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Object Description
Interview no. | W-0003 |
Restrictions | No restrictions. Open to research. |
Project | W.1. LGBTQ Life in the South: LGBTQ Activism in the North Carolina Triangle Area |
Project description | A collection of oral history interviews on the topic of local queer life, community, and activism from 1969 to the present. Aaron Lovett, an undergraduate student at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, conducted these interviews as part of his independent research project in the History department in summer 2014. The study was advised by Dr. Rachel Seidman, Associate Director of the Southern Oral History Program. This study traces the development of queer activism from social organizing in the early 1970s, to the beginning of statewide lobbying and political activism in the early ‘90s, and to recent developments in North Carolina regarding pro-LGBTQ laws such as the NC School Violence Prevention Act and anti-LGBTQ legislation such as Amendment One. LGBTQ activists interviewed include feminist theorist Alexis Pauline Gumbs, HIV/AIDS advocate Carolyn McAllaster, and LGBTQ lobbyist Ian Palmquist. This study connects local and statewide LGBTQ events with regional and national trends, analyzes the nature of the Triangle area’s LGBTQ community in relation to rest of the South, and documents changes and continuities in local LGBTQ life and culture. |
Date | 23 July 2014 |
Interviewee | Gumbs, Alexis Pauline, 1982- |
Interviewee occupation | Writers |
Interviewee DOB | 1982 |
Interviewee ethnicity | African Americans |
Interviewer | Lovett, Aaron. |
Abstract | A Durham, NC-based activist and black queer feminist writer, Dr. Alexis Pauline Gumbs received her undergraduate degree from Barnard College at Columbia University in American Studies, and her PhD in English, Africana Studies and Women's Studies from Duke University. Among her many projects is the Mobile Homecoming experiential archive, which documents the experiences of black queer elders across the United States and examines how they find ways to thrive despite systems of oppression working against them. The focus of this interview is Gumbs’ work as an activist, and her opinions on LGBTQ activism, feminism, and being queer. Gumbs discusses some aspects of her childhood and her journey to realizing her queer identity, and her experiences at high school and Barnard College. She notes the racist issues present in both the student body, faculty, and administration at Barnard. She also offers an explanation of how the Mobile Homecoming experiential archive began, and talks about her experience interviewing queer black elders through that project. Gumbs explains how the resilience of black queer elders has made it easier for black queers of her generation to be open and accepting of themselves. She also discusses how aspects of Southern culture make it particularly difficult for black queer people to exist safely and openly. Furthermore, she expands upon wider institutionalized forms of oppression which alienate queer people of color and make their lives more precarious – for example, the widespread lack of LGBTQ non-discrimination laws. Gumbs recounts how and why she began the Indigo Afterschool program for young black girls. Moreover, she discusses the effect of Amendment One, the 2012 amendment to the NC state constitution banning same-sex marriage. Gumbs recollects the founding of Southerners on New Ground (SONG), a working-class, ethnically-diverse LGBTQ advocacy organization founded in Durham. She offers her insights on the nature of racial diversity in modern feminism, how feminism, LGBTQ activism, and racial activism are connected but often separated by mainstream media, and what the word “queer” means to her. Lastly, she analyzes the LGBTQ community in the Triangle area, mentions how the influx of people from other parts of the country have influenced the local dynamic, and notes the vibrant local history of black queer activism in Durham. This interview was conducted as part of the interviewer’s oral history research project on LGBTQ activism in the NC Triangle area since 1969. |
Citation | Interview with Alexis Pauline Gumbs by Aaron Lovett, 23 July 2014 W-0003, in the Southern Oral History Program Collection #4007, Southern Historical Collection, Wilson Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill |
Description
Interview no. | W0003_Audio |