In Illinois, as in other parts of the country, parts of the African American Community have been resistant to LGBTQ issues. This is in spite of the traditionally Democratic party makeup of that community driven by Chicago and Metro-East populations. In fact, as the Associated Press reported at the time, one of the reasons the Illinois gay marriage bill vote was closer than it could have been and took longer to pass was resistance by the Chicago Black legislative caucus. Jafari Allen, is a Professor of Anthropology, African Studies and American Studies. He researches the intersections of queer sexuality, gender and blackness - in Cuba, the US, and transnationally. Allen recently sat down with GLT's Charlie Schlenker as he stopped at Illinois State University. Allen says the perception of the black community hostility to gay issues is changing.
Jafari Allen is also the author of the critical ethnography of race, gender, sexuality, and revolution titled '¡Venceremos?: The Erotics of Black Self-Making in Cuba.'
