For our first Loud Mouth Lucy Column, I present to you one of my first teachers of liberation: my Daddy! Born in Greenwood, South Carolina and raised in Southwestern Virginia, he is the youngest of 4 brothers and a twin. In his late twenties, he pledged Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Incorporated, had a daughter born on Malcolm X’s birthday, and attended a think tank conference that would ultimately change his life. In fact, this “season” would change his life. My father describes his childhood self as angry yet quiet and reflective. He once told me he was denied employment because he didn't look the interviewer in the eye. The interviewer later invited him to lunch and explained how young Black men tended to avoid looking white male authority figures in the eye. This and the think tank marked two significant turning points in his life.
Though I have definitely seen him angry, rarely have I seen him afraid or quiet about the issues that matter: justice, consciousness, and liberation for Black people. To the contrary, in many respects, he has devoted his life to staring down authority figures through his activism and community organizing. And that brings me to this interview with him. I am one year older than he was when I was born so I thought this was a full circle opportunity. Take a listen at our conversation below.
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