REMEMBERING RUSTIN: A RHETORICAL ANALYSIS OF INTERSECTIONAL MEMORY by ADAM J. SHARPLES JASON EDWARD BLACK, COMMITTEE CHAIR ROBIN BOYLORN RACHEL RAIMIST A THESIS Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in the Department of Communication Studies in the Graduate School of The University of Alabama TUSCALOOSA, ALABAMA 2012 Copyright Adam J. Sharples 2012 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED ABSTRACT While communities grapple with combining the discourses of race and sexuality, as well as reviving the accomplishments of LGBTQ individuals through/in our public memories, the voice of Bayard Rustin, celebrated activist and noted contributor of the nonviolent resistance movement of the 1960s, demands to be heard. Though historians have modestly attended to Rustin’s contributions and historical legacy, his ethos as a rhetorical figure has eluded scholarship within communication studies. Building upon a grounded construct of theoretical frameworks connecting public memory, queer public address, and intersectionality this study engages the rhetoric and public memory of Bayard Rustin. This study explores the rhetorical strategies available to a gay civil rights leader and how these strategies affect the legacy of the U.S. Civil Rights Movement, the future of gay rights, and discourses at the intersection of race and sexuality. Through examining his most popular pieces of discourse from 1942 to 1987, this study first attempts to recover the rhetoric of Rustin by comparing his rhetorical tactics across temporal and situational spaces. Second, this study analyzes the rhetoric surrounding contemporary sites of Rustin’s memory in the service of intersectional resistance, queer history, and LGBTQ politics through a reading of the PBS documentary Brother Outsider: The Life of Bayard Rustin , and subsequent curricula and discussion guides developed for middle and high school students. As a result, critique of Rustin’s discourse offers the field of rhetorical studies implications concerning counter memory and intersectionality. ii DEDICATION This thesis is dedicated to Chris Brooks, the man who gave me a future so that I can continue to uncover the past. iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS When I started this process two years ago I took a leap of faith. At this time I must acknowledge those people who made this project a true leap of love. First and foremost I have to thank my formidable thesis committee for their suggestions, guidance, and encouragement every step of the way. I have gained a true appreciation for the incredible mind of Dr. Rachel Raimist. I have to thank Dr. Robin Boylorn, whose Black Women’s Stories course first awakened a voice inside of me I hope I can continue to make heard. I cannot find the words to express my gratitude and admiration I have for Dr. Jason Edward Black. Dr. Black’s diligence, mentorship, and friendship have pushed me to aspire to be the sort of engaged scholar and passionate educator he has proven himself to be. I hope I can one day do for others what he has done for me. In addition, I must express my thanks for the friendship and system of support I found in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. First and foremost, I have to thank Frank Thompson for taking a chance on me, and giving me the opportunity that changed the course of my life forever. To the faculty in The Department of Communication Studies at the University of Alabama, thank you for the many ideas and knowledge you provided for me, you have truly been an inspiration to me throughout this process. To the Alabama Forensic Council, I could never have survived without your inspiration and understanding. I also must mention the wonderfully gentle and kind hearted Cory Paul Harrison for being the world’s best roommate throughout this process. A big thank you to the rest of my master’s class for fun nights, “getting,” Gilmore Girls, drinks, dancing, and becoming people I truly love and will miss. iv Further, I have to thank my future husband, better half, and love of my life Chris Brooks. Thank you for your unconditional love, support, and for always reminding me that I am better than the person I tell myself I am. From the poster he put above my desk that said “keep calm and carry on” to the warmth and shelter of his smile I could never have done this without him. To my family I thank you for your patience and constant encouragement. You might not always understand what I’m doing on this crazy ride I’m on, but you have always believed in me. Finally I have to acknowledge the sources of inspiration that fueled the writing of this project. To Curt “Crut” Byars, may you rest in peace dear friend, thank you for that last phone call when you told me I should follow my heart, not my wallet, and move to Alabama. Thank you for the reminder that tomorrow is promised to no one. To Bagley and Alex for good wine and even better conversations. To the Bradley University Speech Team, thank you for teaching me the power of my own voice, the strategies to persevere and the true meaning of DTFR. Thank you to the 8 th grade English teacher who told my mother I wasn’t college material for proving that people will continue to underestimate me. Thank you to the cubicles of Caterpillar for proving just because something is comfortable doesn’t make it meaningful. Thank you to Cassie Price for showing me that I could be whoever I wanted to be. To anyone I have failed to acknowledge, please know that I will carry your lessons and examples with me wherever I go. Finally I owe a debt of gratitude to the people that made this thesis truly possible, those brave individuals that came before me, the ones who dared to speak when the world required them to be silent. To Harvey Milk, Bayard Rustin, Audre Lorde, and the hundreds of voices lost from public memory: thank you for making a space where a boy from Missouri can write about what 50 years ago would have had me arrested. I pray my generation can live up to your legacy. v CONTENTS ABSTRACT ................................................................................................ ii DEDICATION ........................................................................................... iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ......................................................................... iv 1. INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................1 a. Plan of Study ............................................................................................7 2. MAPPING THE MEMORIES OF RACE, AND SEXUALITY ..........10 a. Intersectionality ......................................................................................10 b. Public Memory .......................................................................................16 c Queering Rhetorical Scholarship . ...........................................................18 d. Gay History vs. Queer History ...............................................................19 e. Queer Memory .......................................................................................24 f. Memory of The U.S. Civil Rights Movement ..........................................28 3. A TIME ON TWO CROSSES: RUSTIN’S INTERSECTIONAL CONTEXTS ..............................................................................................36 a. Unspoken Identity ...................................................................................37 b. A Home In Harlem .................................................................................38 c. An Activist Through Fellowship .............................................................40 d. Public Trials and Contestations ............................................................43 4. RUSTIN’S INTERSECTIONAL DISCOURSE ..................................49 a. Pre-Mainstream U.S. Civil Rights Discourse ........................................50 vi Nonviolence vs. Jim Crow ..............................................................52 The Negro and Nonviolence ...........................................................56 b. Mainstream U.S. Civil Rights Discourse ...............................................60 The Meaning of Birmingham .........................................................62 Personal/Political Shifts .................................................................66 From Protest to Politics .................................................................69 c. Turn Toward Gay Rights Activism .........................................................75 From Montgomery to Stonewall .....................................................77 The New Niggers are Gays ............................................................80 d. Conclusions ............................................................................................83 Identity ............................................................................................ 83 Rhetorical Shifts ............................................................................ 85 Intersectionality .............................................................................. 85 5. RUSTIN IN PUBLIC MEMORY ..........................................................89 a. Brother Outsider and Public Memory ....................................................91 Film as Discourse ..........................................................................91 Rhetorical Context of Brother Outsider ........................................93 Public and Private Sexuality ..........................................................95 Erasure and Trauma ......................................................................99