November 6, 2024 • 41 mins
In this episode of 'Emboldened with Jessica', the conversation explores the intricate relationship between fashion and personal style, emphasizing how they shape identity and self-expression. The hosts discuss the evolving definitions of fashion and style, the societal implications of clothing choices, and the importance of comfort and confidence in personal expression. The episode also features an insightful interview with Justin Michael Hendricks, who discusses the intersection of fashion, community, and social justice, particularly within the context of ballroom culture and empowerment.
We explore the intersection of fashion and personal identity. Our wardrobe choices serve as a visual representation of who we are, conveying messages of confidence and individuality.
Wearing what makes us feel good can significantly enhance our mental well-being. We'll also discuss the evolving nature of personal style in the context of social media and inclusivity, focusing on the stories behind trends rather than just the trends themselves.
Joining us is special guest Justin Michael Hendricks, a prominent figure and advocate for social justice, and bringing ballroom culture to central Illinois. Together, we'll examine how fashion can act as a tool for activism and community empowerment.
So, grab your drink and join us as we delve into dressing with purpose and the profound impact it can have on our lives. Remember, style reflects who you are, and feeling good in your skin is paramount. Let's get started!
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Chapters:
00:00 Introduction to Fashion and Personal Style
03:00 Defining Fashion vs. Style
06:09 The Impact of Style on Identity and Perception
09:00 Fashion, Gender, and Social Norms
11:49 Sustainability and Accessibility in Fashion
15:14 The Role of Alter Egos in Personal Expression
18:09 Interview with Justin Michael Hendricks
25:01 Community and Fashion as a Tool for Empowerment
32:01 The Be Yourself Ball and Ballroom Culture
To follow Justin Michael Hendrix's grassroots organization HitNHomeBoy
Food can be donated to 102 N. Neil St. Champaign IL. 61820
Government Municipality Building
Venmo: @HitNHomeboy88
CashApp: $HitNHomeboy88
Instagram: HITNHOMEBOY
Facebook: HITNHOMEBOY
Twitter: HITNHOMEBOY
Jessica’s Cozy Book Nook - Bookshop
Julián Is a Mermaid by Jessica Love - Bookshop
Stay Connected:
Instagram: @EmboldenedwithJessica
Facebook: @EmboldenedwithJessica
TikTok: @Em
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:06):
you
Welcome to the show in Bolden with Jessica.
I'm Jessica.
I'm Ariel here with Jessica.
I'm back.
Yes.
Okay, Ariel, you've been missed.
I've been loving the one-on-ones you've been having with people and I have a feeling somemore are coming up.
(00:30):
So today we're going to be talking about emboldened with fashion.
So I just think this is so timely because of the seasons are changing, our wardrobes arechanging.
And I love this whole idea of with the seasons transitioning, this just this transitionaltime.
And I feel like during transitional times, we put a lot of focus on fashion and our style.
(00:52):
And I swear like the past what year and a half, I think with
Beyonce's Renaissance tour and Taylor Swift's era's tour.
Like people are putting so much emphasis on styling when they go to the concert.
That's like transitioning into just everyday life.
How people are just putting more thought into how they look.
(01:12):
For sure.
You know, I just went to see Usher in LA and I thought I was going to wear a dress.
And then when I told my sister, she laughed for a good two minutes.
what did you wear?
That's when I realized I probably shouldn't have wear the dress I was thinking aboutwearing.
So then I Googled usher outfits and I saw some ideas and I was like, okay, what is goingto be important for me going into this?
(01:35):
I'm going to be out for a really long time.
I want to be comfortable.
I want to have a good time.
So instead of like focusing so much on what it was that I wore, I still, I wore somethingthat I was going to be pretty comfortable wearing and like walking in.
I still look good.
Although when I got dressed, my sister was like,
Are you going to change?
And I mean, dare I say we were we were talking before we started recording this podcastabout style and fashion.
(02:05):
And it sounds like you just embrace your own personal style for going out.
Could that be right?
Well, that's not my sister saying.
Like she thought that because I like wearing dresses and I wasn't wearing a dress, I wasin jeans and a T-shirt.
that I wasn't wearing something that was me.
But I do love wearing dresses, which interestingly enough, I think people get treated verydifferently based on how they show up.
(02:31):
Over the years, I just enjoyed wearing dresses.
Like I think they're comfortable and I do notice a difference in the way that I'm treated.
Now I don't mind wearing jeans and like a cute sweatshirt or something like that, but whatI was really going for at this concert was I wanted to be able to move and I just wanted
to be comfortable in like,
I'm sure it was fine.
It was fine.
had a great time.
(02:52):
That's what matters.
I had like the time of my life.
When we talk about fashion and style, sometimes we use those terms interchangeably.
And I feel like they're separate.
That one definition of fashion is that fashion is a general term that describes a popularway of dressing, behaving, or writing at a particular time and place while style is more
(03:19):
personal and internal.
And I would agree with that definition.
I think fashion is kind of what's trendy in the moment.
And I think style is more a person's kind of essence, like their way of being.
I agree with most of that.
I think to me, fashion is just a blanket term.
It's just like, yeah, the shirt and pants that you have on, that's fashion.
But I imagine fashion being, so you're shopping at a clothing store, probably online, andwhat you're filling up your cart with is your style.
(03:48):
But like the whole store is all the fashion, depending on how you look at it.
Uh-huh.
That makes sense to me.
Okay, because when I pull some good looks, sometimes I'll be like, the fashions, the
pieces are the best.
Yes, yes.
And then start to break things down and how you put things together, take things apart foryourself.
Usually that's when you start to embrace your own style or just a style of like, if you'redressing like, want to look like a 1970s Bohemian goddess.
(04:17):
Like that's the style you want.
So.
Yeah, that makes sense.
So we're curious about what your definitions of fashion and style are.
And if you want to share.
on social media, feel free to let us know or to email us.
Let us know how you've used style in fashion.
(04:42):
As we're thinking about fashion and style, I think about the ways that people are treatedbased off of their style.
And I think about this in terms of work spaces and the identity we might have at work.
You laughed heartily at my green cardigan, because therapists, love a cardigan, we love asweater.
I...
(05:02):
It was the style of cardigan.
There are cardigans.
I love a good cardigan, but the cardigans that I like for my personal style, they remindme of like...
grunge 90s cardigans.
This cardigan was no buttons, just open front, these square pockets on the side.
Like it was a very specific counselor therapist.
(05:25):
We like a cardigan that feels like a blanket.
But I think about how we might use style in different ways.
And so when you're talking about this bohemian, I even think about like events.
Sometimes we'll have like,
a dress thing for an event and that kind of makes the event even more fun.
And it helps the people that are at the event to feel really included, like a sense ofbelonging.
(05:48):
Because now we have this thing that unites us even if we don't necessarily know everyone.
And so I just think that style can be used for so many ways to fit what our needs mightbe.
And also, I guess on the other side of things, this whole argument of style, especially incertain settings of whether it's appropriate.
(06:09):
and not appropriate.
think of the discourse on being a corporate person, a corporate woman, and if you can wearshorts or not in the office.
I think of holster girl dresses going to brunch on a Sunday.
So what's appropriate, what's not appropriate.
There's this desire to police women's bodies in a way that we don't police male bodies forthe most part, that I think is interesting.
(06:35):
There's a part of me that's old fashioned and feels like there is a time of
but like a poster girl dress at brunch, I feel like you're grown.
And you're going to brunch, I don't see anything wrong with it.
Like if you feel confident and gorgeous and what it is that you're wearing, I don't seehow that is.
I don't know, cause again, right?
So I might say at brunch, you can have kids there.
(06:55):
To me, that's still very different than me being an educator or a therapist workingone-on-one with a student.
And I know I'm going to be working with students all day long in a dress like that.
When I decide that I'm going to wear brunch, I'm-
thinking about whose children are gonna be there.
True.
You take them to place with the DJ.
We're going to Chicago and I'm with my niece and my nephews.
(07:18):
There are brunch spots.
I'm not even considering going with them because I just know that's not the environmentfor them.
And I think that comes down to parenting.
Right?
When I'm in that authority space and I'm the therapist, I'm the educator, I'm not going toput my students in a position where they feel uncomfortable.
