77 out of 100: I want to first thank @felaraymond for participating in my Sleeping Beauty photo series thats aimed to humanize Black men/Male bodied perceived people, as well as create dialogue surrounding toxic/fragile masculinity which we did sit in his room and talk about. A lot of Black men don't have the courage to allow someone to photograph them in such a defenseless position, vulnerability is apparent. I told Fela I wanted to wait to post this because I wanted to attend a zoom event @_beamorg was having regarding community safety and de-escalating situations, in order to share something I learned from this event on this post.
During the event I learned the importance of boundaries, and that when I create them, I'm creating the perfect space and distance between us where I can fully love myself and you at the same time with respect and dignity. What stood out the most for me during this training was the emphasis on sharing this information with others when this ends, I felt that. So I really want to take this moment to thank @felaraymond for helping me continue the conversation by recommending another Black man @fatbellyyella who I am set to connect with later this week. I will then ask @fatbellyyella to recommend another Black man/male bodied perceived person to participate because to me this is what community and the work looks like. I also get declined or ignored too many times when I DM/Email people, its better when someone who has already went through the process share this series with someone they know, there's trust present. For everyone who can't participate, or who doesn't identify as a Black man, don't feel like you can't still support. I encourage you to share my project, recommend a Black man in the NYC area, etc. Most importantly click the link in my bio, its always updated.