It is Easier to be Black than Gay: Experiences of Black Rural Queer Educational Leaders

• In Event: Out-Rooted and Rural: Research at the Intersection of Rural Education and Queer Identities

Abstract

Objectives
Research on LGBTQIA+ individuals, especially those from racially (i.e., Black) and geographically (i.e., rural) diverse backgrounds, outside urban settings remains limited. Addressing this gap, this phenomenological study sought to: (a) explore the experiences of Black rural queer individuals, and (b) understand how race and rurality influence their professional lives and self-perceptions.

Theoretical framework
The authors used tenets of double consciousness and rural cultural wealth to undergird the study, applying an intersectional framework to holistically understand participants' racialized and culturally related experiences.

Methods
This research study sought to understand the lived and professional experiences of Black rural and queer educational leaders. To achieve these goals, the authors employed a phenomenological research approach.

Data sources
Twelve Black individuals, purposefully selected, participated in this study. Criteria for participation included: (1) identifying as African American or Black, (2) having earned a high school diploma from a rural school or district, (3) identifying as LGBTQIA+, (4) currently or recently (within the past three years) serving as an educator or educational administrator, and (5) working or having worked in a rural environment. Data included a questionnaire with descriptive information and audio/video-recorded interviews lasting approximately 30-45 minutes. Employing tenets of double consciousness and rural cultural wealth, authors analyzed participants' descriptions, perceptions, and interpretations.

Results and substantiated conclusions
The interviews offer compelling insights on the intersections of race, rurality, and Queerness. Authors explored three major themes: a) oppression is delivered in the name of the church, b) rural representing multiple worlds, and c) higher education spaces are more accepting of diverse sexualities compared to P-12 settings. The study urges policymakers, researchers, educators, and advocates to move beyond an urban-centric view and consider how sexuality, locale, and race shape the experiences and opportunities of Black individuals.

Scientific and scholarly significance
The research contributes to the limited discourse on the intersection of being Black, queer, an educational leader, and rural, providing crucial data to articulate the needs and experiences of the LGBTQIA+ community and the impact of policy on them.

Author

• Jamon H. Flowers, University of Georgia