But yeah, I don't know.
just think there's such a desire to police people's outfits and bodies.
(07:39):
Kind of like the woman on TikTok who was talking about Gen Z going out and not wearingcute shoes.
yeah, the heel.
Were they heels?
Is that what we're calling those?
Because...
mean, it's another argument about is a wedge a heel?
Right.
Right.
And like, who cares?
For me, I'm at a stage in life where my style is really dis...
(08:03):
zined around what makes me feel comfortable and confident.
And I could feel confident in almost anything, not a brown paper bag, although I couldstyle it.
True, true.
But it's also like being confident in yourself and also being confident in whateverlocation you happen to be at and wherever you happen to be.
(08:24):
So there's just levels to the confidence.
And can you be comfortable with how you are dressed?
Absolutely.
And why don't we have these poster girl dresses conversation when we're looking at guys injoggers and they're great joggers.
I think there is, it's not as overt of a conversation, but with men and by not being one,don't, I don't know for sure, but there are conversations with their fashion and their
(08:53):
style because I think of not to the gray, gray joggers or gray sweatpants, but even to
wear jeans on certain days.
Like they've been regulated to only wear it on Casual Fridays, but during the week theyhave to wear like khakis or dress slacks or something.
So I believe men encounter like the smallest portion of this.
(09:15):
True.
I think it looks a lot different.
And then how does this show up for folks that are non-binary?
You know, in terms of the ways that folks expect you to present.
One of the things I've heard from folks who are non-binary is this outside perspective of
You should be more gender neutral and non-binary doesn't need to mean that, right?
(09:36):
And so like this idea that we have of what people are supposed to show up as or look like,I don't know.
I think once you embrace your style, you're less worried about that and you're moreconcerned with how you feel in the clothing that you're wearing.
And certainly someone that has to do with the spaces you're gonna be in.
I think there's a shift that happens.
(09:58):
So, you know, one of the things that comes up sometimes is do you need to spend a lot ofmoney to be fashion and be stylish?
What are your thoughts on it?
No, just because there are so many options for thrift stores, especially if, and also ifyou've grown up in a household where there are multiple children, hand-me-downs is just a
part of life.
So no, you don't need tons of money.
(10:21):
It can help with certain things, but also it just depends on what kind of style you'regoing for.
True, yeah that's true.
I feel like things that are vintage and things that are thrifted are way more in than theyused to be.
Like I grew up with brothers and a male cousin and so I wore a ton of Yandme downs thatwere more masculine because they were for them.
(10:42):
And so that was not my personal style but I didn't really have much of a choice.
And so I would have to try to figure out how to style, how to wear it in a way that feltcomfortable for me.
And so I think that obviously money makes life lot easier.
That piece, also there's just more of a variety open to you.
(11:03):
Me personally, being a bigger body and always having a bigger body, I grew up in a timewhere, especially in the early 2000s, where there just was not plus size options.
So I would have to go to the men's big and tall side and hope that there was somethingmetro over there or something that I could feminize.
to make it more for my style.
(11:25):
So in a way it kind of helped with styling purposes.
It makes you think outside the box, but because you have to.
I even feel like in the conversation we had with Lisa Holmes and Lisa was talking abouthow her style has changed over the years as she's been able to afford a little bit more to
be able to be more creative.
(11:45):
And it, but it's also too opening up.
another can of worms in the sense of fast fashion.
And then I feel like there's more and more talk about how certain materials are cancercausing.
For sure, I think the sustainability of it.
So like a lot of sustainable brands are expensive, but they also are pieces that last,which I think is probably the reason why folks like be able to thrift and find vintage
(12:12):
clothing because the material is really nice and you're not contributing to fast fashion.
There's a lot of perks and there's a lot more that's available and accessible now.
This is why I'm trying to get into sewing.
Remember about that sewing machine?
Yeah.
When did you use it?
I wanted to learn how to use it.
Okay.
Because the other thing that I think makes a huge difference is the way things are fittedon you.
(12:37):
So in terms of like, it designed for your body?
And not necessarily like, because I may be pear shaped.
only A-line works for me, no, fit it to my body in a way that it feels nicely tailored sothat I feel comfortable and confident.
(12:59):
Well, as we are continuing to talk about fashion and style, I like how we're touching onkind of how to find your style, embrace your style, talking more about fashion and all
these different sides of it.
But one of the things that really keeps popping up in pop culture when it comes to styleis styling for either your identity, but also an alter ego part of your identity.
(13:24):
Yeah, I...
I love an alter ego.
You know, I've been blending my alter ego for decades on different things.
I love that idea of Halloween and being able to dress up in a completely different way.
love having an event with a thief where we're acting in a different way.
think it was my birthday theme last year, like one of them, think it was memes, like yourfavorite meme.
(13:47):
I just think that's fun and it invites playfulness.
And life is difficult.
And so to be able to invite in levity and playfulness is just something I try toincorporate in the work that I do, but just in my personal life to be playful.
I mean, we can be childlike and not childish.
And so I love an alter ego moment.
I love an opportunity to dress up.
(14:09):
And like I mentioned earlier, I think that when we do something as a group, it nowconnects and bonds us in a different way.
And now when we think about this event, we're also thinking about the outfit that we woreor the voice that someone talked in or I don't know, it just brings in a little bit of
levity.
And I think it also, if you let it go past you just dressing up, it can tap into differentparts of your personality that maybe you haven't felt comfortable to share or you just
(14:39):
don't share.
But in the end, if you can blame it on alter ego,
then yeah, why not dress up and get like a blonde wig on and just do what you want to do.
So something that is totally not your style, but you're alter ego embraces all of it.
So it's just something to try out.
Absolutely.
I think that that is extremely fun and explorative.
(15:03):
I mean, we think about little kids and like playing like dress up and dress up even mightinclude like them being a doctor or them dressing up.
as like a firefighter.
Like there's just so many ways for us to kind of try on different things and see what welike and what we don't like.
And I don't know, I just think that we should encourage that.
(15:24):
I love blending things on my alter ego.
One of my alter egos is Chaco and I blend Chaco for everything.
I didn't do it, Chaco did it.
And I wish Chaco could be here in this moment to speak for themselves.
So yeah, like I feel like we have friends that like when they start channeling a differentenergy, we're like, yeah, yeah.
This is Jazzy.
This is and so like, so and is with us now.
(15:47):
And it's hilarious.
I don't think anyone is monolithic in the sense that there's these different sides of allof us.
so allowing those and counseling or in psychology, we might call them like different, likealtered these different parts work, like the movie Inside Out, where, you know, there
(16:10):
might be a protective side of us that doesn't want us to be hurt.
There might be like this little kid side of us who like really wants to have fun, or theremight be a side of us that feels really strict about the budget.
We have these different parts for a reason.
They each kind of serve a purpose and allowing them to kind of come out and be in waysthat are playful and feel good, I think are really important for our wellness and for
(16:33):
happiness.
Wellness, playfulness.
mean, don't don't judge that person who's doing cosplay over there.
Don't judge that person who's role playing.
That's just another form of dress up and having fun.
I do wanna offer a cozy book note.
(16:54):
And this book I just absolutely positively adore.
It's a kid's book and it's called Jillian as a Mermaid and it's by Jessica Love.
And what I adore about it is it's about this little boy who really wants to dress up likea mermaid in this parade.
And he wants to wear the sequins and be colorful and bright.
And he's being made fun of and told that he shouldn't do that as a little boy.
(17:16):
And his abuela
is just really supportive of him being himself authentically.
And I think for a lot of us, maybe there were parts of us that adults in our life maybedidn't always understand or wanted to quiet.
And there might still be parts of us as an adult where we are being told to quietsomething, take up less space, shrink yourself.
(17:40):
And so A, we don't need to do that.
B, let's find people like that, well, in this book,
who allow us to take up space and be ourselves authentically.
I just think it is an incredible book.
It's one that is often banned, so another reason to support it.
Julian is a mermaid.
So that's my cozy booknug for today.
(18:09):
All right, so in honor of what we're discussing, I invite you to listen in on a wonderfulinterview that I did with Justin Michael Hendricks, who was an educator, a creative, and
an activist about fashion and style and about ball culture.
