Named To The 2019 OUT100!

As those of you who have been keeping up with moi know, been getting honored with a lot of awards this year, and in some cases, like the Barbara Jordan Breaking Barriers one I received from the Harris County Democratic Party back in May, I was the first out trans person ever to win it. 

This is another huge honor for me in terms of being named to the 2019 edition of the OUT100.

Since its founding in 1992, OUT Magazine has created a list of 100 TBLGQ celebrities, activists, and personalities to celebrate and honor the most influential TBLGQIA people in our community. 

We have had trans people make this list before, but I am beyond thrilled to be named as one of the OUT100 honorees for 2019!
Congratulations to every one of the 2019 OUT100 honorees, and I wish us all continued success in the collective work we all do to make this community better than when we first encountered it. 

The OUT100 issue will be available for purchase at your fave local newsstand around December 2 and has been available to be downloaded since November 21.
 
I'm old school, so I want a print copy
 

ESSENCE Woke 100 List Has Trans Feminine Representation On It

ESSENCE is the iconic Black women's magazine in our community, and over the last few years I have noted them making an increasing effort to include Black trans women in their stories.

The ESSENCE Woke 100 is a list of women of color who are examples of being change agents and power players.   It is now in its third year of publication, and The Essence Woke 100 encompasses women in politics, social justice, sports and entertainment who are inspirations to people around the globe. 

The 2019 edition included some trans women on this list. 

The trans women who were named on this 2019 list are OUT magazine editor Raquel Willis, actors Dominique Jackson, Angelica Ross, MJ Rodriguez and Indya Moore, and activist/media personality Ashlee Marie Preston.

Congrats to all of you ladies for being named to this prestigious list and thanks for everything you do to rep and uplift our entire community.

This is also another example of Black trans people being an undeniable part of the kente cloth fabric of our community. 

Rep Geraldine Roman Named To 100 Global Thinkers List

Was happy to hear that Philippine Rep. Geraldine Roman was recently named to Foreign Policy Magazine's 100 Global Thinkers List.

Some of the people named to this year's list were Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, and US Attorney General Loretta Lynch

It's amazing that in a year in which some politicians were trying to use demonization of trans women as a way to get elected to higher office, get reelected, as Trojan horses to pass unjust legislation or detract from their failed governance, it was heartening to trans people around the globe to see Roman get elected to office and openly be a girl like us.

As Congressmember Roman said, 'Gender only becomes an issue when you try to keep it a secret'. Since her election to represent her district in Bataan, she has been advocating for infrastructure improvements, healthcare and for a national anti-discrimination bill that has been rejected for ten years.

Congratulations to Rep. Roman for this honor.

Honored To Be Named A Transformative Leader By Planned Parenthood

While I don't do what I do human rights wise to get awards, it sure is nice when that hard work fighting for people's human rights gets recognized.

Sometimes I'm shocked at times at where the recognition is coming from.

Was surprised and pleased to note this Black History Month post on Planned Parenthood's website that highlighted leaders transforming our community.

Amongst the names of people I have long admired like Rep. Maxine Waters,  Rep. John Lewis, Kimberle Crenshaw, Danielle Moodie-Mills, Faye Wattleton and Sharon Lettman-Hicks, was mine.

Thank you Planned Parenthood for that honor, and hope I'm blessed to continue to grow and evolve as that transformative community leader you see me as.

OutSmart Magazine's 2016's 10 Faces Of Black LGBT Leadership

I've known this was coming for a few weeks, but OutSmart, our local TBLG community publication in honor of Black History Month starting today has published the profiles of 10 Black LGBT leaders in my hometown.

I was honored to be one of the two trans people out of the ten selected for this story, but we do have more excellent Black LGBT leaders in the Bayou City doing the work of uplifting all the communities we intersect and interact with.

And in the wake of the unfortunate repeal of HERO in which many people in our community were hoodwinked and bamboozled into voting against their own human rights based on lies, it's past time that the Houston Black community knew who the Black LGBT leaders are inside Beltway 8.

Thank you Megan Smith and OutSmart for including me in this article

For those of you who don't live in H-town, here's the link to the article for you to peruse it.

TransMusePlanet's 20 Most Influential Trans People of 2015

It's the TransMusePlanet fourth annual poll of the 20 Most Influential Trans People and as a testament to the increased visibility of trans people in 2015 there were some changes on the list this year.

TransMusePlanet's fourth annual 20 Most Influential Trans People list started in 2012, and is determined by readers and Sabrina's and visitors to the TransMusePlanet Facebook group created by TMP founding editor Sabrina Samone.

