Meet Philippe “Kells”…

One day I want to empower my daughter and help her build a healthy self-esteem. I want her to have the power to love and accept herself.

What are you trying to change about yourself?

I’m trying to change my relationships with women on all levels, as a brother, uncle, cousin, nephew, friend, colleague, future husband & lover.

I recently started reading a lot of books by Bell Hooks and her work truly opened my eyes to patriarchy, male privilege, masculinity and gender inequality but I still have a long way to go.

I feel like I am making great strides, but I will truly never be able to evaluate these rich lessons until they are put into practice. I feel it is important to treat women as equals, each as their own individual and not how they are propagated through media and different environments.

More than I ever have, I am really looking at things in a new bright light. In the past, I thought it was cool to call someone’s daughter, mother, niece, sister – a ho, thot, bitch, slut, tramp, bop, but when someone spoke these words about women in my family, I would go crazy.

What’s the difference, there is no difference.

If it’s not okay for someone to say these things about women in my family, it shouldn’t be okay for me to say that crap to women outside my family.

I have learned from Bell Hooks that regardless of how a woman acts, how she chooses to dress or the way she talks, it does not give me the right to diminish, objectify, manipulate, or abuse her in any way.

By changing my perceptions, beliefs and attitude about women, I am able to see them as individual unique people. I have a couple of women mentors in my life, but

I can’t truly measure my growth without experience, which is hard living in an all male prison. I am open to guidance, knowledge, and mentorship.