#Sabrina Sojourner

[yourdailyqueer]

Sabrina Sojourner

Gender: Female

Sexuality: Lesbian

DOB: 23 October 1952

Ethnicity: African American

Occupation: Politician (Democrat), writer, poet

[blackqueernotables]

Sabrina Sojourner: the first openly lesbian Black woman elected to the United States Congress.

[dailyhistoryposts]

Sabrina Sojourner

Born 1952, Sabrina Sojourner is a Democratic politician representing the District of Columbia as its Shadow Representative in the United States Congress.

A Shadow Representative is a Congressional representative from a place that is not a state and thus has no official Congresspeople. They are not part of either the House or the Senate but advocate for voting rights for their polity. In the United States, the District and Columbia and Puerto Rico have authorized shadow delegations.

Sojourner ran against Republican Gloria R. Corn and won with 83% of the vote. She is an openly lesbian Black woman and lives with her partner, Letitia Gomez.

As a politician, Sojourner focused on gay and lesbian rights, HIV/AIDS support, civil rights, police brutality, and more.

She has won the Bayard Rustin Award for National Advocacy from the National African American Gay and Lesbian Leadership Forum, the Harvey Milk Award for Public Service from the National Gay and Lesbian Health Association, and the Lambda Liberty Award from the Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund.

[lesbianfeminists]

“How is it that Lesbians, in spite of good intentions, continue to write and read in utterly opposed contexts? Why, for example, was Jan Brown revealing the misogyny she felt when she was a butch (in Out/Look 7:30-34), while Sabrina Sojourner was “reclaiming” femininity (in Sojourner, Feb., 1991)? Up to this point, I’ve left unmentioned two important factors: Political Consciousness and the continuum, Overt… Covert. I think it’s because Lesbians conceive of ourselves in relation to the heteropatriarchy in conflicting ways, depending on whether or not we’re Feminists and, more specifically, the brand of Feminism we’ve incorporated into our value system. I will call this “political consciousness.”

Some Lesbians (I would say most) live within the heteropatriarchy, and would not even name this society as such; they think of themselves as being not so very different from heterosexuals, and so have only rudimentary analysis to account for their discomforts. Others conceive of ourselves as being outside the boundaries of the heteropatriarchy, as being quite different from heterosexuals, and so mistrust any aspect of our thinking and behavior that apes or mirrors the heteropatriarchal world. Lesbians don’t share a “consensus reality”; that is, we have, as yet, no agreed-upon framework within which we make our decisions and evaluate options. We have no self-created description of what it “means” to be a Lesbian in HP, with the result that our valuations of specific kinds of behavior are diverse. Our willingness to challenge HP descriptions varies in terms of where we conceive of ourselves, as Lesbians, with respect to HP society. No Lesbian can ignore HP or pretend that it isn’t there, although many try; none of us can deny its influence in our lives or in the ways we think. To ignore HP or claim that somehow we’ve “gotten past” it in our thinking is to trivialize the damage HP has done to us as Lesbians. These self-conceptions are in conflict each with the other, and they cannot be reconciled. There’s no “middle ground” in this disagreement on which we can compromise, even if we were willing.For the sake of argument, think of HP society as a circle. At various stages in her development and awareness, a Lesbian positions herself with respect to HP on the basis of her understanding of the meaning of her Lesbian life. Diagram 3 represents six possible Lesbian stances in her acknowledgment of HP: Conservative, Conventional, Humanist, Feminist, Radical Feminist, and Separatist. Each point on this continuum represents an approximate, not an absolute, political position. (I’ve used this terminology because I think it’ll be understood by my readers.)

Conservative Lesbians accept HP descriptions of reality as accurate and all-encompassing, and they live as though the givens of HP were unalterable fact. Such Lesbians are usually white, financially comfortable, and living in the suburbs of large cities. In terms of the way they think, they are virtually indistinguishable from their heterosexual neighbors; they don’t think of themselves as “Lesbian,” and most of their friends may be heterosexuals. In spite of the fact that many Conservative Lesbians have never lived as heterosexuals, and must have, at some point in their lives, rejected the essential HP assumption, this fact has no political significance for them. They’re “never-het,” but covert. They believe that the “world” is fine just as it is. For them, no social or personal change is necessary or desirable.