These were the twenty people that her readers were talking about during this soon to be ending year and here's the link to that post.

Laverne's Groundbreaking Triple Play

Laverne Cox keeps making history, and I'm so proud of her as she does so.

Laverne not only was named to the 2015 People Most Beautiful List that will be released on April 22, she was also named to the 2015 Time 100 Most Influential People List and the 2015 OUT Power 50 List

That's an amazing accomplishment for one of the sweetest people you'll ever want to meet, and she's still makes sure that she uses the platform she has to advance the human rights of our community and educate people about trans issues..

And that's before I even start mentioning the CBS legal dramatic series she'll be on entitled Doubt in which she will play a Ivy League educated trans feminine attorney.

Congratulations Laverne!   Can't wait to see what you accomplish next.

H-town TBLQ Girls Running The World

OutSmart Magazine in honor of Women's History Month put together an article honoring Houston BTLQ women who are running thangs, rising leaders and making our community better.

I was happy to see two of my trans sisters in Atlantis Capri and Dee Dee Watters make this list.   And if you're asking where's mine and Synthia's names, we were honored in the OutSmart Black History Month Black LGBTQ leaders issue.

I've had (or will have) the opportunity to work with many of the women named in this article on various community projects.   For those who were named I haven't met, I'm certain our paths will cross soon.

Congrats to Marshella, Atlantis, Dee Dee, Melanie, Stephanie, Margarita, Augie, Fran and Christina who were recognized in this article.

And for our proud H-town LBTQ sisters who lead on loan to other locales like Yesenia Chavez and Stacey Langley, know we love you, are still thinking about you in the 713, and look forward to the next time y'all come home.

I'm A MUSED Magazine 2014 Game Changer!

While I was taking the rest of the day off  so I could binge watch Hit & Miss and see a few other movies,  I received word via my Facebook page that I'd been blessed with another unexpected honor.

MUSED magazine is a Black LGBT publication that started last year compiling a list of people they considered game changers in the Black LGBT community, but weren't well known to the rest of the world.

On their list of 2014 Game Changers, you'll see a familiar name on it

Actually, there's two names familiar to you TransGriot readers.   One is mine, and the other is my homegirl Kimberley McLeod, the founding editor of ELIXHER magazine,

But thank you MUSED magazine for the early Christmas present and the honor of being named to your second annual Game Changers List.   It is deeply appreciated.

. 

Laverne Cox Named To 2014 EBONY Power 100!

Laverne Cox has broken historic ground on a number of fronts in 2014, but I discovered another historic first that she'd accomplished when I picked up some reading material for my long wait for my homeward bound flight from New York a week ago.

The EBONY Magazine Power 100 issue was the one I purchased , and I was excited to discover that when I looked through the peeps that had been named to it for 2014, Laverne Cox was among them.

It is a BFD in the African-American community to be named to the EBONY Power 100.  

EBONY has been selecting the heroes and sheroes of this community and inspiring African-Americans in various categories for over 70 years to compile this list.. 

This year, for the first time ever, I got to see a transperson included in those EBONY Power 100 ranks.  When I thought about the magnitude of what I was seeing as I read the article in the LaGuardia terminal, it made me cry tears of joy.   I'd actually lived to see one of our own sheroes  be named to that EBONY Power 100 List.

It also is emphatic evidence of what I been saying in these electronic pages for years when I point out that we are part of the kente cloth fabric of the African-American community.

Laverne is the first out trans person to be named to the EBONY Power 100, and I couldn't be more proud of her.

Congratulation Laverne to adding another groundbreaking accomplishment to a long list of them you have achieved in 2014.   Can't wait to see what happens for you in 2015.

TransMusePlanet's 20 Most Influential Trans People of 2014

Been a while since I've had the pleasure of signal boosting a TransMusePlanet post, but this is one that needs the extra eyeballs on it.

It's TMP's annual 20 Most Influential Trans People list as determined by Sabrina's readers and visitors to the TMP Facebook group.   These were the twenty people that her readers were talking about during this soon to be departing year.

And yeah, you may see a familiar name or two on this list.

So you can click this link to see who were the TMP 20 Most Influential Trans People for 2014.

Jazz Named To 2014 Time Magazine 25 Most Influential Teens List

In a year in which a teen has won a Nobel Peace Prize, and is garnering attention as an emerging leader in the Hong Kong democracy protests, why am I not surprised when I see this young woman's name on any list of outstanding or influential people?