(18:32):
We have me, Justin Michael Hendricks, who's joining us and is gonna just be sharing withus a lot of information about his nonprofit and the incredible work that he does and about
style as a form of political expression and as empowerment.
So a little bit about Justin is I'm gonna, I gotta tell y'all all the things about Justin.
(18:55):
So Justin is an educator, a creative and an activist.
He's a native son of Champaign-Urbana, Illinois.
Hendrix has utilized his skills to create Hitam Homeboy.
The mission of Hitam Homeboy is to provide inclusive, equitable education and resources tomarginalized communities.
(19:15):
Hitam Homeboy addresses issues of food insecurity, mental health, gun violence, LGBTQ pluschallenges, and poverty.
Hendrix has been a member of Equality Illinois legislative
Advisory Committee Group, and GLAAD Media Institute.
He has been featured as a spokesperson for the GLAAD, I'm Voting No Matter What, andefforts for AIDS campaigns.
(19:41):
In 2021, he was awarded the 2021 Community Impact Award from Bi Black Shambana.
I do remember this.
And the following year in 2022, Lord Rustin in Bates, Chicago for Advocacy Impact Award.
Justin Michael Hendricks believes in education, advocacy, and community culture is the keyto open more doors in the future.
(20:05):
Justin, thank you for joining us.
Thank you for the invitation.
I thank you for so much.
I really do appreciate this time being here.
Absolutely.
So for many, dressing for oneself rather than the gaze of others is an act of resistance.
So a lot of times people might be dressing for the gaze of the folks at the
they're attracted to, they might be dressing for the gaze of those at work.
(20:29):
How do you see your personal style and fashion as tools for reclaiming one's power,especially in Black and Brown communities?
Well, what I can say is for one thing, I'm very humorous before we start this interview.
And when you were reading the questions to me just now and you were using the word gaze,just me being me, I'm going into saying something very funny like we like to kiki like
(20:50):
gaze.
I'm not mad at that.
But we mean gays as in G-A-Z-E as in the I, the Smize, Tyra Banks.
Ooh, yes.
Uh-huh.
Yes, yes.
So I would say when it comes to my own personal style and fashion and how I see it, mypersonal style is something I would say is comfort, it's creative, it's cool, yet it can
(21:15):
be conforming to any community.
I think of Little Kim when she says that she's like a chameleon, a chick with over athousand looks.
I feel like I'm a person who has many layers to myself and I'm always dressing for theoccasion.
However, I am a personal style of a mood board and I feel however I wanna feel, but alsono matter what, we know the mood of fashion is very evident.
(21:37):
So that is what I will say is my personal je ne sais quoi in my personal style.
So yes, creative, comfort and cool.
And also what I'm hearing is it evolves.
It evolves for what your needs are for the day.
Yes, and I mean, as fashion elevates and changes and reinvents itself, we too, as peopleshould be doing that ourselves, just in our daily breathing and daily life.
(21:59):
And fashion is one way that we use it to show up as in our most authentic selves.
And I believe with fashion, that's something that's very important for me personally, whenI do show up, you know, I'm always going to be creative.
I'm going to be cool.
I'm going to be comforted.
And I'm going to be very comforting with my outfit.
Yeah, I think about the mission.
mission of Hit-Em Homeboy around mental health.
(22:20):
And we know that how we're feeling in clothes, whether we're feeling confident, but alsous feeling comfortable in our bodies is so important.
so while style is important, also just feeling comfortable in a way where we're notlooking tore up like we rolled out of bed.
But, you know, being aware of like the materials that we have on the fabric that we'rewearing, is it breathable?
(22:46):
Are we wearing layers in a way where we can be comfortable in a room where we're not incontrol of the temperature?
I think that has a huge piece of it in terms of like healing and embodiment also thatyou're speaking to.
Yeah, and I will say one thing for sure to go a little bit further with your with your tapinto fashion and social justice and and the blackness of it all.
(23:08):
I going to basically thinking about like the civil rights time and then even into theBlack Panther Party and even to now?
If you look at it, fashion has always been a part of the movement and of the culture.
There's a look to it.
For example, the civil rights, even though the three piece suits were hot, as in H-O-T, itwas hot, burning up Faith Evans.
(23:31):
I know, that's right.
at the same time, it was a look that they wanted to give because there was a stigma placedupon black and brown bodies, especially black women as being ignorant and animals.
We had our prominent figures like Martin Luther King and Malcolm X that stood up andensured that we had to come out in the suits and the ties and be the classic men and just
give that look because you had the men and the women in their suits and the heels and thecurls and the pearls.
(23:56):
But then as time changed and the Black Panther Party came around, we then wore the leatherand then we the combat boots and we had the afros and we had the afro picks.
And you know, it was all about.
being into our blackness of it all and owning who we were, not saying that we weren'tourselves in the three-piece suits and the pearls and the heels.
(24:17):
However, there was more of a, a strengthening in our fashion sense to where we knew how wehad to stand with pride and power, not just in our blackness, but in the knowledge of
knowing who we were.
And then even now to where the Black Lives Matter movement has came about to where we havecombined the sense of fashion and social justice to make statements.
in our movements and statements in our fashion to where we have the t-shirts in theapparel, we have the stickers, we have the messaging, but then also we're bringing forth
(24:45):
things that are of fruition to where we're able to provide services to each other, towhere our fashion is not just the things that we wear, but what we can wear in the
community, to where we have services to people, where they can get resources from health,to wellness, to reproductive rights.
Those things are fashionable to us as well in the movement of social justice, becausethose are the things that we're wearing daily as people.
(25:08):
As you're speaking, it just, I, you know, I never really conceptualized it in this waythat when you're talking about like the Black Power movement and the leather and the
combat boots, how those are kind of really tough, kind of warlike clothing.
And that was what was needed at the time.
And even I'm thinking now about how
(25:31):
part of your nonprofit is to also to serve the community.
And I think about how the Black Panther started free school lunches, right?
And so like this kind of duality of personal expression, moving things forward, but notjust in service to ourselves, but in service to our community.
(25:54):
And so yeah, you just gave me goosebumps as you were talking, because I was like, wow.
all of these connections that I hadn't really thought about until you voiced it.
Can you tell us a little bit more about the grassroots organization Hit'em Homeboy, abouthow it started, the mission behind it?
(26:16):
Yeah, so Hit'em Homeboy, as some people, when they always look at it, they're like, whatdoes this say?
It's Hit'em Homeboy, so H-I-T, so hit, and then N by itself, the letter N, and thenhomeboy.
Basically, it's like a play on words or like no different than someone saying, the girlnext door or the boy next door.
or America's sweetheart.
(26:37):
It's a way of me introducing the world into a culture that is never seen as beingaccepted.
And also being something that is going to be something very different.
So it's going to hit you over your head.
So when it comes to you, it's something that's very, very cultivating, but also verycultured.
So when I created Hittin' Homeboy, I was at the end of my advocacy phase in St.
(26:59):
Louis, Missouri.
A lot of the work I've done in St.
Louis, Missouri was geared around a lot of health and wellness for black and brown, queerand trans people.
And so just being in that space and understanding that this is important for us, we haveto learn to advocate for us.
And that's when I learned about the backside about data collection and how it's more soabout stigma as opposed to support.
(27:23):
And then when I returned back to Champaign, after the unfortunate murder of Michael Brown,
I then wanted to go more really in depth in my advocacy and understanding that I have avoice and with my voice, it is something that can help others and creating a space because
I do not see spaces for black and brown, queer and trans people, black and brown, queerand trans adults, elderly people, youth, and we need those spaces.
(27:49):
And not saying that all spaces of queer and trans acceptability is not available.
However,
there are times when we have to then go into our spaces and have our own conversations.
And that is what I find is important to me when I lived in St.
Louis, Missouri, is that that was very key to me in learning about my historians, likeJames Baldwin, like I said, like Bayard Rustin, learning about people that I never knew
(28:18):
that existed, Marsha P.
Johnson, and learning about these people.
that I never knew that were creating space for my black queer self as a young boy growingup to then learning about people in film and television and then learning that we too
exist.
And so when I went back to Champaign, Urbana, I use Hittin' Homeboy as a tool in the midstof social justice because one thing that I learned while protesting and advocating in St.
(28:48):
Louis during Ferguson before, after, and during Michael Brown was that
You want them to understand that, yes, we have a message here.
