Okay - so it's no secret that I've always found Julian Bond very sexxy. But I've always wondered what the President of the NAACP felt about homophobia and civil rigts for the LGBT community. I was pleased to learn a few years ago that he is sternly against homophobia and views the struggle for LGBT equality a civl right that he happily adopts as a cause he embraces as one of his own.
Bond promises, "At the NAACP we pledge to do our part," when talking about the fight for the right to marry. He spoke about Coretta Scott King, Rosa Parks, and about how taking action can lead people to change their minds.
I loved the story he shares about a friend of Coretta that wanted her to become an ally of the LGBT community in our fight for equality. In doing so he would have to come out to his friend of 20 years and he was hesitant in doing so. But he placed the phone call and Coretta responded with, "Just let me know what you need me to do." But people still wonder why I encourage all my friends to live their lives openly and honestly. It's because sometimes just by being true to who you are you can shape the way people feel about our community.
What I love about Bond is that he is not only beautiful, he's also brilliant. My favorite line from his speech was, "Gay and lesbian rights are not special rights in any way. It is not special to be free from discrimination. It is an ordinary universal entitlement of citizen."
Please take a moment to listen to the speech in its entirety. It will be well worth your time.
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