I had the pleasure of finally meeting Jazz this summer, and I am exceedingly proud of her.

Between all of her other projects, promoting her bestselling I Am Jazz children's book and her award winning advocacy for the trans community, she's already accomplished at age 14 what it takes many people most o their lives to do.

She can add being named to the 2014 Time Magazine's 25 Most Influential Teens List to that ever lengthening list of accomplishments.

And I'm not surprised she's on this list along with Malala Yousafzai, Malia and Sasha Obama, Mo'ne Davis, Joshua Wong and other accomplished teens.  

May wish to scroll down to the bottom of the page and show her some love in the poll that's on the bottom of the article as well.

Congratulations Jazz on another major accomplishment!.

2014 Edition Of The Honor 41 List Coming Soon!

Last year Alberto Mendoza unveiled the inaugural version of the Honor 41 List, which serves to honor and highlight the contributions of LGBTQ Latin@ people.  

I was thrilled to see there was trans masculine and transfeminine representation on the inaugural list, with 5 trans people, Bamby Salcedo, Arianna Inurritegui Lint, Maria Roman, Danielle Castro and Isaac Gomez.being honored in 2013.  

I'm happy to hear that the 2014 edition of the Honor 41 list will be coming out soon, and I'm interested to see who will be honored this year.   TBLGQ Latin@ people are doing wonderful work across the country to move our community and our TBLG human rights struggle forward, in addition to contributing their talents to make our communities and our country better.   It's nice to see them get some recognition for doing so.

I'm also hoping when the 2014 Honor 41 List is revealed, we'll have even more deserving trans Latin@ trans folks honored this year.

When the Honor 41 list is finally revealed, I'll be honored to post the links to it.

Laverne and Lupita Snubbed For Time 100

What would your reaction be if an institution magazine sought public input into who should  make its annual influence list, a person got the fifth highest total of all the vote getters in the poll, but was still snubbed when the final list went to press?

Well, that's what just happened to Laverne Cox.  When I discovered she was briefly leading her category in Time 100 voting, I asked my readers to support her and many of you did to the tune of 88,000 votes (mine included).    That total was as I mentioned the fifth highest number of votes anyone received, but yet she was ignored by the Time editors when the final list came out. 

What up with that Time magazine?  . 

She wasn't the only one with a similar situation ignored by the Time editors.   Oscar winning actress Lupita Nyong'o was also snubbed despite the overwhelming support.of over 41, 000 people.

Time has been mute about it, but peeps pissed about both being snubbed haven't.   The champions and supporters have been vocal about their displeasure of neither woman making the list while people that polled far fewer votes and were of lighter complexions did. 

Laverne took it in stride, thanking people for supporting her. (and I and 'errbody' else always will have your back). Meanwhile the radio silence coming from Time speaks volumes.

As far as I'm concerned, without you two ladies on the Time 100 list, the quality and credibility of it took a major hit.  I submit I'm not alone in my assessment either..

The 41 List Of TBLGQ Latino/a People Has Girls Like Us On It!

In 1901 a clandestine Mexico City party was raided and 41 people were arrested.   Half of those 41 people were dressed as women (and some of those 20 or 21 people were probably girls like us)   They were publically paraded by the police and sent off to slave labor camps simply for being gay, trans and bisexual.   Those that survived the ordeal had their names put on a list that condemned them and their families to a lifetime of ridicule and shame.

The arrest also unfortunately occurred at a time in Mexico when curiosity about sexuality was rising and set in motion a chain of events that combined with the negative media coverage led to a movement that led to the birth of the concept of homosexuality in Mexico.   It also led to the number 41 gaining a negative connotation in Mexican culture  

Honor 41.org  in conjunction with MALDEF, the nation’s leading Latino legal civil rights organization created a list to recognize outstanding TBLGQ Latino/a leaders.   The 41 List celebrates the Latina/o TBLGQ community and demonstrates how far the community has come in the over 100 years since that despicable incident.  

Those featured on The 41 List represent a diversity of professional backgrounds, age groups, genders, geographic regions, and Latino backgrounds that make up our community. They are all role models for our community and for future Latina/o LGBTQ generations. 

I'm happy to note that on the 2013 list girls like us Bamby Salcedo, Arianna Inurritegui Lint and Maria Roman are on it.  When I find the full list of names I'll post it to TransGriot. . 

While I'm happy three of my trans Latina sisters (and two I personally know) were honored on this list, I was disappointed that some of my trans Latino brothers like Mark Angelo Cummings and Yosenio Lewis just to name two are missing.  

