Thread by @wrong_speak

I was once scared to express myself publicly, as many are, but you never know how many people you will impact once you do.

*Thread*

This month marks an anniversary of me coming out of my shell and not being afraid to express myself. March of 2020, I released my book "Black Victim To Black Victor" after 9 months of writing & editing. I had no expectations but I was proud of the outcome.

What lead to me writing the book was feeling like people like myself were staying silent because they were too scared to express a counter point. I'm in many ways a moderate person yet my views, in comparison to the narrative, made me a sudden radical when they are commonplace.

I was tired of the media using a broad brush about my existence due to my race. Before I started writing, I shared nothing publicly. I barely posted on social media. But everything changed after George Floyd. Suddenly, my choice to not speak was turned into intimidation.

With encouragement from people close to me, I wrote. I spent 9 months preparing myself for potential backlash with racially charged rhetoric as I'll likely be described as an Uncle Tom simply for advocating for the nuclear family. The more I wrote, the more I became unafraid.

In the middle of the writing process, I started Wrong Speak wrongspeak.net to initially express myself but I quickly realized it needed to be bigger than myself. I wanted to advocate for people to be as publicly unafraid as I was about to be.

March 2020 came & my book was finally published. Not knowing what to expect, I put myself out there and I've met so many wonderful people along the way. People who gave me space on their podcast platforms to market my book & express myself even further outside of writing.

And you know what is amazing? The animosity has been minimal. Why? Because I believe in what I'm saying and what I'm saying is rather normal. It's just that the moderate people have chosen silence & believe the radicals are the majority when they are loud minority.

The extremists in our society get stronger when you say nothing and then the conformists in our society follow the loudest voices in the room. The only way to change this outcome is for more people like myself to say "enough" & make ourselves heard.

There is nothing special about me and that's ultimately the point. If I can take the initiative, then anyone can. If I can expose myself to criticisms, then anyone can. If I can put my name on what I say, then anyone can.

Today, Wrong Speak isn't just me venting anymore, it's giving people the opportunity to lend their 'voice' to the conversation. To help develop their craft as writers and feel brave enough to expose themselves by no longer fearing the extremist mob may come for them.

For example, @audraf637 used to be just an avatar on Twitter and after writing her first article, she started using her real name & picture. She became brave by these simple action. I am proud to see how much she's developed simply by becoming unafraid.

When I met @MRSullivan96 he was looking for critique on his writings & I was there to help. When he wanted to contribute to Wrong Speak, I was proud to have him use my platform to continue his development & show him support along the way.

My motivation to speak is bigger than me now. The money I've made from book sales, I've yet to spend a dollar on myself. It's all used to reinvest into Wrong Speak, which is used to reinvest into the people who have become brave enough to speak out.

I'm proud to announce that @audraf637 & @MRSullivan96 are now Staff Writers for Wrong Speak. I'm also looking to start the process of supporting someone for publishing their book with Wrong Speak. I'm also working on my second book as well (hope to be done by Summertime).

You never know who you will impact if you dare to open your mouth. I've been influenced by remarkable people who chose to do the same before me (some of them I'm friends with today) and I'm proud to continue this process by helping others.

So, be unafraid. If you have something to say, say it. Dare to speak recklessly but I would implore you to speak intellectually.

You never know how your words will impact others and you never know what you will become by simply opening your mouth.

If you're interested in supporting Wrong Speak, I would suggest purchasing my book:

amazon.com/Black-Victim-V…

*Correction March of 2021*

Also, follow @wrongspeakpub for updates and new articles!