I became infatuated with author James Baldwin (1924-1987) years ago. I found aspects of his life and his personality parallel to my own. As a gay Black man myself, I was interested in how he survived in an era where being Black and queer were a dangerous reality. Not only that, how did he live with such abandon and so publicly in that time.

I investigated his life, his writings, his philosophy. I came to find that his undeniable intellect overwhelmed his victimhood as he spoke courageously in defense of his people and of the Black experience. He understood the psyche of racism and how the issue was not one-sided, but a pain that affected all who suffered through it and with it.

This interview, for me, represented the true thesis of his life’s work; to treat others as you want to be treated, that having love and respect for the human being is vital to a peaceful existence.