![\"\"](\"http:\/\/www.kuma2.net\/skyeview\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/07\/blogpic1.jpg\")
\nNational Black Lesbian Conference\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 July 10-13, 2008<\/p>\n
\nNational Black Lesbian Conference\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 July 10-13, 2008<\/p>\n
Big up and maximum respect due to the NBLC planning committee and to all of the conference participants! By all accounts and as I observed with my own eyes the NBLC was a huge success.<\/p>\n
For many, the spa\/resort environment helped to underscore the conference theme \u201cTime To Be Renewed\u201d. The women gathered, debated, listened, contemplated and socialized amongst kin.<\/p>\n
Highlights of the conference for me were meeting the light-filled women who participated in my workshop, the many couples I met who have been in long term committed relationships, the elder sisters, and the numerous sisters who greeted me with fond memories of reading Skyeview way back in the day on Sistah-net. Indeed, one sistah nearly blew me away when she informed me that my travelogues helped to inspire her dissertation on Black women and travel! Wow!<\/p>\n
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\u00a0<\/p>\n
How To Muster Personal Courage When The Going Gets Good!<\/strong><\/p>\n My disappointment stems more from my own silence at the banquet and brunch more then anything else. I wondered how the dynamic would have changed had there been for example hijab attired sisters in the ballroom. Proclamations of Jesus this and Lord that preceded the introduction of one keynote speaker who alluded to being agnostic. It has to be noted that the designated Mistress of Ceremony Karen Williams has been a practitioner of Nichiren Buddhism for more than 35 years. So I imagine statistically there were other non-Christians in the room too.<\/a><\/p>\n A safe bet when offering a worship component for an event is to ’cause if you believe that your god![\"\"](\"http:\/\/www.kuma2.net\/skyeview\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/07\/blogpict3.gif\")
The only disappointment I experienced at the conference was having to endure the Christian centric prayers and shouts outs to Jesus during the banquet dinner and gospel brunch. Displays of religiosity in this type of gathering typically strikes me as being presumptuous of African diaspora spiritual practice and potentially culturally insensitive towards non-Christians. A similar incident occurred at DC Black Pride at the Sunday worship service. And, I recall feeling just as disquieted and cowardly.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"http:\/\/www.kuma2.net\/skyeview\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/07\/nblcbrunch.jpg\" "\\"nblcbrunch\\"")
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\neither make it inclusive of different faiths or preferably
\nnon-denominational.<\/p>\n
\nis better than another man
\nhow we gonna end
\nall your suffering?
\n’cause if you believe that your god
\nis better than another woman
\nhow we gonna end
\nall your suffering and strife?
\n(Fellowship lyrics by Meshell N\u2019degeocello)<\/a><\/p>\n