How LGBTQ groups are building chosen families for Black queer people who were disowned by their birth families.
E. Patrick Johnson, the author of “Sweet Tea: Black Gay Men of the South” and the dean of the School of Communication at Northwestern University, said chosen families have long existed in the Black community.
Black chosen families form bonds not only to escape homophobic families but also to find pleasure and communion with others, Johnson said. One example, he said, are house parties, which since the 1900s have been safe spaces for Black queer people to express their sexuality and make connections. “A lot of times the chosen family has more sway or more influence,” said Coleman, who is part of the ballroom community and a longtime member of the House of Ebony.
“I lost authority as an older sibling,” said Thomas, 33. “My brothers were being nasty to me. My mom was being nasty to me. The church was being nasty to me.” “We can meet those kids as they’re being thrown out to the street,” she said. “I was homeless, a lot of my staff were homeless and addicts, and we experienced what not having a family was about.”Today, Black LGBTQ people continue to build chosen families in the wake of crises in the LGBTQ community.
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