The Good Page features positive LGBTQ+ news in Central Florida and Tampa Bay, uplifting and inspiring stories highlighting local stories in our community. In this issue, we check in with the Tampa Bay Black Lesbians, a social group which became its own nonprofit in 2024.
With President Donald Trump back in the White House and his administration’s actions impacting minority groups across America, the organization has stepped up to offer support and a safe space for those who need it.
The group launched a new virtual meetup series called “TBBL Is Holding Space” on Jan. 11. During that first meeting, attendees discussed a range of topics, mostly their day-to-day happenings, as well as politics and the new administration.
“Having a rough week? Need to chat? Need some friends for a pep talk? Just need some company and community? Grab a beverage and log on,” the description for the new series reads. “No pressure, no expectations, just good company and listening ears — a safe, no judgement zone for Black & Brown LGBTIA+ women.”
These meetups will take place on the second Saturday of every month into the Spring but could continue beyond that depending on turnout. The next two events are scheduled for Feb. 8 and March 8.
“If it goes further will depend on the attendees,” says Silk-Jazmyne, TBBL board member and host. “If there’s a need, we’ll keep doing it.”
For months, the organization’s leaders and members closely followed news about the presidential race between Trump and former President Joe Biden, then former Vice President Kamala Harris.
“We were waiting with bated breath for the election results … [and] as a group, we were keeping tabs on different legislation,” Silk-Jazmyne says. “So, when we found out that Trump had won, we immediately, as a board, comforted each other, and then it was a question of ‘okay, how can we comfort the community? How can we support them?’”
She began hearing TBBL members and other LGBTQ+ people in the state say they were considering moving away from Florida, which has enacted a number of laws targeting the queer community in the years leading up to Trump’s re-election. The Florida Legislature also maintained its conservative supermajority last year.
“But there were also a lot of us saying, one, we don’t want to move, or two, we think that it’s important to stay and fight and support one another,” Silk-Jazmyne says. “Because if everybody moves, then we can’t make any change.”
She and other board members conceptualized “TBBL Is Holding Space” for that purpose. They say it is needed for the organization’s members during this critical time.
“As a Black lesbian, we’re marginalized and then we’re marginalized again, and the way that that intersects is, a lot of the times, the spaces that we’re in don’t hold space for us,” she explains. “So, it’s important for us to hold space for our entire being and our entire identity.”
As the series launches, the meetups are loosely organized. During the first gathering, people mostly spoke about what was happening in their lives and other shared concerns.
“One person was talking about parenting; somebody else was talking about going through a break-up recently,” Silk-Jazmyne recalls.
She hopes to organize the virtual gatherings further down the road by featuring various professionals, from therapists to other specialized speakers.
“Eventually, I do want it to be more organized, but for right now, this event is exactly what it is,” Silk-Jazmyne continues. “It’s just to hold space, especially as a Black lesbian.”
TBBL will do exactly that on the second Saturdays of each month from 2-3 p.m. Read more below:
Learn more about the organization and their efforts, including in-person social events and other initiatives, at TampaBayBlackLesbians.org.
Interested in being featured in The Good Page? Email Editor-in-Chief Jeremy Williams at Jeremy@WatermarkOnline.com in Central Florida or Managing Editor Ryan Williams-Jent at Ryan@WatermarkOnline.com in Tampa Bay.
