Building a Black Coalition in Support of Gay Marriage

A group in Maryland is trying raise support among African-Americans for gay marriage, according to an article in the Baltimore Sun.

The Maryland Black Family Alliance is trying to link blacks’ struggle for civil rights in the 1950’s to the current struggle of gay Americans.

The article mentions a 2004 study by the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies, which showed black opposition to gay marriage was stronger than opposition by the general American public.  Forty-six percent of blacks surveyed said they opposed gay marriage compared to 36 percent of the public.

Dan Furmansky, the executive director of Equality Maryland  who was interviewed  for the piece, had this to say: ”No two civil rights struggles are ever exactly the same,” he said. ”But there is certainly inspiration to be gained from the bravery and the heroism of African-Americans and the struggles they faced to be treated with dignity, respect and equality over generations.”