Recognized as one of the most brilliant tacticians of the civil rights movement, Rustin was appointed chairman of the A. P. Randolph Institute, a liberal think tank that advocated a transformation of society as a means to fight social and economic injustice. Critics refer to his decision to accept this appointment, which he held for 15 years, as his "turn to the right," but Rustin remained committed to radical reforms.

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However, as someone committed to nonviolent social change and to the building of coalitions with others, he was marginalized by the militants who emerged in the late 1970s and assumed control of the civil rights movement.

In his later years, Rustin continued to fight for social justice. He protested the Vietnam War and became active in the gay rights movement.

He died in New York City on August 24, 1987.

Glbtq African Americans frequently experience racism in predominantly white glbtq communities and homophobia in heterosexual black society, but the multiple oppressions faced by black glbtq people are now being recognized.

Early in the gay rights movement activists challenged organized labor to broaden its struggle against discrimination to include sexual identity; consequently labor unions became some of the first mainstream organizations to call for equal rights.

Best known for his research on peanuts, agronomist and educator George Washington Carver become a cultural icon as the "Wizard of Tuskegee," but at the cost of hiding his homosexuality.

The American glbtq movement for equality has largely allied itself with the Democratic Party.