My Beloved Brother @jussiesmollett turned 40 last month and the love & energy in the space was that of family and we family lived in the warm glow of that NYC Summer night! One of our favorite writers, New York Times Bestselling Author, Robert Jones Jr. — the retired Son of Baldwin — pictured with Jussie and I wrote it best in the first two paragraphs of his open letter to #JussieSmollett : “We, all of us, were pleased to see you laugh. Deep dimples, gut-grabbing, heart-holding and all. We chanted your name as you danced. Ain’t there something ancient about the way we dance, Brother? The abandon. The joy. The hee-hees and the kee-kees. The rhythm, The sweat. No different than how we show out in church, really. All of those things for the glory, right? And I’m thinking now about the outside-people. The ones who do not know you except for what they have seen in two-dimensional media or heard from disembodied voices from a computer or stereo system. If they understood the expanse of your heart, they would be ashamed of their own behavior toward you: the willingness to ridicule you or throw you away. They cannot be ashamed though because we are living in a time of profound shamelessness.” I am full of humble gratitude to Mother God for our friendship, the fire of activism rioting in your soul, the constant giving of your huge heart, and your relentless efforts to change the whole wide world for the better. I celebrate you brother.