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When I was in middle school, I was accepted into the 100 Black Men of Atlanta mentoring program. There was a multiple-year waiting list, but one of my childhood friends was already in the program and vouched for me, so I got to skip the waiting list.
I was the child of a single parent and from a low-income background so being accepted into this program was a game-changer. For one, it exposed me to a wide range of professional Black men and expanded my dreams of what was possible for me to be when I grew up.
I saw Black doctors, lawyers, engineers, STEM-related fields, professors, business owners, and all of these men gave of their time to invest in little boys who looked like them who weren't used to seeing husbands and present fathers.
So many of my "firsts" came through being in this program. The 1st time I ever learned how to invest in stocks, the 1st NFL game I ever attended, the 1st college visit I ever went on, the 1st ever scholarship I ever received came from the 100 Black Men program.
One of the MOST valuable aspects of the program was the education in Black History. Our mentors decided early on that a month only would not suffice, so every other Saturday morning we received a Black History lesson. We did this all year round from 8th grade until HS graduation.
We were challenged and encouraged to continue to research Black History and to hold our peers accountable to do the same.
These men invested their resources, time, and energy to take our education a step further by taking us to visits Morehouse, Clark Atlanta, Southern, Grambling, Bethune Cookman, FAMU, so that we saw first-hand the value of HBCUs.
I developed imagination and curiosity that was larger than my immediate circumstances, and I am well aware that I received experiences through that program that my peers in my apartment complex didn't.
People have thought they were giving me a compliment with "See, you made it and didn't make excuses!" Nah, that's bull, I saw significant Black representation, had Black mentorship, was given opportunities by God's Grace and the village I was surrounded by who filled in the gaps.
I mattered to these men, they saw a boy worth investing in and walked alongside me right into manhood. I go so hard now, b/c I never forgot what was given to me. Black representation matters, Black mentorship matters, Black History matters, All Black Lives Matter.