And it's not just that we are a bunch of people yelling in the street.
We are standing up for many rights, many communities, many things that affect us all.
Because at the end of the day, marginalization is intersectional.
There is no face for being marginalized.
(29:09):
There is no face for an impoverished community.
It's all intersectional.
And so with that being said, homeboy basically, as you read earlier, is about ensuringthat we have inclusive, equitable education.
and we have resources to marginalize communities.
We focus on food insecurity and mental health and gun violence and things that are of theLGBTQ community and poverty.
(29:31):
We also ensure that with that being said, during the unfortunate passing of and murders ofMichael Brown, Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, when we were protesting in 2020, going into
2021, we developed a food pantry concept and it was just mutual funds from us all in thecommunity in a food pantry.
(29:51):
because you have people with food that don't have homes.
You have people with homes that don't have food.
So where's the middle ground that we can meet them all by providing a service that isunlike any other.
don't need documentation.
We don't need ID.
We don't need a nine to five.
so with the community food pantry.
It's something that I learned and I give credit all to Marshall Austin Yeagle, who's oneof the also the co-creators of the food pantry concept along myself.
(30:20):
He taught me a lot about food insecurity in one way that I did not see it to where it'sconnected into many things from domestic violence to educational performance to just
social skills.
Food insecurity is a heavy, heavy intersectionality to a lot of disparities that do existin lives.
And we do not understand that.
Nevertheless, moving forward, I also ensured that I use Hidden Homeboy to provide aservice that is unlike any other during a time when social justice was at an all time high
(30:49):
to people
to where they didn't understand what was going on in the world, hitting home would providean answering solution to those people in the time of confusion.
Yeah, I've seen some of the work that you've been doing and I've just been really just inawe because we're talking about, this is a difficult time and especially as a black queer
man, you're already having a difficult time.
(31:12):
three layers, three layers.
Hello.
that's already so much.
And for you to in the midst of all of that say, wow, I'm seeing where we're not supportingpeople who need support because we're requiring them to have ID and documentation and
we're creating these barriers to them accessing food that we have in abundance.
(31:34):
Even furthermore, even with it's been since 2020 that we have been literally grassrootsand we've tried to go the nonprofit route.
However, for some reason when we're reaching out for those resources to get nonprofitinformation, we're unable to get that.
So also in those sense of gatekeeping does exist.
Yes, it does.
(31:55):
It does with nonprofits.
Can you tell our listeners how they can support Hit Homeboy?
How they can contribute to the work you're doing?
Well, you can contribute anytime by personally yourself going down to our food pantry.
It is located at 102 North Neal and that is the Champaign-Urbana government municipalitybuilding.
(32:20):
Also, you can contact us on Hit Homeboy on our social medias from Instagram to Facebook toTwitter, because I don't call it X.
I know that's right.
Homeboy.
Hitten home with H I T N H O E B O Y on all social media platforms.
You also can donate to our cash apps and VIMOs at Hitten Homeboy 88.
(32:41):
Please make sure you use the first actrix or symbol accordingly, whether it's the at signor dollar sign.
Other than that, we just thank you all for just supporting us and keep on doing the workwith us because at the end of the day, it's not an I in team and also it's community
culture because that's what we're here to keep promoting.
For everybody, it's a community culture.
It's a culture for all of us.
(33:08):
So this is super exciting, okay?
The scream I scram when I saw that you were hosting a Be Yourself Ball.
I were, I mean, I was like, wow, I remember you talking about ball culture years ago.
And so there were these amazing categories that blended, know, ping homage to LGBTQfigures and around safe sex and glitz and glam.
(33:37):
You were able to secure these amazing local partners to help raise awareness about theevent.
Can you share with us what inspired you to do the ball?
Well, I just want to begin by saying I want to thank all the sponsors from the City ofChampaign's Equity Engagement.
(33:59):
I also want to thank Public Health.
I want to thank GCAP.
I want to thank Sway Seattle.
I wanna thank also the many different partners, especially in bolding with Jessica, alsofor providing a space of sponsorship for us and ensuring that we as black and brown, and
trans people can showcase our pride our way.
(34:20):
The ballroom scene itself is a subculture of the underground spaces of black and brown,queer and trans folks from the late 1980s.
It was created in a sense of resistance against racism and everything that wasdiscriminatory at the time, especially with
growing up in impoverished communities such as New York City.
From their ballroom to me, I will say ballroom is a space of resistance against sexism,it's against racism, homophobia, transphobia, religiosity and classism.
(34:51):
We gather in this space of a spirited competition and a community where love is themessage and family is embraced.
Ballroom by houses and ballroom by relationships are seen in films like Paris is Burning.
Also shows like Pose.
Ballroom is a space where we are inspired and we are able to be ourselves and escape inthe space of competition, but also friendly-spirited competition in everything that is
(35:18):
black and queer and trans.
And I'm paying homage to the great fashion houses such as Chanel and Vuitton and La Vente,which I'm a part of the House of La Vente.
Shout out to the House of La Vente.
I did not know that.
And so just knowing that even Balenciaga and how fashion has also been a part of black andbrown, queer and trans people from our historians such as Patrick Kelly, who's one of the
(35:43):
first black fashion designers to Andre Leon Talley, who we all know and then furthermoreof space and fashion, how we as just black and brown, queer and trans people have been
around for years, unlike any other.
When we look into these spaces and historically how we've been in these spaces, you have-
Queen Latif was coming to my house, had Vogue in it before Vogue came out by Madonna.
(36:07):
And so it's like, we've been a part of black history.
We've been a part of hip hop culture since the beginning and doing this ball as in mostspaces when they provide a ballroom aspect.
We wanna ensure that our culture is represented.
We have to understand that ballroom is a space of advocacy also for us to ensure that weuphold the integrity to understand that this is our space.
(36:31):
And yes, you may come into our space as a visitor.
However, ballroom is a space for us to where we acknowledge our historians.
We keep the integrity intact and we also ensure it's a safe space for all in community.
(36:52):
And so Ballroom is that to me.
And when I was to bring that here to Champaign-Urbana, Ballroom is very rare to happen inthese spaces.
It is.
Where Champaign-Urbana is a very drag heavy city.
It is respected, loved to all the drag performers.
And so I was very excited because Ballroom is a space for everyone, but also Ballroom is aspace to understand that this is history and this is something that we uphold since the
(37:19):
days of the drag balls from back in the day.
And that's where this all came from.
And so when you see Ballroom, you're looking at history that has happened over time.
And you're looking at history in dance.
You're looking at history in social justice.
You're looking at history in providing a safe space of community.
And so that's what Ballroom is and the Be Yourself Ball was all about.
(37:42):
Thank you on behalf of our community for all of the incredible work that you're doing.
and for bringing ball culture to the Midwest where we're lacking.
Well, I don't want to give credit to say the Midwest.
Ballroom has been the Midwest for years in Chicago and in St.
(38:02):
Louis and in Kentucky because ballroom has different regions.
So shout out to all of the pioneers of that.
But however, I am the first in my own city of Champaign-Urbana to the one.
So I'll take that icon of pioneer.
OK, yes, I love that.
Thank you.
not to keep continuing.
We will have another ball next year.
(38:23):
I do want to let people know that.
So say the date for next year's Pride, the Be Yourself Ball of next year in 2025.
I do not want to miss out.
Yes, our theme next year will be Queer in Film.
So all categories will be based on different films of the community.
So really get ready for those categories when we start to announce those next year.
(38:45):
that is so awesome.
This gives people an opportunity to get ready to do their research, their homework, theirstudying.
And yes.
What advice would you give to someone who is trying to embrace their personal style?
So Jay-Z is one of my biggest, biggest, biggest people I look up to as far as business,music, fashion.
(39:11):
So one thing I took from Jay-Z was that if you can't buy it twice, you can't afford it.
Justin, is there anything additional you want to share with our audience or anything youwant to touch on that you haven't had a chance to yet?
I mean, you can call me, beat me if you want to reach me.
(39:32):
No, but I am currently looking for a space to do a once a month drop in center inChampaign-Urbana to allow people just to come in vogue and practice their runway skills
and learn about ballroom and queer, trans, black and brown culture.
