Equality Maryland

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 04, 2005

Equality Maryland and National Black Justice Coalition Unveil New Publication on Homosexuality and the Black Community

"Jumping the Broom: A Black Perspective on Same-Gender Marriage"

Contact:
Meredith Moise, Field Organizer
Equality Maryland
Office (301)587-7500
Cell (410) 900-2021

H. Alexander Robinson, CEO/Executive Director
National Black Justice Coalition
Office: 202-547-1995
Cell: 202-262-2651

BALTIMORE - As nearly 5,000 Black same gender loving couples await a written decision by a Baltimore Circuit Court in a case challenging whether or not Maryland can deny them marriage licenses without violating the state constitution, Equality Maryland has joined with the National Black Justice Coalition to ensure that any protections gained in the court are accompanied by gains in public support for fairness in marriage. "Jumping the Broom: A Black Perspective on Same-Gender Marriage" addresses head-on the issue of whether or not marriage for same gender loving couples is a civil rights issue, and it was produced to initiate dialogue in churches, fraternal organizations, media outlets, NAACP chapters, and among civic and community leaders.

"The heart of the matter is that marriage rights for same-sex couples strengthen black families, and black families in some ways have more at stake in the marriage dialogue than their white counterparts," said Equality Maryland Field Organizer Meredith Moise. "This publication is a wonderful opportunity to create a meaningful and challenging dialogue around Black gay and lesbian couples and families."

"Jumping the Broom" highlights some noteworthy statistics, some of which challenge commonly held misconceptions, including:

Forty-five percent of black same-sex couples reported stable relationships of five years or longer on the U.S. Census
Even if marriage becomes a legal option for couples in Maryland, clergy will always decide for themselves, with no repercussions, who they wish to marry
Twenty percent of black men and 24 percent of black women in same-sex households in the Maryland area work in the public sector but are denied healthcare benefits for their partners by the government.
Same-sex couples do not receive the protections of joint rental leases with automatic renewal rights. Only approximately 55-57% of black same-sex couples own their own home.

""Jumping the Broom" gives voice to the thousands of Black same sex couples who are in love and have committed to spending their lives together, sharing life's blessings and burdens," said H. Alexander Robinson, NBJC's Executive Director and CEO. "Their message: this is America, the land of freedom, and denying gay and lesbian couples the right to go to city hall and get a marriage license is discrimination and it's wrong."

"Jumping the Broom" can be downloaded in PDF form at http://equalitymaryland.org/MOCC/index.shtml. To order copies of the publication for your church or community group, email info@EqualityMaryland.org.

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Equality Maryland is Maryland's largest LGBT civil rights organization, focused on making life better for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender citizens of Maryland. Equality Maryland works to secure and protect the rights of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender Marylanders by promoting legislative initiatives on the state, county and municipal levels and educating the public about the issues faced by our diverse community.

Equality Maryland can be found online at www.equalitymaryland.org

The National Black Justice Coalition is an ad hoc coalition of black lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered leaders who have come together to fight against discrimination in our communities. The goal of the organization in 2005 is to build black support for marriage equality and to educate the community on the dangers of amending the U.S. Constitution and state constitutions to discriminate against gays and lesbians.

NBJC can be found online at www.nbjcoalition.org