Nominations will be taken in the fall for the 2014 edition of the 41 List.  I hope that when I compile my 2014 post about this list, it not only has Latino transmasculine representation, but more Latina trans women on a list to honor and spotlight outstanding TBGLQ Latina/o people.   

Trans Positive Rape Survivor Resources

Yes, one of the things that people do not realize is that we get the good with the bad in a gender transition.   One of the bad things inherent in navigating through society in a feminine body is that transwomen are also targets for rape and sexual assault

If God forbids that happens, there are trans friendly places that will accept and help us.

Thanks to Queen Emily of Questioning Transphobia for compiling this initial list.   If you know of any others pass that information along to me or the wonderful peeps there.

The Grio.com's Trans Free 15 LGBT Leaders List Fail

I'm usually paying attention when Black LGBT leaders lists are put together by media outlets geared toward people of color.

I've found these lists are heavy on the gay and lesbian side of the community, forget the bi part or add them as an afterthought, and either forget the trans part altogether or mistakenly believe that drag queens are acceptable substitutes for actual trans people.

Not surprisingly, I get to tell y'all about another African descended media outlet that fails in that regard.

The Grio.com recently put together a list of 15 LGBT Leaders of the Future.

While there are some wonderful and well deserving people on the list Talia Whyte compiled such as Keith Boykin, Pam Spaulding, Jane Velez-Mitchell, Anthony Woods, Staceyann Chin, Lee Daniels and Wanda Sykes, I'll give you one guess who she chose as what she thought was a representative of the trans community.

Nope, wasn't the TransGriot. Wasn't Miss Major, Kylar Broadus, Earline Budd or even Isis King. The person she chose was RuPaul's Drag Race Season One winner Bebe Zahara Benet.

Excuse me?

Okay, how many times do I have to say this Black GL community and African descended cis allies? This next paragraph also applies to elements of the vanilla flavored GL community and our cis allies, too as well, so pay attention.

Drag queen, unless said drag queen is living 24/7/365 (366 in a leap year) as a woman, DOES NOT equal trans.

Yes, there are and have been drag artists that not only have done high quality work in terms of entertaining the community, but stepped up offstage to fulfill leadership roles for the TBLG community.

But I'm beyond sick and tired of being sick and tired of Black peeps putting lists together advertised as LGBT community ones and being too fracking lazy to do the work to find actual trans leaders to profile on these lists.

And don't give me or the African descended trans community the weak azz excuse about you don't know or can't find any trans leaders or accuse me of sour grapes for calling y'all out on the oversight.

This isn't even about me, so don't go there. It's about the erasure of African descended transpeople.

My point is that if our own people don't or won't show us some love when you compile these leadership lists, and you write for one of our leading blogosphere sites directed at the African-American community gay and straight, how in the hell can we Black trans leaders who are doing the work expect the predominately white TBLG community to respect us as well?


Crossposted to the Bilerico Project

40 Trans Heroes? You're Kidding, Right?

One of the reasons I became a trans activist a decade ago was because of my pissivity over a relatively melanin free IFGE list of out and proud transpeople.

To pour gasoline on it, they not only neglected two future IFGE Trinity winners in Dr. Marisa Richmond and Dawn Wilson who were doing thangs at the time, the only two African descended people on it were RuPaul and Dennis Rodman, who have publicly stated they aren't and didn't want to be.

Well, history repeats itself.

The International Court System in conjunction with The Task Force put together a list of 40 Trans Heroes to in their words, 'highlight the importance of the transgender and gender-nonconforming community as an equal and important part of the broader LGBT community.'

The “40 Trans Heroes” were solicited and selected from hundreds of nominations by a special committee of the International Court Council.

And this is the final list they came up with.




Sylvia Rivera
Shannon Price Minter
Mara Keisling
Jose Julio Sarria
Ru Paul
Marsha Botzer
Nicole Murray-Ramirez
Norma Kristie
Masen Davis
Melissa Sklarz

Lady Bunny
Leslie Feinberg
Gunner Scott
Lynn Conway
Chi Chi LaRue
Marsha P. Johnson
Riki Wilchins
Barbra Casbar Siperstein
Yosenio Lewis
Robin Tyler

Coco LaChine
Valerie Spencer
Jim Flynn
Nancy Nangeroni
Lady Chablis
Rosalinda dela Luna
Cecilia Chung
Loren Cameron
Maria Roman
Theresa Sparks

Karina Samala
Grace Sterling Stowell
Donna Sachet
Shirley Bushnell
Cole Thaler
Darcell
Jamison Green
Sister Roma
Billy deFrank
Frank Marino

"This is by no means a complete list or a ‘best of’ or ‘top 10’ list. It is merely a beginning tribute to the thousands of transgender and gender-nonconforming individuals that have made our modern-day movement possible," says Thom Hansen, president of the International Court Council.

