“This journey of trying to figure out what it means to be a man in a home where your the man of the house. I’m the oldest male, and all of these responsibilities are put on my back, to help raise my sisters and brothers. At seven years old my uncle said “your the man of the house” and I’m like “I don’t want that job, can I go back to my big-wheel?”

This week’s guest is Ashanti Branch. We became aware of Ashanti's powerful heart in the film The Mask You Live In. He was born and raised by a single mother in Oakland, California. After finding success as a civil engineer, he found a deeper calling as a teacher. He found the “fire” that was missing in his life and hoped to ignite a similar enthusiasm in his young students. He went on to create the Ever Forward Club, a mentoring initiative aimed to help underserved and at-risk young men of colour.

In this episode:

The power of a good teacher
Opening up to move forward
Giving young men space to recognize their human emotions
The damage done by archaic school design
Knowing your own mask
Why do we wait to teach fundamental human skills until shit hits the fan

http://therepresentationproject.org/film/the-mask-you-live-in-film/

https://everforwardclub.org/

Episode: 081 "The mask we live in"