mentors, more than friends...highly respected individuals....

Angela: i met angela harvey in dc, she is a synamic person that motivates from the heart via personal experinces. she has the humor, and love in that favriote auntie kind of way...i love her to death...

Danni: I met Danielle while i was shopping in rice village one day. she has offered me some of the best non judgmental advice i have ever gotten in my life, and i a forever grateful to know her, and have the relationship we have..... Marlon: the awakenings movement, awakenings movement is something that one cannot put in words, but it is powering and dynamic... marlon is awesome, i first met him at fish grits and politiks, and since then he has been one of my role models, like danni he offers non judgemental advice, and advises from the heart....check them out... Maurice....damn...what else can i saw. i first met him in dc at the hrc hbcu conference earlier this year, i then got a chance to speak with him at the dallas premier of his film dirty laundry. maurice is a kind hearted, genuine brotha doing his thing with the films, and i give him madd love and respect.... Jonathan: well for a while he has been a huge inspiration to me. i first saw him a couple of years on a bet special, and the one thing that stood out the most was he said he loved starbucks. i listened to his story, and i always wanted to contact him. well i was able to meet him via facebook, and my space, now we chat daily, and he is truly a inspiration to many gay men of color. i know that he and his message will go far, and many will listen.....love ya friend... Brandon: one of the most positive impacts in my life in general. brandon serves as the diversity chair for the HRC, and under the small fashionable frame, is a loud voice, and huge advocate. brandon is like a gay father to me, he give me the best advice, will fly in to meet with me when i need anything, and always stays on top of me about claiming my truth. he is one of the driving forces behind my new seminar series, and i am am truly honored to know him and be close to him... Darian: okay i met this awesome brotha while looking through blogs one day, and i must say this lil brotha is fabulous. i respect him the most for giving almost everyone the benefit of the doubt all the time. he inspired me to walk out on faith, and do what is best for me. he has an awesome blog also....this is a new friendship i cherish a lot also.... JL King: okay to the man that blew the top off the dl thing, i disliked him because of what i have heard about him and his vies in the past, and i was fortunate to meet him in november, and see for myself. j.l is great, he spoke on the issues, and afterwards had a conversation with me about several things, and even called me when he got back to the atl. i have a new found respect for him, and i am glad to have had the opportunity to have been in his presence, and look forward to working with him.... HRC HBCU CONFERENCE ATTENDEES 2006: to my fellow HRC HBCU brothas and sisters , so many of you inspired me in so many ways, it felt good to be around people like myself. we discussed issues, and opened up to one another, and left with life long friendships, and bonds....

well for you to have respect from me is a huge thing. i very rarely meet people that touch me in special ways, but just being themselves. i have been fortunate to meet many individuals in 2006 that have touched me and my life in many ways, and made me want to claim my own truth. you see i came out to my family at age 16, i was young confused. i am so glad that god stepped in and turned me into the young man i am today. i was on the path to getting caught up in what the world has to offer for young gay men of color, living a unsafe life of fraud, and just being a very cold, and alone individual. i was a student at my high school where i was constantly harassed, bullied, and made fun of because of who i was. i stopped going to school, and was ordered by a judge in november of 2001 to get my GED. i got my ged, and planned to go back to high school, but then decided to try my luck at college. i was accepted to more than 15 school with my ged, sat, act, scores, letting of recommendation, and my essays, including Howard University, Morehouse, Georgia Tech, Southern Methodist University, Texas A&M University, and the University of Texas, yet i choose Prairie View A&M University. i entered pvamu in the summer of 2002, and told myself i would never look back. four years later, here i am a man, once a confused boy, i am now an educated black man, claiming my truth, and making strides forward to impact my community in ways i know only i can. i have not made it this far without help and wisdom from many important people from community leaders, to family and friends...and for this i give these individuals a great amount of respect...