and 4th Religious Summit. Are you willing to step up for NBJC?

Please reach out to me and let me know what you think of NBJC. Let me know how I can best contact you and what kinds of topics or activities you would like NBJC to focus on in the future. Please let me know if you are willing to help NBJC.

There will be a survey with a number of questions coming to each member to help us better understand our membership and community. I encourage you to take the time to fill out the survey and complete it honestly and most importantly to send it to your friends to do the same.

Finally, the convention that I alluded to earlier is March 26, 27 and 28th 2009 at the Hotel Whitcomb in San Francisco. Please check out our website for registration information. I welcome the opportunity to meet each and every one of you in San Francisco.

The time is ours. Let me hear from you and let’s work together to bring NBJC to another level.

Sincerely,

Jason