LGBTQ advocates call for stamp honoring Bayard Rustin
metroweekly.composthumously pardoned Rustin, on the grounds that the anti-sodomy statutes he was convicted under have since been overturned and ruled unconstitutional by the U.S.
Supreme Court.“It is critical that we honor Bayard Rustin’s work in the Civil Rights movement,” Johns said in a statement. “It is our firm belief that ensuring the contributions of Black trans, queer, and non-binary/non-conforming members of our community are recognized while also implementing bills like the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act and the Equality Act will advance the legacy of Brother Bayard and the modern Civil Rights movement into the next generation.
But to honor Bayard specifically, we urge Congress to pass the Bayard Rustin Stamp Act and make him a forever figure in our country.”Laura Buisson, an Echo Park Neighborhood Council representative and Los Angeles-based activists who is a founding member of NBJC’s Good Trouble Network of Black LGBTQ elected officials, is organizing a grassroots campaign aimed at galvanizing support for creating a stamp in Rustin’s memory and urging members of Congress to approve Norton’s legislation.“Any civil rights milestone one can name, Bayard Rustin did it first, and paid a heavier price all while being his authentic self: A Black, gay and Quaker man who devoted his life to being a stick in the wheel of injustice,” Buisson said in a statement.
