February is Black History Month. Bent Alaska will be carrying a number of features and stories this month in celebration of Black History Month, and celebrating the lives and achievements of Black LGBTQ people in particular.

February is Black History Month, an annual observance of the history of the African diaspora in a number of countries outside of Africa including the U.S., where it is also sometimes referred to as African-American History Month.  According to Wikipedia, the Black History Month originated in 1926 as Negro History Week  in 1926, founded by Black historian Carter G. Woodson to educate Americans about African-American history, culture, and achievements.

But, as the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) points out, “black lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) people are often left out of the picture.” A variety of organizations are encouraging journalist and bloggers to include Black LGBT people in their coverage of Black History Month, including:

• GLAAD, a voice of the LGBT community which empowering LGBT people to share their stories and holds the media accountable for the words and images they present about LGBT people.
• The National Black Justice Coalition (NBJC), a leading national Black LGBT civil rights organization focused on federal public policy.
• The Black AIDS Institute, a national HIV/AIDS organization focused exclusively on Black people, focused on ending the AIDS pandemic in Black communities by engaging and mobilizing Black institutions and individuals.
• The Audre Lorde Project (ALP), an LGBTQ People of Color community organizing center focusing on the New York City area.
• Gay Men’s Health Crisis (GMHC), the world’s first — and still a leading — provider of HIV/AIDS prevention, care and advocacy.
• Black Men’s XChange, the first organization for same gender loving (SGL), and bisexual African-descended males to actually locate itself geographically within Black communities.
• African Ancestral Lesbians United for Societal Change (AALUSC), the oldest organization of lesbians of African descent in the U.S. (founded as Salsa Soul Sisters, Third World Wimmin Inc. in 1974).
• Southerners On New Ground (SONG), “a home for LGBTQ liberation across all lines of race, class, abilities, age, culture, gender, and sexuality in the South.”
• LGBT Faith Leaders of African Descent, an organization of LGBTQ and same gender loving clergy, divinity students, and faith leaders of African Descent and their allies, representing diverse interdenominational religious institutions.

Bent Alaska will be carrying a number of features and stories this month in celebration of Black History Month in general, and celebrating Black LGBTQ people in particular.

Read previous Bent Alaska posts about LGBTQ African Americans.