So if you have a space that we can have once a month, please let me know and contact me,because I really wanna be able to have drop-in centers once a month for us to just have a
(39:58):
space for us leading up to more programming, such as the Be Yourself Ball we're havingagain next year for Champaign Urbana Pride.
All right, we have a lot of Champaign Urbana listeners, and I know we can find this space.
So definitely get in touch with Justin.
This would be amazing for our community.
Why not?
I know we have it.
I know y'all are gonna reach out.
(40:20):
So on that note, thank you so much, Justin, for joining us.
I have been taking my own personal notes.
There's some research I need to do now.
You've been an absolute delight.
no problem.
And I just wanna say thank you all and thank yourself for this platform and also what youdo this far, especially in mental health and wellness, because we wanna ensure that we all
(40:40):
understand that there is access to us all in wellness and we have to be able to unlockthat door to do it.
I know that's right.
Well, thank you so much for joining us.
Are you enjoying the show?
Subscribe and review to let us know what you think.
(41:02):
And share this episode with a friend in your favorite podcast app.
Thanks so much for listening to Emboldened with Jessica.
If you want to keep up with us, follow Emboldened with Jessica on Instagram or Facebook.
Until next time.
you
Welcome to the show in Bolden with Jessica.
I'm Jessica.
I'm Ariel here with Jessica.
I'm back.
Yes.
Okay, Ariel, you've been missed.
I've been loving the one-on-ones you've been having with people and I have a feeling somemore are coming up.
(00:30):
So today we're going to be talking about emboldened with fashion.
So I just think this is so timely because of the seasons are changing, our wardrobes arechanging.
And I love this whole idea of with the seasons transitioning, this just this transitionaltime.
And I feel like during transitional times, we put a lot of focus on fashion and our style.
(00:52):
And I swear like the past what year and a half, I think with
Beyonce's Renaissance tour and Taylor Swift's era's tour.
Like people are putting so much emphasis on styling when they go to the concert.
That's like transitioning into just everyday life.
How people are just putting more thought into how they look.
(01:12):
For sure.
You know, I just went to see Usher in LA and I thought I was going to wear a dress.
And then when I told my sister, she laughed for a good two minutes.
what did you wear?
That's when I realized I probably shouldn't have wear the dress I was thinking aboutwearing.
So then I Googled usher outfits and I saw some ideas and I was like, okay, what is goingto be important for me going into this?
(01:35):
I'm going to be out for a really long time.
I want to be comfortable.
I want to have a good time.
So instead of like focusing so much on what it was that I wore, I still, I wore somethingthat I was going to be pretty comfortable wearing and like walking in.
I still look good.
Although when I got dressed, my sister was like,
Are you going to change?
And I mean, dare I say we were we were talking before we started recording this podcastabout style and fashion.
(02:05):
And it sounds like you just embrace your own personal style for going out.
Could that be right?
Well, that's not my sister saying.
Like she thought that because I like wearing dresses and I wasn't wearing a dress, I wasin jeans and a T-shirt.
that I wasn't wearing something that was me.
But I do love wearing dresses, which interestingly enough, I think people get treated verydifferently based on how they show up.
(02:31):
Over the years, I just enjoyed wearing dresses.
Like I think they're comfortable and I do notice a difference in the way that I'm treated.
Now I don't mind wearing jeans and like a cute sweatshirt or something like that, but whatI was really going for at this concert was I wanted to be able to move and I just wanted
to be comfortable in like,
I'm sure it was fine.
It was fine.
had a great time.
(02:52):
That's what matters.
I had like the time of my life.
When we talk about fashion and style, sometimes we use those terms interchangeably.
And I feel like they're separate.
That one definition of fashion is that fashion is a general term that describes a popularway of dressing, behaving, or writing at a particular time and place while style is more
(03:19):
personal and internal.
And I would agree with that definition.
I think fashion is kind of what's trendy in the moment.
And I think style is more a person's kind of essence, like their way of being.
I agree with most of that.
I think to me, fashion is just a blanket term.
It's just like, yeah, the shirt and pants that you have on, that's fashion.
But I imagine fashion being, so you're shopping at a clothing store, probably online, andwhat you're filling up your cart with is your style.
(03:48):
But like the whole store is all the fashion, depending on how you look at it.
Uh-huh.
That makes sense to me.
Okay, because when I pull some good looks, sometimes I'll be like, the fashions, the
pieces are the best.
Yes, yes.
And then start to break things down and how you put things together, take things apart foryourself.
Usually that's when you start to embrace your own style or just a style of like, if you'redressing like, want to look like a 1970s Bohemian goddess.
(04:17):
Like that's the style you want.
So.
Yeah, that makes sense.
So we're curious about what your definitions of fashion and style are.
And if you want to share.
on social media, feel free to let us know or to email us.
Let us know how you've used style in fashion.
(04:42):
As we're thinking about fashion and style, I think about the ways that people are treatedbased off of their style.
And I think about this in terms of work spaces and the identity we might have at work.
You laughed heartily at my green cardigan, because therapists, love a cardigan, we love asweater.
I...
(05:02):
It was the style of cardigan.
There are cardigans.
I love a good cardigan, but the cardigans that I like for my personal style, they remindme of like...
grunge 90s cardigans.
This cardigan was no buttons, just open front, these square pockets on the side.
Like it was a very specific counselor therapist.
(05:25):
We like a cardigan that feels like a blanket.
But I think about how we might use style in different ways.
And so when you're talking about this bohemian, I even think about like events.
Sometimes we'll have like,
a dress thing for an event and that kind of makes the event even more fun.
And it helps the people that are at the event to feel really included, like a sense ofbelonging.
(05:48):
Because now we have this thing that unites us even if we don't necessarily know everyone.
And so I just think that style can be used for so many ways to fit what our needs mightbe.
And also, I guess on the other side of things, this whole argument of style, especially incertain settings of whether it's appropriate.
(06:09):
and not appropriate.
think of the discourse on being a corporate person, a corporate woman, and if you can wearshorts or not in the office.
I think of holster girl dresses going to brunch on a Sunday.
So what's appropriate, what's not appropriate.
There's this desire to police women's bodies in a way that we don't police male bodies forthe most part, that I think is interesting.
(06:35):
There's a part of me that's old fashioned and feels like there is a time of
but like a poster girl dress at brunch, I feel like you're grown.
And you're going to brunch, I don't see anything wrong with it.
Like if you feel confident and gorgeous and what it is that you're wearing, I don't seehow that is.
I don't know, cause again, right?
So I might say at brunch, you can have kids there.
(06:55):
To me, that's still very different than me being an educator or a therapist workingone-on-one with a student.
And I know I'm going to be working with students all day long in a dress like that.
When I decide that I'm going to wear brunch, I'm-
thinking about whose children are gonna be there.
True.
You take them to place with the DJ.
We're going to Chicago and I'm with my niece and my nephews.
(07:18):
There are brunch spots.
I'm not even considering going with them because I just know that's not the environmentfor them.
And I think that comes down to parenting.
Right?
When I'm in that authority space and I'm the therapist, I'm the educator, I'm not going toput my students in a position where they feel uncomfortable.
But yeah, I don't know.
just think there's such a desire to police people's outfits and bodies.
(07:39):
Kind of like the woman on TikTok who was talking about Gen Z going out and not wearingcute shoes.
yeah, the heel.
Were they heels?
Is that what we're calling those?
Because...
mean, it's another argument about is a wedge a heel?
Right.
Right.
And like, who cares?
For me, I'm at a stage in life where my style is really dis...
(08:03):
zined around what makes me feel comfortable and confident.
And I could feel confident in almost anything, not a brown paper bag, although I couldstyle it.
True, true.
But it's also like being confident in yourself and also being confident in whateverlocation you happen to be at and wherever you happen to be.
(08:24):
So there's just levels to the confidence.
And can you be comfortable with how you are dressed?
Absolutely.
And why don't we have these poster girl dresses conversation when we're looking at guys injoggers and they're great joggers.
I think there is, it's not as overt of a conversation, but with men and by not being one,don't, I don't know for sure, but there are conversations with their fashion and their
(08:53):
style because I think of not to the gray, gray joggers or gray sweatpants, but even to
wear jeans on certain days.
Like they've been regulated to only wear it on Casual Fridays, but during the week theyhave to wear like khakis or dress slacks or something.
