Raised in a community where men weren’t allowed to show their feelings, together with an unhealthy concept of what being a man was all about, Ashanti Branch stuffed his feelings, ate emotionally, and had panic attacks. When he became a high school teacher, however, he wanted better for his students. What started as a meeting with some students to figure out how he could become a better teacher evolved into an entire movement and, today, we are honored to be joined by Ashanti Branch, Founder of the Ever Forward Club and the Million Mask Movement, which helps young people understand how connected they are when it comes to the masks we wear. In this episode, Ashanti sheds light on the struggles he faced as a child when it came to dealing with his emotions and shares a potentially-triggering and emotional story of a trauma he experienced as an eight-year-old. Please note that this episode carries a trigger warning for sexual assault. He also explains how he became involved in a men’s circle and learned to stop suppressing his feelings. To hear the magic sentence Ashanti heard from one of his high school teachers that had a profound effect on his life and how he has gone on to impact the lives of so many others, plus so much more, tune in today! We invite you to take off your mask and listen to this inspiring conversation. 

Key Points From This Episode:

• An introduction to change-maker Ashanti Branch.
• Ashanti explains the mask activity he does with students and gives examples.
• What it was like for him to grow up in a community where he couldn’t show his feelings. 
• Ashanti’s unhealthy childhood perception of what being a man was all about. 
• TW: For listeners who wish to avoid Ashanti’s account of sexual assault, please skip audio between [0:07:17] and [0:11:57].
• The traumatic story of what happened to Ashanti as an eight-year-old. 
• How Ashanti learned to start stuffing his emotions and comfort eating. 
• How he became involved in a men’s circle and learned to stop suppressing his feelings.
• What men supporting men looked like to Ashanti at the men’s retreat he attended.
• How he created a place to support young men six years before he found a place that supported him. 
• How he first created Ever Forward to become a better teacher. 
• The profound effect that a ‘magic sentence’ he heard from another teacher had on his life.
• An example of a magic sentence Ashanti used on one of his students and its impact. 
• How Ashanti went from failing horribly as a teacher to leading a movement. 

Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

Ashanti Branch on LinkedIn 

Ashanti Branch on Instagram

Ashanti Branch on Twitter

Ever Forward Club 

#100kMASKS

This is Life with Lisa Ling