“This momentous tribute to the transgender community is a long time coming. The International Court System is honored to partner with the Task Force. Together, we pay tribute to those whose lives and works have impacted each and every one of us."

“On the 40th anniversary of the Stonewall riots, let's remember the legacy of those who started our struggle for equality and liberation," says Rea Carey, executive director of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force.

"Recognizing 40 of the many transgender and gender-nonconforming individuals who have worked tirelessly and passionately in favor of full LGBT equality throughout these four decades is a reminder of the determination and persistence of the transgender community and of the human spirit. Let's continue to honor these important contributions toward a more just and equal society for all of us.”

The International Court System will present a commemorative plaque inscribed with the names of these outstanding individuals on June 25 to be placed at the Stonewall Inn.

If the joint Task Force-International Court compiled list was intended to honor transpeople, it is not having the desired effect.

Transgender historian, scholar and attorney Kat Rose minced no words after seeing the list.

"Did NGLTF actually have anything to do with this list? Or is it a counterfeit list made up by that Stampp Corbin guy to make his claim on Bilerico the other day (that HRC 'put the T in LGBT') seem believable?

"Darcell? No offense, but who or what is a Darcell? Chi Chi LaRue? I guess I should have gone to porn school instead of law school. And Robin Tyler? Based on her stance on ENDA in 2007, she should be on John Aravosis's top-40 list instead of this one.

On a personal level, I have no love lost for Phyllis (Frye) - but in objective terms, I would have to say she rates higher than most of these people, and significantly higher than some.

And Cole Thaler, eh? Easy to make it onto the list when you get to be in the position to be on the list because you're a young FTM and the organization you work for won't hire 40 year old MTFs.

Oh well - I'm off to read some more imaginary history books written by that imaginary transsexual woman, Susan Stryker.

2005 IFGE Trinity Award winner, NTAC founder and Trans Political blog author Vanessa Edwards Foster stated:

"RuPaul? As one of the 40 top trans people? And Robin Tyler (if it's the lesbian activist) has never to my knowledge voiced that she's trans (and used to have some less-than-inclusive thoughts on us to boot!) Well, being from the Imperial Court ... I can believe it. Way to endorse, NGLTF!

There's a bunch of folks on here I've never heard of ... and note the pro-NCTE slant of their choices! No NTAC folks (besides Yo), no Phyllis Frye, no Alyson Meiselman, no Kat, no Randi Barnabee, no Ethan or anyone from IFGE (or other competing orgs), no Jessi Xavier or Joanna Keatley, no Andre Wilson or Dawn Wilson, no Julie Johnson, no Calpernia (Addams) (strangely enough for them!) and on and on! Ca-LUE-less!

Then again, maybe they meant the 40 top Drag heroes!"

I'm channeling my inner Maya Wilkes and saying a hearty, "Oh, Hell No!" to this list.

First, the list doesn't have the 'Godmother of the Transgender Rights Movement' in Phyllis Frye. No Vanessa Edwards Foster, no Kat Rose, no Dr. Susan Stryker, no Monica Helms, a 2003 IFGE Trinity Award winner who co-founded with Angela Brightfeather the Transgender American Veterans Association.

It's predominately East and West Coast centric. It ignores the major contributions to the transgender movement of people who live in 'flyover country'.

And as usual, out of the four African-Americans on this list, two are entertainers. I like the Lady Chablis, own an autographed copy of her Hiding My Candy autobiography and have met her, but I haven't seen her lobbying on Capitol Hill.

Get this through your heads gay people. RuPaul has stated he isn't and doesn't want to be trans. I'm beyond sick and tired of vanilla flavored privileged people holding him up as an example of an African-American transperson.

How the hell did you forget (or conveniently did so) the only three African-American IFGE Trinity Award winners in Dawn Wilson, Dr. Marisa Richmond and some award winning blogger who happens to be one of the founding members of NTAC, helped create the first standalone African-American oriented transgender conventions in 2005-06 and oh by the way, won the 2006 IFGE Trinity Award in the process?