So I believe men encounter like the smallest portion of this.
(09:15):
True.
I think it looks a lot different.
And then how does this show up for folks that are non-binary?
You know, in terms of the ways that folks expect you to present.
One of the things I've heard from folks who are non-binary is this outside perspective of
You should be more gender neutral and non-binary doesn't need to mean that, right?
(09:36):
And so like this idea that we have of what people are supposed to show up as or look like,I don't know.
I think once you embrace your style, you're less worried about that and you're moreconcerned with how you feel in the clothing that you're wearing.
And certainly someone that has to do with the spaces you're gonna be in.
I think there's a shift that happens.
(09:58):
So, you know, one of the things that comes up sometimes is do you need to spend a lot ofmoney to be fashion and be stylish?
What are your thoughts on it?
No, just because there are so many options for thrift stores, especially if, and also ifyou've grown up in a household where there are multiple children, hand-me-downs is just a
part of life.
So no, you don't need tons of money.
(10:21):
It can help with certain things, but also it just depends on what kind of style you'regoing for.
True, yeah that's true.
I feel like things that are vintage and things that are thrifted are way more in than theyused to be.
Like I grew up with brothers and a male cousin and so I wore a ton of Yandme downs thatwere more masculine because they were for them.
(10:42):
And so that was not my personal style but I didn't really have much of a choice.
And so I would have to try to figure out how to style, how to wear it in a way that feltcomfortable for me.
And so I think that obviously money makes life lot easier.
That piece, also there's just more of a variety open to you.
(11:03):
Me personally, being a bigger body and always having a bigger body, I grew up in a timewhere, especially in the early 2000s, where there just was not plus size options.
So I would have to go to the men's big and tall side and hope that there was somethingmetro over there or something that I could feminize.
to make it more for my style.
(11:25):
So in a way it kind of helped with styling purposes.
It makes you think outside the box, but because you have to.
I even feel like in the conversation we had with Lisa Holmes and Lisa was talking abouthow her style has changed over the years as she's been able to afford a little bit more to
be able to be more creative.
(11:45):
And it, but it's also too opening up.
another can of worms in the sense of fast fashion.
And then I feel like there's more and more talk about how certain materials are cancercausing.
For sure, I think the sustainability of it.
So like a lot of sustainable brands are expensive, but they also are pieces that last,which I think is probably the reason why folks like be able to thrift and find vintage
(12:12):
clothing because the material is really nice and you're not contributing to fast fashion.
There's a lot of perks and there's a lot more that's available and accessible now.
This is why I'm trying to get into sewing.
Remember about that sewing machine?
Yeah.
When did you use it?
I wanted to learn how to use it.
Okay.
Because the other thing that I think makes a huge difference is the way things are fittedon you.
(12:37):
So in terms of like, it designed for your body?
And not necessarily like, because I may be pear shaped.
only A-line works for me, no, fit it to my body in a way that it feels nicely tailored sothat I feel comfortable and confident.
(12:59):
Well, as we are continuing to talk about fashion and style, I like how we're touching onkind of how to find your style, embrace your style, talking more about fashion and all
these different sides of it.
But one of the things that really keeps popping up in pop culture when it comes to styleis styling for either your identity, but also an alter ego part of your identity.
(13:24):
Yeah, I...
I love an alter ego.
You know, I've been blending my alter ego for decades on different things.
I love that idea of Halloween and being able to dress up in a completely different way.
love having an event with a thief where we're acting in a different way.
think it was my birthday theme last year, like one of them, think it was memes, like yourfavorite meme.
(13:47):
I just think that's fun and it invites playfulness.
And life is difficult.
And so to be able to invite in levity and playfulness is just something I try toincorporate in the work that I do, but just in my personal life to be playful.
I mean, we can be childlike and not childish.
And so I love an alter ego moment.
I love an opportunity to dress up.
(14:09):
And like I mentioned earlier, I think that when we do something as a group, it nowconnects and bonds us in a different way.
And now when we think about this event, we're also thinking about the outfit that we woreor the voice that someone talked in or I don't know, it just brings in a little bit of
levity.
And I think it also, if you let it go past you just dressing up, it can tap into differentparts of your personality that maybe you haven't felt comfortable to share or you just
(14:39):
don't share.
But in the end, if you can blame it on alter ego,
then yeah, why not dress up and get like a blonde wig on and just do what you want to do.
So something that is totally not your style, but you're alter ego embraces all of it.
So it's just something to try out.
Absolutely.
I think that that is extremely fun and explorative.
(15:03):
I mean, we think about little kids and like playing like dress up and dress up even mightinclude like them being a doctor or them dressing up.
as like a firefighter.
Like there's just so many ways for us to kind of try on different things and see what welike and what we don't like.
And I don't know, I just think that we should encourage that.
(15:24):
I love blending things on my alter ego.
One of my alter egos is Chaco and I blend Chaco for everything.
I didn't do it, Chaco did it.
And I wish Chaco could be here in this moment to speak for themselves.
So yeah, like I feel like we have friends that like when they start channeling a differentenergy, we're like, yeah, yeah.
This is Jazzy.
This is and so like, so and is with us now.
(15:47):
And it's hilarious.
I don't think anyone is monolithic in the sense that there's these different sides of allof us.
so allowing those and counseling or in psychology, we might call them like different, likealtered these different parts work, like the movie Inside Out, where, you know, there
(16:10):
might be a protective side of us that doesn't want us to be hurt.
There might be like this little kid side of us who like really wants to have fun, or theremight be a side of us that feels really strict about the budget.
We have these different parts for a reason.
They each kind of serve a purpose and allowing them to kind of come out and be in waysthat are playful and feel good, I think are really important for our wellness and for
(16:33):
happiness.
Wellness, playfulness.
mean, don't don't judge that person who's doing cosplay over there.
Don't judge that person who's role playing.
That's just another form of dress up and having fun.
I do wanna offer a cozy book note.
(16:54):
And this book I just absolutely positively adore.
It's a kid's book and it's called Jillian as a Mermaid and it's by Jessica Love.
And what I adore about it is it's about this little boy who really wants to dress up likea mermaid in this parade.
And he wants to wear the sequins and be colorful and bright.
And he's being made fun of and told that he shouldn't do that as a little boy.
(17:16):
And his abuela
is just really supportive of him being himself authentically.
And I think for a lot of us, maybe there were parts of us that adults in our life maybedidn't always understand or wanted to quiet.
And there might still be parts of us as an adult where we are being told to quietsomething, take up less space, shrink yourself.
(17:40):
And so A, we don't need to do that.
B, let's find people like that, well, in this book,
who allow us to take up space and be ourselves authentically.
I just think it is an incredible book.
It's one that is often banned, so another reason to support it.
Julian is a mermaid.
So that's my cozy booknug for today.
(18:09):
All right, so in honor of what we're discussing, I invite you to listen in on a wonderfulinterview that I did with Justin Michael Hendricks, who was an educator, a creative, and
an activist about fashion and style and about ball culture.
(18:32):
We have me, Justin Michael Hendricks, who's joining us and is gonna just be sharing withus a lot of information about his nonprofit and the incredible work that he does and about
style as a form of political expression and as empowerment.
So a little bit about Justin is I'm gonna, I gotta tell y'all all the things about Justin.
(18:55):
So Justin is an educator, a creative and an activist.
He's a native son of Champaign-Urbana, Illinois.
Hendrix has utilized his skills to create Hitam Homeboy.
The mission of Hitam Homeboy is to provide inclusive, equitable education and resources tomarginalized communities.
(19:15):
Hitam Homeboy addresses issues of food insecurity, mental health, gun violence, LGBTQ pluschallenges, and poverty.
Hendrix has been a member of Equality Illinois legislative
Advisory Committee Group, and GLAAD Media Institute.
He has been featured as a spokesperson for the GLAAD, I'm Voting No Matter What, andefforts for AIDS campaigns.
(19:41):
In 2021, he was awarded the 2021 Community Impact Award from Bi Black Shambana.
I do remember this.
And the following year in 2022, Lord Rustin in Bates, Chicago for Advocacy Impact Award.
Justin Michael Hendricks believes in education, advocacy, and community culture is the keyto open more doors in the future.
