A path grounded in great love, a path that demands great risks: A commentary by Saida Agostini-Bostic

We are living in a time of profound crisis. In a moment when, yet again, our country has confirmed that the personhood and autonomy of Black and Brown communities, trans and gender-nonconforming (TGNC) people, migrants, and sex workers is not only precarious but conditional, I turn to one absolute truth: We will be free. The path to liberation demands a clear and full vision that radically centers not just the safety, but the beauty of LGBTQ communities of color.

It is a path grounded in great love;, it is a path that demands great risks.

As philanthropy considers what this moment requires, we must go to the wisdoms of Black and Brown TGNC movement leaders fighting on the frontlines across our country. We must turn to the lessons of our elders and ancestors who lived through frightening and fearful times with great love and courage before us. I am remembering Stonewall, a safe haven for drag queens, runaway youth, and other community members seeking a space where they could just be. I am remembering Storme DeLarverie, a Black butch woman believed to have thrown the first punch at Stonewall in defense of her people, as police attempted to destroy a site of resistance. Think of what it took to stand in resistance, in belief that there are better teachers than fear and hate....

Read the full commentary by Saida Agostini-Bostic, president of Funders for LGBTQ Issues.

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