Article from Pink News
A new push to tackle racism on the gay scene is encouraging people to be “switched on” about discrimination.
Gay men’s health charity GMFA, which is leading the project, says discrimination inside the community will make it weaker.
Anecdotal evidence suggests that some black and ethnic minority gay people face prejudice on the gay scene.
Phyll Opoku, a black lesbian, said: “Many, many years back, when I first came out, I went to this club and I thought ‘wow, this is great!’ The women all dancing with each other.
“[I was] hoping that someone would just ask me to dance and. It didn’t happen but I got up and I danced just by myself. And then someone said, ‘You stupid, beep, beep, beep. Why don’t you just get off this dance floor? You’re in my way’.”
“They were drunk but when I say ‘beep, beep, beep…’ it was quite derogatory towards black people. So I realised that maybe that place was not for me; I didn’t see anybody that looked like me, to be able to sit there and feel comfortable with them.”
Read more at http://www.pinknews.co.uk/2011/02/25/move-to-tackle-racism-on-the-gay-scene/
