Student-activist and actor, Moses Bossenbroek. Photo courtesy of Moses Bossenbroek.

By Jaimee A. Swift

Student-activist and actor Moses Bossenbroek (they/them/she/her) will not be bound by binaries, boundaries, and borders at Howard University and beyond.

Moses Bossenbroek’s interview is a part of ‘Voices in Movement’ February 2020 theme, #MakingBlackQueerHistory: Black LGBTQ+ Women and Non-Binary Student Activism at HBCUs. To read the descriptor, please click here..

Moses Bossenbroek, a junior musical theatre major at Howard University, is using their talents, creativity, and activism to create safe spaces where non-binary, gender non-conforming, genderqueer, transgender, and queer students at Howard can be their true and authentic selves. Bossenbroek, a non-binary actor and activist born in Haiti but raised in Grand Rapids, Michigan, is the Deputy Programs Director of CASCADE, the Coalition of Activist Students Celebrating the Acceptance of Diversity and Equality (previously BLAGOSAH, the Bisexual, Lesbian, Allied, and Gay Organization of Students at Howard University, and the Lambda Student Alliance, the first openly and longest LGBTQ+ organization at Howard and at any HBCU), Howard’s official undergraduate LGBTQ+ student organization.

They are also a general member of Howard Players, the oldest student-run performing arts organization at Howard University that strives for quality theatre and activism through art. They are also a member of Pretty Players, an organization that seeks to combat structural, institutional, and community issues on Howard’s campus such as colorism and rape culture through education and the promotion of self-love and self-confidence. In 2019, Bossenbroek was a lead actor in the play, BLUE CAMP, which showed at the Rainbow Project Theatre in Washington, D.C.

Bossenbroek shared with me their experiences of being a non-binary student-activist at Howard; what it means to be a Black non-binary radical; how Howard and other HBCUs can increase LGBTQ+ inclusion on campus; and what they would like to accomplish in the future.

What has your experience been like as a non-binary student-activist at Howard? Are there benefits and challenges to your experience?

Moses Bossenbroek (MB): “Being at Howard has been very interesting. Originally, when I came to Howard I wasn’t completely sure about identity––specifically with identity and sexuality. So, coming to Howard, I was put into an all-male door and my understanding of myself at that point was a lot different. I was treated as a cisgender, Black male student. I remember feeling uncomfortable at that time, but I was also not sure of where I was with my identity. There is definitely this underlying understanding and stereotypes at Howard surrounding the “Howard Man” or the “perfect man” they want you to be––whether you do sports or you are super active or your with this girl or the way you are expected to present yourself. It was definitely interesting to see all this and it definitely impacted how I went through my classes and how I got to know other people.”

“We are living in a time where it is important that we must live in our full truths and be honest about ourselves. People are being more open about who they are and that is changing the climate of the campus.”

“I noticed immediately a lack of understanding of gender and sexuality. It was very much the binary––you are either a man or a woman and that is it. I also noticed gender inclusive housing and bathrooms were not talked about. The administration has set the precedent for the culture at Howard, in regards to the lack of understanding on gender and sexuality, and the students are coming with some more knowledge and some are not. However, there is more and more visibility and the campus is changing. We are living in a time where it is important that we must live in our full truths and be honest about ourselves. People are being more open about who they are and that is changing the climate of the campus.”

How has your involvement with student organizations like CASCADE and Pretty Period helped increase LGBTQ+ students’ visibility at Howard?

MB: “I would say the events that CASCADE does it brings in a lot of attention. We definitely do really well in connecting people and maintaining names and people to work with to affect change. More and more people are coming to our events and learning about our work as a premiere organization working to affect change. We have a lot of partnerships and collaborations. All throughout the semester, there has been a lot of hype and collaborations that have helped us grow.”

“I am really happy to know CASCADE is heading and changing that and providing LGBTQ+ student representation because it is important to see us being queer and Black at HBCUs.”

Why do you think LGBTQ+ student representation is important at Howard and at HBCUs?

MB: “I think there needs to be more of an understanding and acknowledgement of intersections, as someone who can be a part of multiple groups that are oppressed. If you are queer as well as Black, for others, there is a gap of understanding of what we deal with and what we need to survive and succeed. That is why when people come to HBCU campuses, some people are not educated or they did not grow up in a way where they are exposed to people who are LGBTQ+. At times, when you engage with people, there is some ignorance there and it causes issues because there is not that knowledge or education there. I am really happy to know CASCADE is heading and changing that and providing LGBTQ+ student representation because it is important to see us being queer and Black at HBCUs.”

With your activism, what would you like to be remembered as in regards to your legacy at Howard?

MB: “I want to be remembered for being unapologetic and unwavering in myself, bringing in all my experiences and using it to help others and inform other people. I want to be remembered as always being myself and trying to help as much as I can.”

In the future, where would you like to see Howard and other HBCUs in regards to LGBTQ+ rights?

MB: “I would love to see Howard and other HBCUs be on the forefront of a lot of change. There is no reason why we as students should have to beg and have to think and feel all these different extremes or emotions to secure rights and representation. They should be working with us and be forward-thinking about LGBTQ+ issues. It should never be a negative thing to advocate for LGBTQ+ students at HBCUs––it is always a positive thing. I would like for Howard to work with CASCADE so we can progress consistently.”

“I would love to see Howard and other HBCUs be on the forefront of a lot of change. There is no reason why we as students should have to beg and have to think and feel all these different extremes or emotions to secure rights and representation. ”

In the future, where do you yourself?

MB: “I see myself definitely working in theatre––that is the dream. One of the first things I want to do is be a casting director. There are a lot of issues as a whole with queer people being seen, heard, and safe in the theatre industry, so I would love to use my platform and my position whereever I end up to support others. Whatever position I wind up in––whether that be casting director, actor, director or producer––I want to provide a space for people who are queer, who are people of color so they can be able to present art, and to reach audiences that usually don’t get to see their art, and to be able to find ways to fund it so it can be sustainable.”

What does a Black Non-Binary Radical mean to you?

MB: “I think claiming that you are Black and non-binary is pretty radical in itself. A lot of people would be afraid to do that or many people are afraid of a person who claims that. It is just about being yourself and choosing to live freely and loudly and wanting to create a space and find people like you and support them, that is radical. To live in a world that does not want you to exist is radical, honestly.”

You can follow Howard Players on Twitter @HowardPlayersHU and Instagram at @howardplayershu.

You can follow CASCADE on Twitter @cascadehu.

To Be Young, Black, Gifted, and Non-Binary: Moses Bossenbroek on Making Black 'Their-Story' At Howard University