When our civil rights are under attack, Black journalists understand the stakes

Last week at the National Association of Black Journalists conference, I had the privilege of standing alongside leaders in journalism, civil rights, and democracy at a moment when all three are being tested.

As a Black queer woman, I know in my bones that the fight for Black freedom and the fight for LGBTQ+ equality have never been separate fights. From Selma to Stonewall, generations before us refused to accept that freedom, dignity, and opportunity should belong to some of us, but not all of us.

That history feels especially urgent as we head toward November. The forces attacking voting rights are also attacking LGBTQ+ people. The attacks on racial justice are connected to attacks on reproductive freedom, immigrant families, workers, and our ability to decide our own futures. These fights rise and fall together — and our communities are standing strong.

There are 74 million Equality Voters across the county, nearly one in five of whom are Black. New HRC research finds that 92% of LGBTQ+ registered voters say they definitely intend to vote this November — and 96.6% of Black LGBTQ+ voters do. There is no line between “the Black vote” and “the LGBTQ+ vote.” Our opponents benefit when we are sorted into separate boxes, told our struggles are unrelated, or encouraged to fight over whose freedom matters most.

We rely, then, on journalists to get at the truth — to ask questions, to find connections, to follow the stories after the cameras leave, and refuse to confuse false equivalence with fairness.

Black journalists have always understood the stakes. They have always known that civil rights are not simply a chapter in a history book or a specialized beat in a newsroom. They are a living story that runs through every part of our society: our elections, our schools, our workplaces, our families, our economy, and our democracy. It’s a story that so desperately needs to be told today.

Civil rights and democracy — including the freedom of the press — are being tested. But like generations before, the people are fighting back. We are demanding a country where Black people are free. Where LGBTQ+ people are free. Where every family can live with dignity, every voter has a voice, and every person has the opportunity to determine their own future.