In honor of Pride, I'm so excited to open up, share more and let you into my lived experience as a Queer Black man – a part of my identity that has brought me great shame for years that I'm finally beginning to relinquish and embrace as I unfold. A few years ago, Laman Ben-Trahoret and I met in Washington D.C. and we bonded over our love for health and wellness. Over the course of the last year, our friendship has deepened the more we connected over our shared experience as Black Queer men sitting at the intersection of many dimensions of diversity. I am proud and honored to have shared this space and have this conversion with Laman. We dive into things like our upbringing and the environment and experiences that have shaped us. We discuss what it means to truly express as Black queer men – the work it takes to get to this point and important issues and nuances of the collective Black queer experience that can help to make stronger allies for us and our community. We engage in this courageous conversation with the hope that other young Black queer men know that they are seen, heard and valued. And, we hope that they will take the time and space to do the work (self-healing) so they can live a life that truly shines from the inside out.
To learn more about Laman, you can mind him on:
Instagram: @LiveLaman
LinkedIn: @ Laman Ben-Trahoret
Website: https://www.livelaman.com/
To learn more about me, you can find me at:
Instagram: @Twaniefitness
LinkedIn: @ Antonio Stephens
Contact: Antonio.K.Sephens@gmail.com
As always, thank you for listening. I always welcome feedback as I’m working to further refine the format and quality of the show.
With Love and Gratitude,
Antonio
