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Written by Sarah Boslaugh Tuesday, 02 June 2009 07:30

The most obvious answer as to why Sakia Gunn's story did not receive wider coverage is that both victim and assailant were African-American, and Black-on-Black crime in Newark simply isn't news to most of the nation.

No doubt you've heard of Matthew Shepard, whose murder made him the poster child for hate crimes against gay people. But you've probably never heard of Sakia Gunn, a fifteen-year-old girl murdered in downtown Newark in an equally brutal crime also motivated by her sexual orientation.

I don't mean to start an argument about which death was more horrifying; no one wins that kind of contest and it can only serve to distract attention from the suffering of both victims. But I do think that more people should know about Sakia's death, and a good way to begin is with the documentary Dreams Deferred: The Sakia Gunn Film Project directed by Charles B. Brack. Besides clarifying the circumstances surrounding Sakia's death (initial media coverage was misleading, to say the least), it also raises questions about why some people's stories get told while others seem to vanish into thin air.

On the night of May 11, 2003, Sakia Gunn and four of her friends were waiting for a bus at the corner of Broad and Newark Streets in downtown Newark. Two men approached them and made sexual advances which Sakia and her friends rebuffed, stating that they were lesbians. Angered, the men instigated an altercation which ended with Richard McCullough fatally stabbing Sakia in the chest. The men then fled the scene and one of Sakia's friends flagged down a passing car to take her to the hospital, where she died a short time later.

Initial media reports implied that there was some kind of equality of guilt between the murder victim and her assailant; for instance, on May 13 The New York Times carried a news story which described the altercation leading to Sakia's death as "a shoving match" and a "scuffle." The facts of the case clearly indicate the absurdity of this interpretation: Sakia was a 15-year-old girl weighing 130 pounds, while her assailant was 30-year-old man weighing 265 pounds. He was armed; she was not. He chose to drive up, get out of his car and start a fight; she was waiting at a bus stop and had no way to escape.

The most obvious answer as to why Sakia Gunn's story did not receive wider coverage is that both victim and assailant were African-American, and Black-on-Black crime in Newark simply isn't news to most of the nation. Add in the fact that Sakia was an "Aggressive" (a lesbian of color who dresses in masculine clothing), came from a poor family (who else would be waiting for a bus in the small hours of the morning in Newark?) and was returning from a party on the Greenwich Village Piers in New York City (a popular gathering point for gay, lesbian and transgendered youth) and it's easy to see why her story was not particularly attractive to the media.

Dreams Deferred has several different purposes in examining the Sakia Gunn story. One is simply to establish the circumstances of the murder itself, which have largely gone unreported. Another is to explore the difficulties faced by gay, lesbian and transgender people of color, a community which has received relatively scant attention. A third is to examine the lack of coverage this case has received in the media, and a fourth is to publicize the efforts in the aftermath of Sakia's death to organize efforts against homophobia in Newark. Interviews with family members and community leaders, testimony from McCullough's sentencing hearing, and footage from Sakia's memorial service create a moving portrait of a young woman whose death came much too soon.

The quality of Dreams Deferred is sometimes disappointingly amateur: Intrusive ambient noise can make speakers difficult to understand, shaky camera technique can be distracting, and locations and speakers are not always clearly identified. But it tells a powerful story and provides an excellent introduction to Sakia's story as well as raising awareness of a community which usually passes under the media radar. | Sarah Boslaugh

Further information about Dreams Deferred: The Sakia Gunn Film Project, including a video preview, is available from Third World Newsreel. Information about pricing and rentals is also available from This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or by calling 212-947-9277 x304.