Conventional Lesbians differ from the Conservatives only in that they may call themselves “gay” or “Lesbian,” their circle of friends may consist of like-minded Lesbians and gaymen in addition to heterosexuals, and some—-those who can afford it–may contribute money to “gay” causes as a substitute for active involvement. They may be never-het or ex-het, but their Lesbianism, or “gayness,” is covert.

Humanist Lesbians believe that “we’re all human beings,” and that living as a Lesbian is no different from living as a heterosexual, even though they are aware that HP is oppressive in many ways. The oppressiveness of HP they interpret as some kind of misunderstanding, as though Lesbian oppression will end when heterosexuals understand that Lesbians are “just like” them. The political awareness of Humanist Lesbians may extend to pro-consumer, anti-war, anti-nuclear struggles; they are committed to saving the rainforest, the dolphins, pandas, and all living creatures; they may work as volunteers for AIDS crisis lines or on behalf of the United Way, because they conceive of themselves as having a stake in the outcome of political issues as HP identifies them. Like Conventional Lesbians, they may belong to any economic class. They may be ex-het or never-het, and they may be out as Lesbians or in the closet; neither aspect of their lives is politically significant to them. Their Lesbianism isn’t the essential factor of their identity. Humanist Lesbians will agree that HP is flawed, but believe that all we need to do is make alterations in the social structure, leaving the primary assumptions unchallenged.

Feminist Lesbians have identified themselves with women’s oppression, and they make women’s issues the focus of their political activism. They may, for example, work on rape crisis lines, in battered women’s shelters or abortion clinics, or teach women’s studies. They correctly identify the fact that women are oppressed in this society, and they work actively to struggle against that oppression as they understand it. Most do not, for example, believe that men are the enemy—-only some of them–and they attribute their oppression as Lesbians to their femaleness. They are committed to changing the structure of HP to varying degrees; they question some of the essential values and categories of HP; but heterosexuality remains, for them, an unchallenged given. Lesbian-Feminist consciousness is possible for the ex-het or never-het, closeted or out.

Lesbians who call themselves Radical Feminists position themselves somewhere between Feminist and Separatist Lesbians, on the limits of reality as HP describes it. On the one hand, they identify their oppression as primarily women’s oppression, not specifically Lesbian oppression; on the other they believe that men are the enemies of all women and have developed some of the best analyses of how HP society perpetuates itself and have proposed various methods of destroying “patriarchy.” Although they don’t identify as Lesbians first, they understand the threat that Lesbians pose to HP. They stop just short of identifying “patriarchy” as heteropatriarchy.

Separatist Lesbians think of ourselves as living outside HP society (although this is seldom true). Accepting the HP description of Lesbians as outcasts, we have chosen to stand in an antagonistic position to the HP, and it’s Separatists who identify ourselves as Lesbians first and last. Whether never-het or ex-het, Separatists put our Lesbian selves first politically. The essential ingredient of Separatist politics is a rejection of everything vital to the structure of HP, which requires that all assumptions be challenged and examined. Whereas Humanist or Feminist Lesbians believe that behaviors and attitudes can be justified by appealing to the way they feel, Separatists (and Radical Feminists) want to know where these “feelings” originate. We’re not interested in stopping our analysis with how we feel, because appealing to feelings is one way of resisting change. If we’re going to change ourselves and unlearn HP’s version of reality, then we’re committed to examining our feelings and finding out why we have them and where they originate in our experience.”

Heteropatriarchal Semantics and Lesbian Identity: The Ways a Lesbian Can Be, Julia Penelope. 1992. 

[doiresearch]

Becoming Visible: The First Black Lesbian Conference" was held at The Women's Building in San Francisco, California, from October 17 to 19, 1980. It has been credited as the first conference for African-American lesbian women.

The 2-day event of the "First Black Lesbian Conference" held 8 workshops for attendees which included:

Business and Money Management,

Lesbians and the Law,

Feminism,

African American Women Role Models in the Arts, led by Sabrina Sojourner

Wellness Counseling,

Health Issues and African Americans,

African Americans and Imperialism, led by Pat Parker

Interracial Relationships.

