Feature

Lambda Pi Eta becomes official at UIS

Photos by Paige E. Wessel

UIS students inducted into Lamba Pi Eta, the national communications honor society, watch as their adviser Mike Searcy addresses the audience of their family, friends, and faculty.

LPH President Morgan Meade and Vice President Stevi Johnson greet Keirsten Lynch as she is inducted into the organization

SASSI presents black and gay film series

By Janee Mitchell - Feature Writer

Students Against Sexual Stereotypes and Inequality recently sponsored a Black and Gay film series during the month of February.
Pat Langley, SASSI advisor, said the film series provides an opportunity for students to “find out what they didn’t know about, such as Bayard Rustin.”
SASSI showed “Brother Outsider: The Life of Bayard Rustin” on Thursday in honor of Black History Month. Bayard Rustin was a civil rights activist and among other accomplishments he was instrumental in the organization of the March on Washington. Langley said not everyone knows about Rustin’s role in the March on Washington or the peace movement. Outside of being a well-accomplished activist, Rustin was a black gay male, what Langley calls a racial and sexual minority.
Langley said it is important to notice the difference between the struggles of race, gender inequality and sex discrimination. She said the issues are not separate and that some similarities exist. There are African American members of SASSI and Langley said they are able to see that a gay or lesbian African American can be successful.
The Black and Gay Film Series began with “Black is…Black Ain’t” on Feb. 10, examining “racism, sexism and homophobia within the black community,” said a press release on the event. SASSI closed out the film series with the life stories of two influential African Americans, Rustin and Springfield native Ruth Ellis, who SASSI has listed as the “oldest ‘out’ African American.”
All the films addressed the struggles of gay and lesbian African Americans. Some of the films were about African American men who faced a double discrimination for their race and sexual preference. There were also films presented about African American females who faced a triple discrimination for being African American, lesbian and female.
SASSI is a 20-year-old organization. It has developed through many presidents, names and forms. This marks the first year SASSI presented a film series addressing gay African Americans. The club has previously shown films for October’s Gay History Month, but Black History Month films are a new addition.
Langley said films about gay or lesbian African Americans are rarely shown or even found. The three films shown during the film series were copies from the UIS library. Langley said SASSI hopes to continue its tradition of the black and gay film series for next year. She also said the films of gay and lesbian African Americans are hard to come by but she is sure they could find some.

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SASSI presents black and gay film series