(20:05):
Justin, thank you for joining us.
Thank you for the invitation.
I thank you for so much.
I really do appreciate this time being here.
Absolutely.
So for many, dressing for oneself rather than the gaze of others is an act of resistance.
So a lot of times people might be dressing for the gaze of the folks at the
they're attracted to, they might be dressing for the gaze of those at work.
(20:29):
How do you see your personal style and fashion as tools for reclaiming one's power,especially in Black and Brown communities?
Well, what I can say is for one thing, I'm very humorous before we start this interview.
And when you were reading the questions to me just now and you were using the word gaze,just me being me, I'm going into saying something very funny like we like to kiki like
(20:50):
gaze.
I'm not mad at that.
But we mean gays as in G-A-Z-E as in the I, the Smize, Tyra Banks.
Ooh, yes.
Uh-huh.
Yes, yes.
So I would say when it comes to my own personal style and fashion and how I see it, mypersonal style is something I would say is comfort, it's creative, it's cool, yet it can
(21:15):
be conforming to any community.
I think of Little Kim when she says that she's like a chameleon, a chick with over athousand looks.
I feel like I'm a person who has many layers to myself and I'm always dressing for theoccasion.
However, I am a personal style of a mood board and I feel however I wanna feel, but alsono matter what, we know the mood of fashion is very evident.
(21:37):
So that is what I will say is my personal je ne sais quoi in my personal style.
So yes, creative, comfort and cool.
And also what I'm hearing is it evolves.
It evolves for what your needs are for the day.
Yes, and I mean, as fashion elevates and changes and reinvents itself, we too, as peopleshould be doing that ourselves, just in our daily breathing and daily life.
(21:59):
And fashion is one way that we use it to show up as in our most authentic selves.
And I believe with fashion, that's something that's very important for me personally, whenI do show up, you know, I'm always going to be creative.
I'm going to be cool.
I'm going to be comforted.
And I'm going to be very comforting with my outfit.
Yeah, I think about the mission.
mission of Hit-Em Homeboy around mental health.
(22:20):
And we know that how we're feeling in clothes, whether we're feeling confident, but alsous feeling comfortable in our bodies is so important.
so while style is important, also just feeling comfortable in a way where we're notlooking tore up like we rolled out of bed.
But, you know, being aware of like the materials that we have on the fabric that we'rewearing, is it breathable?
(22:46):
Are we wearing layers in a way where we can be comfortable in a room where we're not incontrol of the temperature?
I think that has a huge piece of it in terms of like healing and embodiment also thatyou're speaking to.
Yeah, and I will say one thing for sure to go a little bit further with your with your tapinto fashion and social justice and and the blackness of it all.
(23:08):
I going to basically thinking about like the civil rights time and then even into theBlack Panther Party and even to now?
If you look at it, fashion has always been a part of the movement and of the culture.
There's a look to it.
For example, the civil rights, even though the three piece suits were hot, as in H-O-T, itwas hot, burning up Faith Evans.
(23:31):
I know, that's right.
at the same time, it was a look that they wanted to give because there was a stigma placedupon black and brown bodies, especially black women as being ignorant and animals.
We had our prominent figures like Martin Luther King and Malcolm X that stood up andensured that we had to come out in the suits and the ties and be the classic men and just
give that look because you had the men and the women in their suits and the heels and thecurls and the pearls.
(23:56):
But then as time changed and the Black Panther Party came around, we then wore the leatherand then we the combat boots and we had the afros and we had the afro picks.
And you know, it was all about.
being into our blackness of it all and owning who we were, not saying that we weren'tourselves in the three-piece suits and the pearls and the heels.
(24:17):
However, there was more of a, a strengthening in our fashion sense to where we knew how wehad to stand with pride and power, not just in our blackness, but in the knowledge of
knowing who we were.
And then even now to where the Black Lives Matter movement has came about to where we havecombined the sense of fashion and social justice to make statements.
in our movements and statements in our fashion to where we have the t-shirts in theapparel, we have the stickers, we have the messaging, but then also we're bringing forth
(24:45):
things that are of fruition to where we're able to provide services to each other, towhere our fashion is not just the things that we wear, but what we can wear in the
community, to where we have services to people, where they can get resources from health,to wellness, to reproductive rights.
Those things are fashionable to us as well in the movement of social justice, becausethose are the things that we're wearing daily as people.
(25:08):
As you're speaking, it just, I, you know, I never really conceptualized it in this waythat when you're talking about like the Black Power movement and the leather and the
combat boots, how those are kind of really tough, kind of warlike clothing.
And that was what was needed at the time.
And even I'm thinking now about how
(25:31):
part of your nonprofit is to also to serve the community.
And I think about how the Black Panther started free school lunches, right?
And so like this kind of duality of personal expression, moving things forward, but notjust in service to ourselves, but in service to our community.
(25:54):
And so yeah, you just gave me goosebumps as you were talking, because I was like, wow.
all of these connections that I hadn't really thought about until you voiced it.
Can you tell us a little bit more about the grassroots organization Hit'em Homeboy, abouthow it started, the mission behind it?
(26:16):
Yeah, so Hit'em Homeboy, as some people, when they always look at it, they're like, whatdoes this say?
It's Hit'em Homeboy, so H-I-T, so hit, and then N by itself, the letter N, and thenhomeboy.
Basically, it's like a play on words or like no different than someone saying, the girlnext door or the boy next door.
or America's sweetheart.
(26:37):
It's a way of me introducing the world into a culture that is never seen as beingaccepted.
And also being something that is going to be something very different.
So it's going to hit you over your head.
So when it comes to you, it's something that's very, very cultivating, but also verycultured.
So when I created Hittin' Homeboy, I was at the end of my advocacy phase in St.
(26:59):
Louis, Missouri.
A lot of the work I've done in St.
Louis, Missouri was geared around a lot of health and wellness for black and brown, queerand trans people.
And so just being in that space and understanding that this is important for us, we haveto learn to advocate for us.
And that's when I learned about the backside about data collection and how it's more soabout stigma as opposed to support.
(27:23):
And then when I returned back to Champaign, after the unfortunate murder of Michael Brown,
I then wanted to go more really in depth in my advocacy and understanding that I have avoice and with my voice, it is something that can help others and creating a space because
I do not see spaces for black and brown, queer and trans people, black and brown, queerand trans adults, elderly people, youth, and we need those spaces.
(27:49):
And not saying that all spaces of queer and trans acceptability is not available.
However,
there are times when we have to then go into our spaces and have our own conversations.
And that is what I find is important to me when I lived in St.
Louis, Missouri, is that that was very key to me in learning about my historians, likeJames Baldwin, like I said, like Bayard Rustin, learning about people that I never knew
(28:18):
that existed, Marsha P.
Johnson, and learning about these people.
that I never knew that were creating space for my black queer self as a young boy growingup to then learning about people in film and television and then learning that we too
exist.
And so when I went back to Champaign, Urbana, I use Hittin' Homeboy as a tool in the midstof social justice because one thing that I learned while protesting and advocating in St.
(28:48):
Louis during Ferguson before, after, and during Michael Brown was that
You want them to understand that, yes, we have a message here.
And it's not just that we are a bunch of people yelling in the street.
We are standing up for many rights, many communities, many things that affect us all.
Because at the end of the day, marginalization is intersectional.
There is no face for being marginalized.
(29:09):
There is no face for an impoverished community.
It's all intersectional.
And so with that being said, homeboy basically, as you read earlier, is about ensuringthat we have inclusive, equitable education.
and we have resources to marginalize communities.
We focus on food insecurity and mental health and gun violence and things that are of theLGBTQ community and poverty.
(29:31):
We also ensure that with that being said, during the unfortunate passing of and murders ofMichael Brown, Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, when we were protesting in 2020, going into
2021, we developed a food pantry concept and it was just mutual funds from us all in thecommunity in a food pantry.
(29:51):
because you have people with food that don't have homes.
You have people with homes that don't have food.
So where's the middle ground that we can meet them all by providing a service that isunlike any other.
don't need documentation.
We don't need ID.
We don't need a nine to five.
so with the community food pantry.
It's something that I learned and I give credit all to Marshall Austin Yeagle, who's oneof the also the co-creators of the food pantry concept along myself.