Dr. Richmond in addition to winning the 2002 Trinity Award, was the first African-American transgender delegate to a major political convention and runs the Tennessee Transgender Political Coalition.

Dawn helped pass transgender rights bills in Louisville and Lexington, KY in 1998 and was the first African-American Trinity winner in 2000.

Hell, at least they did recognize Marsha P. Johnson and Valerie Spencer, but you left off Lorrainne Sade Baskerville, who happens to be a 2000 inductee of the Chicago GLBT Hall of Fame. Dionne Stallworth is not on this list, who is a founder of GenderPac, and neither is Cydne Kimbrough.

But Robin Tyler? Please, she's regarded by some peeps in the trans community with the same distaste I have for Ward Connerly, Michael Steele, Clarence Thomas and Condoleezza Rice.

Don't even get me started ranting about the long list of trans leaders around the planet who aren't US based.

But this speaks once again to an issue that I constantly harp on, along with Kat and Dr, Stryker. Know your history, claim it, own it and zealously defend it from all attempts at whitewashing it.

Because if you don't, others will write it for you, and you may not like the resulting portrait they paint of you when they're finished.

25 Writers Shaping My World

Educator Marva Collins once said 'readers are leaders'. Nowhere has that statement proven to be so emphatically true as to note the major difference between the last two presidents.

Our current one loves to read and wrote two books of his own, the last one brags he never did despite being married to a woman with a library science degree. You can see how the country turned out as a result of being under the misleadership of a non-reader.

I've been reading since I was two, when to my mom's surprise I picked up one of her college textbooks and wasn't 'scurred' to read and pronounce the 'big words' contained in them.

So you can thank Electronic Villager for this post since I got tagged by him. I get to tell y'all who are the twenty five readers who shaped my world.


1. Martin Luther King
2. Alex Haley
3. Ralph Ellison
4. Toni Morrison
5. Alice Walker

6. Randall Robinson
7. John Hope Franklin
8. Barack Obama
9. Malcolm X
10. W.E.B DuBois

11. Eric Jerome Dickey
12. Kayla Perrin
13. Omar Tyree
14. E. Lynn Harris
15. Terry McMillan

16. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
17. Zora Neale Hurston
18. Pat Califa
19. Susan L. Taylor
20. James Carville

21. Marcus Major
22. Jimmy Carter
23. Molly Ivins
24. Tavis Smiley
25. Farai Chideya

The 25 writers who made my list contributed different things to shaping my world. Some gave me a different way of looking at the world in terms of theory. Some armed me with the information I needed to be able to articulately whack racism, prejudice, and right wing conservatism. Some expressed their hopes for an America that lives up to its Constitutional promise and warned us when it was veering off track.

The fiction writers infotained me. They not only drew me into the worlds they created and made me laugh or cry, they also provided some insightful commentary at the same time on love, relationships and various other issues pertaining to the Black community.

Some authors I tuned to for inspiration, education, enlightenment and empowerment.

There are also various books on my shelf that I read such as biographies, history, self-help, sci-fi, writing books to perfect my craft, or cover various issues that pique my interest.

And if you think I'm sleepin' on the facts, I'm armed with the last six issues of the World Almanac that I read cover to cover and keep within easy reach of my computer along with books to help me select the right quote to fit into what I'm writing.

Those 25 writers and many others not only shaped my world, they continue to do so.

EBONY Magazine's 25 Coolest Brothers of All Time

While on a Blue Bell ice cream run I happened to see at the checkout counter the August 2008 issue of EBONY magazine. The EBONY editors decided to do a story identifying the 25 coolest brothers of all time (and no, Morris Day didn't make the list).

The copy I bought has Prince on the cover. There are seven other collectors editions of this issue of the magazine that feature Muhammad Ali, Marvin Gaye, Samuel L. Jackson, Jay Z, Denzel Washington, Billy Dee Williams and the potential next president of the United States on the cover.

So since I spilled a few of the names that EBONY finally came up with, here's the full list.


Barack Obama
Don Cheadle
Billy Dee Williams
Sidney Poitier
Quincy Jones

Lenny Kravitz
Jimi Hendrix
Richard Roundtree
Denzel Washington
Sammy Davis, Jr.

Bob Marley
Ed Bradley
Tupac Shakur
Adam Clayton Powell, Jr.
Gordon Parks

Muhammad Ali
Miles Davis
Walt Frazier
Shawn 'Jay-Z' Carter
Samuel L. Jackson

Malcolm X
Snoop Dogg
Prince
Michael Jordan
Marvin Gaye