Mandy Carter – USA

Linked with The National Black Justice Coalition NBJC.

She is one of the 1000 women proposed for the Nobel Peace Price 2005.

Mandy Carter has formed connections among a range of issues: opposition to war and violence, support for social and economic justice for people of color, and equal rights for women, lesbians, gays, bisexual, and transgender people. She works in grassroots campaigns and national coalitions, especially focused on the religious right’s antigay organizing in black communities. She is a brilliant coalition builder, highly respected by people from diverse backgrounds. Her work has been essential to the inclusion of gay/lesbian issues as social justice issues in the United States. She says: « We get so wrapped up in ‘just us’. The question of the day – this to me is the question of the future – are we about justice or ‘just us ». (1000peacewomen).

Her photo on the National Black Justice Coalition NBJC.

Fellow Durham resident, Nobel Prize nominee and long-time LGBT activist Mandy Carter has been named to the Obama National LGBT Steering and Policy Committee. Mandy Carter has been organizing North Carolina African Americans and LGBT people for years, and has served as a member of the Democratic National Committee (DNC). She co-founded Southerners On New Ground (SONG) in 1993 and was a leader in Harvey Gantt’s two campaigns for U.S. Senate. She has done the hard work of organizing LGBT grassroots networks, especially of people of color, throughout the South. She was a member of Hillary Clinton’s North Carolina LGBT Steering Committee … (full text, Aug 27, 2008).

The video: Mandy Carter Honored, 2.55 min, February 09, 2008.

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2x Mandy Carter – USA

She works for the Southerners On New Ground S.O.N.G., for the National Call to Resist, and for the National Black Gay and Lesbian Leadership Forum (named on Idealist.org).

Mandy Carter’s grassroots work on anti-war and social justice fronts is gaining global recognition.

Mandy Carter spoke about the importance of the LGBT vote (I just added that video below the fold). Also, I forgot to mention that we also had one pathetic McCain supporter on the sidelines screaming « McCain, McCain, McCain. » She couldn’t even manage to round up a few friends to make a decent show of things … (An Obama-loathing fundie serves up hellfire on a pizza box at NC Pride, 09/28/2008).

Defending my sista: I have fixed the Mandy Carter, Pepper LaBeija, and Dorian Corey links that weren’t working. I wasn’t aware of it until it was brought to my attention. I also added a new link that gives a list of lgbts of color via wikipedia … (full text).

She says also: … « Ifill argues that the Black political structure formed during the Civil Rights movement is giving way to a generation of men and women who are the direct beneficiaries of the struggles of the 1960s. She offers incisive, detailed profiles of such prominent leaders as Newark Mayor Cory Booker, Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick, and U.S. Congressman Artur Davis of Alabama, and also covers up-and-coming figures from across the nation. Drawing on interviews with power brokers like Senator Obama, former Secretary of State Colin Powell, Vernon Jordan, the Reverend Jesse Jackson, and many others, as well as her own razor-sharp observations and analysis of such issues as generational conflict and the « black enough » conundrum, Ifill shows why this is a pivotal moment in American history » … (full interview text).

Find her and her publications on Google Video-search; on Google Book-search; on Google Blog-search.

GLAD is pleased to announce that Mandy Carter, one of the country’s foremost grassroots, multi-issue activists, will be its 2006 Spirit of Justice honoree. A self-described “southern out black lesbian social justice activist,” Carter has been a grassroots organizer for the past 37 years. She was a founding member of two groundbreaking organizations, Southerners On New Ground (SONG) and the National Black Justice Coalition (NBJC). “Mandy’s passion for social justice and talent for coalition-building have made her one of our most effective and inspiring activists,” says Lee Swislow, GLAD Executive Director. “We are proud to honor her with this award” … (full text).

Mandy Carter, SONG Founder, named National Co-Chair of Obama Pride! August 27th, 2008.

She writes: Christmas day is all about gathering in one room with the rellies and watching the box until we go square eyed, as the room around us gradually disappears under several layers of wrapping paper. We have analysed the Christmas day listings, have carefully weighed one channel up against the other and finally selected the finest cuts of Christmas telly for you to plan your viewing pleasure. Let us take you back to the days before one billion channels beamed into your living room … (full text).

Google download boooks:

She says also: … « Prejudice is prejudice!, » proclaimed Mandy Carter in an interview with Contemporary Black Biography (CBB), « whether it is based on skin color or sexual orientation. And maybe the best folks to be making this point are gays and lesbians of color who embody both. » Carter has been, in the words of BLK writer Frankie Lennon, « one of the few highly placed African American lesbians. » As such she has waged a ceaseless battle against homophobia, organizing against efforts of the religious right to infiltrate black churches and attempting to unseat ultraconservative politicians like North Carolina senator Jesse Helms. Carter described her mission to Lennon as « trying to make change for the better of all. I am committed to standing up for rights, fighting oppression and taking risks » … (full text).

links:

Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Resource Center at UC Davis;

Guerilla Gardening;

Interview: Mark King – Level 42.