(30:20):
He taught me a lot about food insecurity in one way that I did not see it to where it'sconnected into many things from domestic violence to educational performance to just
social skills.
Food insecurity is a heavy, heavy intersectionality to a lot of disparities that do existin lives.
And we do not understand that.
Nevertheless, moving forward, I also ensured that I use Hidden Homeboy to provide aservice that is unlike any other during a time when social justice was at an all time high
(30:49):
to people
to where they didn't understand what was going on in the world, hitting home would providean answering solution to those people in the time of confusion.
Yeah, I've seen some of the work that you've been doing and I've just been really just inawe because we're talking about, this is a difficult time and especially as a black queer
man, you're already having a difficult time.
(31:12):
three layers, three layers.
Hello.
that's already so much.
And for you to in the midst of all of that say, wow, I'm seeing where we're not supportingpeople who need support because we're requiring them to have ID and documentation and
we're creating these barriers to them accessing food that we have in abundance.
(31:34):
Even furthermore, even with it's been since 2020 that we have been literally grassrootsand we've tried to go the nonprofit route.
However, for some reason when we're reaching out for those resources to get nonprofitinformation, we're unable to get that.
So also in those sense of gatekeeping does exist.
Yes, it does.
(31:55):
It does with nonprofits.
Can you tell our listeners how they can support Hit Homeboy?
How they can contribute to the work you're doing?
Well, you can contribute anytime by personally yourself going down to our food pantry.
It is located at 102 North Neal and that is the Champaign-Urbana government municipalitybuilding.
(32:20):
Also, you can contact us on Hit Homeboy on our social medias from Instagram to Facebook toTwitter, because I don't call it X.
I know that's right.
Homeboy.
Hitten home with H I T N H O E B O Y on all social media platforms.
You also can donate to our cash apps and VIMOs at Hitten Homeboy 88.
(32:41):
Please make sure you use the first actrix or symbol accordingly, whether it's the at signor dollar sign.
Other than that, we just thank you all for just supporting us and keep on doing the workwith us because at the end of the day, it's not an I in team and also it's community
culture because that's what we're here to keep promoting.
For everybody, it's a community culture.
It's a culture for all of us.
(33:08):
So this is super exciting, okay?
The scream I scram when I saw that you were hosting a Be Yourself Ball.
I were, I mean, I was like, wow, I remember you talking about ball culture years ago.
And so there were these amazing categories that blended, know, ping homage to LGBTQfigures and around safe sex and glitz and glam.
(33:37):
You were able to secure these amazing local partners to help raise awareness about theevent.
Can you share with us what inspired you to do the ball?
Well, I just want to begin by saying I want to thank all the sponsors from the City ofChampaign's Equity Engagement.
(33:59):
I also want to thank Public Health.
I want to thank GCAP.
I want to thank Sway Seattle.
I wanna thank also the many different partners, especially in bolding with Jessica, alsofor providing a space of sponsorship for us and ensuring that we as black and brown, and
trans people can showcase our pride our way.
(34:20):
The ballroom scene itself is a subculture of the underground spaces of black and brown,queer and trans folks from the late 1980s.
It was created in a sense of resistance against racism and everything that wasdiscriminatory at the time, especially with
growing up in impoverished communities such as New York City.
From their ballroom to me, I will say ballroom is a space of resistance against sexism,it's against racism, homophobia, transphobia, religiosity and classism.
(34:51):
We gather in this space of a spirited competition and a community where love is themessage and family is embraced.
Ballroom by houses and ballroom by relationships are seen in films like Paris is Burning.
Also shows like Pose.
Ballroom is a space where we are inspired and we are able to be ourselves and escape inthe space of competition, but also friendly-spirited competition in everything that is
(35:18):
black and queer and trans.
And I'm paying homage to the great fashion houses such as Chanel and Vuitton and La Vente,which I'm a part of the House of La Vente.
Shout out to the House of La Vente.
I did not know that.
And so just knowing that even Balenciaga and how fashion has also been a part of black andbrown, queer and trans people from our historians such as Patrick Kelly, who's one of the
(35:43):
first black fashion designers to Andre Leon Talley, who we all know and then furthermoreof space and fashion, how we as just black and brown, queer and trans people have been
around for years, unlike any other.
When we look into these spaces and historically how we've been in these spaces, you have-
Queen Latif was coming to my house, had Vogue in it before Vogue came out by Madonna.
(36:07):
And so it's like, we've been a part of black history.
We've been a part of hip hop culture since the beginning and doing this ball as in mostspaces when they provide a ballroom aspect.
We wanna ensure that our culture is represented.
We have to understand that ballroom is a space of advocacy also for us to ensure that weuphold the integrity to understand that this is our space.
(36:31):
And yes, you may come into our space as a visitor.
However, ballroom is a space for us to where we acknowledge our historians.
We keep the integrity intact and we also ensure it's a safe space for all in community.
(36:52):
And so Ballroom is that to me.
And when I was to bring that here to Champaign-Urbana, Ballroom is very rare to happen inthese spaces.
It is.
Where Champaign-Urbana is a very drag heavy city.
It is respected, loved to all the drag performers.
And so I was very excited because Ballroom is a space for everyone, but also Ballroom is aspace to understand that this is history and this is something that we uphold since the
(37:19):
days of the drag balls from back in the day.
And that's where this all came from.
And so when you see Ballroom, you're looking at history that has happened over time.
And you're looking at history in dance.
You're looking at history in social justice.
You're looking at history in providing a safe space of community.
And so that's what Ballroom is and the Be Yourself Ball was all about.
(37:42):
Thank you on behalf of our community for all of the incredible work that you're doing.
and for bringing ball culture to the Midwest where we're lacking.
Well, I don't want to give credit to say the Midwest.
Ballroom has been the Midwest for years in Chicago and in St.
(38:02):
Louis and in Kentucky because ballroom has different regions.
So shout out to all of the pioneers of that.
But however, I am the first in my own city of Champaign-Urbana to the one.
So I'll take that icon of pioneer.
OK, yes, I love that.
Thank you.
not to keep continuing.
We will have another ball next year.
(38:23):
I do want to let people know that.
So say the date for next year's Pride, the Be Yourself Ball of next year in 2025.
I do not want to miss out.
Yes, our theme next year will be Queer in Film.
So all categories will be based on different films of the community.
So really get ready for those categories when we start to announce those next year.
(38:45):
that is so awesome.
This gives people an opportunity to get ready to do their research, their homework, theirstudying.
And yes.
What advice would you give to someone who is trying to embrace their personal style?
So Jay-Z is one of my biggest, biggest, biggest people I look up to as far as business,music, fashion.
(39:11):
So one thing I took from Jay-Z was that if you can't buy it twice, you can't afford it.
Justin, is there anything additional you want to share with our audience or anything youwant to touch on that you haven't had a chance to yet?
I mean, you can call me, beat me if you want to reach me.
(39:32):
No, but I am currently looking for a space to do a once a month drop in center inChampaign-Urbana to allow people just to come in vogue and practice their runway skills
and learn about ballroom and queer, trans, black and brown culture.
So if you have a space that we can have once a month, please let me know and contact me,because I really wanna be able to have drop-in centers once a month for us to just have a
(39:58):
space for us leading up to more programming, such as the Be Yourself Ball we're havingagain next year for Champaign Urbana Pride.
All right, we have a lot of Champaign Urbana listeners, and I know we can find this space.
So definitely get in touch with Justin.
This would be amazing for our community.
Why not?
I know we have it.
I know y'all are gonna reach out.
(40:20):
So on that note, thank you so much, Justin, for joining us.
I have been taking my own personal notes.
There's some research I need to do now.
You've been an absolute delight.
no problem.
And I just wanna say thank you all and thank yourself for this platform and also what youdo this far, especially in mental health and wellness, because we wanna ensure that we all
(40:40):
understand that there is access to us all in wellness and we have to be able to unlockthat door to do it.
I know that's right.
Well, thank you so much for joining us.
Are you enjoying the show?
Subscribe and review to let us know what you think.
(41:02):
And share this episode with a friend in your favorite podcast app.
Thanks so much for listening to Emboldened with Jessica.
If you want to keep up with us, follow Emboldened with Jessica on Instagram or Facebook.
Until next time.
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