Johanna Owens-Ream and the other members of Olivete College"s Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender organization drove over an hour from Olivete to Ann Arbor this weekend with a mission in mind to learn how to break down barriers.

Queer Visiblity Week keynote lecturer Keith Boykin, former special assistant to President Clinton and current black lesbian and gay issues author, promoted awareness and understanding as he spoke about the black and LGBT experience and the common experiences of people in both groups urging people to embrace the notion of love in their lives and move past the things that hold them back.

"The most important message is about love unconditional love and self love," Boykin said. "It"s important for people who"ve been told for years not to love themselves that it"s okay to love and to love yourself."

Boykin stressed the importance of thinking critically about issues of race and sexuality and examining preconceived prejudices and biases instead of accepting and parroting society"s stance.

He addressed issues including the racism within the LGBT community, religion and the "as long as you don"t tell anyone" attitude he said many institutions adopt with regard to sexuality.

"I"ve heard far too many people suggest there is no racism in the LGBT community. My personal experience suggests the opposite," he said.

Boykin said society should be paying more attention to the AIDS crisis.

"Twenty-two to 25 million people have died of AIDS since it began. It threatens to overtake the Bubonic Plague as the largest ever health crisis in human civilization."

Boykin cited statistics about the nation"s budget and national spending to show that more money is being spent on the Olympics than on funding for HIV and AIDS patients.

"What kind of priorities do we have as a society that we won"t spend the money we need to save people"s lives," Boykin said.

School of Art and Design senior Ben Fife said he was glad Boykin addressed racial components, homophobia and the need to prioritize funding with regard to HIV and AIDS in a real and applicable way.

"I work for the HIV-AIDS resource center in (Ypsilanti) as an outreach worker," Fife said. "It"s really great to have someone on campus talking about, among other things, the AIDS epidemic and how it still affects the LGBT community."

The event was co-sponsored by the office of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Affairs and the Minority Peer Advising Program in celebration of Black History Month and Queer Visibility Week.

Kelly Garrett, LGBT affairs coordinator of programs and student development, said the event was a chance for everyone to learn about race, ethnicity and sexual orientation and how they intersect.

"The LGBT community is very diverse and a lot of people honestly don"t know that. I"ve heard a student say they didn"t know there was such thing as someone who was black and gay," she said.

Owens-Ream said Keith Boykin"s experience as an activist and as an author and role model for the LGBT community is encouraging to students who want to speak out and promote understanding of the LGBT community.

"It"s energizing to hear a speaker like this, for addressing issues on small campuses, rural campuses where there still be homophobia and closed minds," Owens-Ream said. "It"s nice to hear someone talk about successful campaigns for rights it"s affirming."

The event was one of many cultural discussions taking place this week as part of Queer Visibility Week, which will culminate Friday with a Kiss-In Rally on the Diag.

A black LGBT panel and an Asian LGBT panel with are planned for later this week to give students the chance to talk about their experiences of being LGBT and from these backgrounds.

"We try to get programs that represent everyone," Garrett said. "You have to include all populations. I think for people of color on this campus you have to be an advocate to make people aware that even within the LGBT community there are people of color. We know that but they need to be recognized and accepted as who they are and for their heritage."