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I am A New Afrikan, Openly Queer, Womanist, Hip Hop Baby, Poet, Artist, Filmmaker, Public Speaker, Follower of Christ, Baptist Pentecostal Revolutionary Warrior Freedom Fighter. My Mother and Father named me Joseph after my paternal grandfather, Benjamin after my maternal great-grandfather then gave me the last name Reaves. Some of you call me Mr. Reaves, Some of you call me Black Panther, and last but not least known as JoJo.
I’m Kanye and Cornel West combined with a Homosexual Twist added for good measure. I’m an Artivist, an Edutainer, a Grassroots Movement Organizer who is also a 22 year old Openly Queer Boldly Black Hip Hop Baby living in the greatest city in the world at the best time in my life and sometimes I just wanna party. I like to listen to Common I like to listen to Pharrell I like to listen to Jay-Z I like to listen to T.I. I like to listen to Lupe Fiasco I like to listen to De La Soul I like to listen Kool G Rap I like to listen to A Tribe Called Quest I like to listen to Rakim I like to listen to The Roots I like to listen to The Pack I like to listen to Jimi Hendrix I like to listen to Bob Marley I like to listen to MeShell Ndegeocello I like to listen to The Clark Sisters. I’m a Christian, and it’s more than just a cute label or fashion statement to me, I truly desire and strive to be a Christ Influenced Follower of Jesus and I’m also Same Gender Loving, and desire and strive to embrace both my Homosexuality and Christianity in real and authentic ways and I know it’s possible. I’m a Christian and as stated earlier I like to party. I’m a Christian and believe that God is Alive, Speaking, and Working through the Christian Church but I also know that God can be found in The Muslim Mosque, The Jewish Synagogue, and The Buddhist Monastery. God Can Be Found In the Faith of the Rastafarian, The Faith of the Hindu, and in the faith of the practitioner of one of the many Traditional African Paths of Spirituality. I Am A Speaker and Writer of Brave Words That Fight Fear, A Son, A Grandson, A Brother, A Friend, A Inspiration, A Affirmation, A Validation, A Blessing, A Support System, A Hip Hop Baby, A Hip Hop Head, A Hip Hop Intellectual and Scholar, A Fashion Icon, A Nephew, A Uncle, A Child of God created uniquely, undeniably, perfectly, fully, completely, and fearfully in God’s Image. I Am A Broken Vessel for God just doing my best to spread the Gospel of Radical Inclusivity, to do the work and ministry of Social Justice, to speak the words of Tolerance, Acceptance, and Peace and to speak the AfroHomo truth that God has placed in my heart. I am a Human Being who just wants to be who he be and be able to be who I be in peace and without threat of assault. I am all of these identities based in one magnificent being and I have the ability and power to define and re-define, and re-redefine these identities when, where, and how I need to.
I am A Native and will be A Lifelong Resident of New York City. I was born in Queens, the home of A Tribe Called Quest, LL Cool J, Run-DMC, and Nasir Jones. I was raised in and attended school through Junior High in Long Island, home to Rakim, EPMD, Public Enemy, and De La Soul. I went to High School and did my first two years of college in The Hudson Valley Section of New York these would be my formative “coming out†years. I am now back in Southside Jamaica and I travel and make moves extensively in Manhattan and Brooklyn. One Day I want to buy a two-story brownstone in either Bed-Stuy or Fort Greene but until that time I consider myself an honorary member of the borough that gave birth to B.IG., Jay-Z, Spike Lee, Big Daddy Kane, Mos Def, and Talib Kweli.
At this point in my life I am a Student-In-Transition. From 2005-2007 I was a Liberal Arts student at Sullivan County Community College but left last May for my own reasons. I just got accepted to Howard University as A Film Student! After Howard I’ll do a Graduate Film program at either Columbia or NYU and am also looking at Union Theological Seminary to possibly pursue a call to ordained ministry. My career goal is to become a director and use my gift to entertain while speaking on issues of Race, Class, Gender, and Sexuality. What Spike Lee did for the young African Americans of his generation I want do for the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Same Gender Loving, Transgender, Two Spirit, Queer/Questioning, Gender Non-Conforming African Diaspora Community of my time.
This page is dedicated to my mother, Ms. Patricia Reaves, and to the memory of my late father, Mr. Maxie Reaves. Ma, you truly are the President, CEO, and Founding Member of the Joseph Reaves Fan Club. Your love and acceptance has been steadfast and its value is beyond monetary capacities. Daddy I miss you and at the same time I don’t because I see you every time I look in the mirror. I know you’re in a better place and in that place you know what I should have told you when you were here and that’s that I love you. This page is also to acknowledge all the LGBSGLTTSQGNC Youth of Color whose lives have been snuffed out by hate and ignorance, especially the memories of Rashawn Brazell and Sakia Gunn. Rashawn, and Sakia I never met you but the two of you, especially Rashawn have had such profound impacts on my life.
Last but definitely not least I have to acknowledge the one who is my Sword of Truth, my Shield of Love, my Conquering Lion, my Chief Executive Officer, and my Rock of Strength, Courage, Wisdom, and Perseverance my Lord, and my Savior Jesus Christ. Lord you died so that I might live, I believe you are the Son of God and that you rose on the third day after you were crucified, you are my redeemer and I know that you live. Your name is Sweet, Precious, Powerful, Awesome, Liberating, Radically Inclusive, Life-Changing, Mountain Moving, Yoke Destroying, Bondage Breaking, Chain Shattering, Oppression Ceasing, Wonderful, and Excellent. I Love You, I’m In Love With You, I Like You, I Honor You, I Admire You, I Look Up To You, I Adore You, I Respect You, I Glorify You because you’re worthy and I hope that through my life, through this page, and through my social justice work against the evils of Racism and Homophobia among many other forms of Prejudice and Bigotry-Based Violence that people see You in Me. You are a Friend and a Confidant. You walk with me and talk with me and tell me that I’m your own; you are a refuge, a strong tower, a balm in Gilead. When nobody else loves me you love me. When nobody else understands me you understand me. When this cold and callous world comes against me to eat of my flesh in the spirit of Injustice and Intolerance you make it so that they stumble and fall and then you come to me and you tolerate me, you embrace me. When this world won’t or can’t accept, appreciate, and affirm me, when I can’t do these things for myself, you accept me, you appreciate me, you affirm me. Thank You.