(source)

[wp-yahoo-style-1042-yahoopa-blog]

People Are Freaking Out Over $30 Hanes T-Shirts

Hours after Justin Bieber took to Instagram to apologize and explain why he had decided to cancel the rest of his “Purpose” tour, he was looking the opposite of apologetic on another Instagram account. That’s because Thursday marked the launch of Hanes x Karla, a fashion collaboration of the brand and his stylist, Karla Welch — and Bieber isn’t just the T-shirt line’s model; he’s its inspiration.

“Karla and I have always pushed boundaries together, and this collaboration is a continuation of that,” he said in a statement.

At first glance, this looks like a bunch of plain white T-shirts retailing for $30 online. There’s something subtly different about them, however, as Welch explained to Vogue. “He was so fearless. [He said], ��I want T-shirts that are long,’ and they literally didn’t exist in the marketplace,” she told the magazine. “It was a bit of a nightmare.”

WE'RE LIVE !!! www.xkarla.con #hanesxkarla @justinbieber

A post shared by x karla (@xkarla) on Aug 3, 2017 at 5:57am PDT

Bieber was also very picky about what kind of fabric he liked, she wrote in a similar story on Instagram. Eventually they landed on Hanes T-shirts. She bought extra-large shirts that were the singer’s desired length and then tailored them to fit his body. The result was a throwback to baggy ’90s style, albeit a little slimmer, and it became a staple of Bieber’s wardrobe.

On Instagram, Welch described how shortly after Bieber began wearing his customized shirts, she started seeing a similar style in “really fancy stores, with really fancy price tags.” That’s why she decided to make the Hanes x Karla shirts to retail at $30 (not exactly Kmart prices, but we get what she’s comparing them with). In addition to the Bieber-inspired version, the line includes a classic fit, a crew for women, a sleeveless version, sleeveless and regular crop tops, and children’s sizes. The shirts are designed to get to their ideal comfort level after a few washes, she notes.

by justin and me! #hanesxkarla

A post shared by x karla (@xkarla) on Aug 2, 2017 at 7:30am PDT

Twitter and Instagram are abuzz about the line, though it’s not exactly clear whether people are really excited about white T-shirts or about who is modeling them.

“Thank you for these holy photographs,” wrote sojourner on Wednesday.

“His attempts to kill me are working,” Diana tweeted.

his attempts to kill me are working #xKarla #MTHottest Justin Bieber pic.twitter.com/4lTt04OiLd

— diana (@kidrauhlsdiana) August 3, 2017

“i really just bought this…but hey i could always use another white tee #xKarla,” Sabrina Swain wrote.

i really just bought this…but hey i could always use another white tee #xKarla pic.twitter.com/4I5hKhF0xc

— Sabrina Swain (@BrinaMariaxox) August 3, 2017

“Like, can they sell just the poster?” asked Aimee. “I don’t want to pay $30 for a white tshirt.” She wasn’t the only one to note the high price.

steal his look! Hanes x Karla: $30 walmart: $3.96 pic.twitter.com/bDp6l5xfHJ

— sara (@greedybiebs) August 3, 2017

Justin bieber is selling plain white hanes tshirts for $30 u can get at Walmart for $6…

— ㅤ (@cruise2theblues) August 3, 2017

In addition to having Bieber model the shirts in requisite slo-mo video, Kaia Gerber and Joan Smalls are also part of the campaign, shot by Welch’s husband, Matthew, in ’90s-inspired black and white. That should be enough to make this limited “first drop” sell out pretty quickly online at xKarla.com and in the pop-up shop appearing at Maxfield in Los Angeles on Aug. 6.

Read more from Yahoo Style + Beauty:

Halle Berry Wore a Michelle Obama Dress to Honor the ‘Strongest, Most Fierce Woman There Ever Was’

A Muslim Miss Universe Contestant Fought for Her Right to Wear a Kaftan Instead of a Bikini

Charlize Theron Wears a Totally See-Through Shirt — and It’s Not a Wardrobe Malfunction

Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest for nonstop inspiration delivered fresh to your feed, every day. For Twitter updates, follow @YahooStyle and @YahooBeauty.