NAACP chairman emeritus and civil
rights icon Julian Bond on Monday implored Mississippians to embrace
equality for Mississippi's LGBT citizens.
The 75-year-old Bond made his plea in a
Clarion
Ledger op-ed.
“The fight for basic civil rights is
not a quest for superiority or an unvoiced desire for power,” Bond
wrote. “It is, at its root, a battle to raise us all up. We all
deserve the right to try and fail, move forward and fall back, and
ultimately succeed on our own merits and individual gifts. But for
many of us, our ability to dream of a greater and more brilliant
future is limited by the color of our skin, the texts of our
religious tomes, and the gender of whom we love and who we are.”
“The push for full equality for all
Americans has always come with hurdles and setbacks. But we are not
dissuaded from our path. LGBT Mississippians and their families
yearn for a better day, one that we can work together to create.
Let’s begin right now.”
HRC Mississippi State Director Rob Hill
applauded Bond.
“This piece shows why equality is
needed in the Magnolia State for all people, regardless of their
sexual orientation or gender identity,” he said in a
blog post.