(I get a laugh out of Adolph Reed Jr. describing BLM as a corporate
tool. Does this guy sound like he is going to be invited for lunch at
Goldman-Sachs any time soon?)
How a #BlackLivesMatter Leader Spends His Sundays
For Hawk Newsome, a co-founder of a movement in New York, the activism
does not let up on the weekend.
For Hawk Newsome, a rights activist, the day begins with the Bible, then
a check of social media.
For Hawk Newsome, a rights activist, the day begins with the Bible, then
a check of social media.Credit...Michael Noble Jr. for The New York Times
ByDerek M. Norman <https://www.nytimes.com/by/derek-m-norman>
* Oct. 2, 2020
*
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At over 6 feet tall and 300 pounds, often wearing a bulletproof vest
beneath his shirt and puffing on a Padron 1964 Anniversary Series cigar,
Hawk Newsome is hard to miss.
When the co-founder and chairman ofBlack Lives Matter Greater New York
<https://www.instagram.com/blmgreaterny/?hl=en>is not speaking with the
news media or organizing events, Mr. Newsome, 43, can be found at
marches from Charlottesville, Va., to Minneapolis to New York City. He
lives in the South Bronx with his sister Chivona, who co-founded the
group, their mother, Doris, and his son, William, 18. He also has a
daughter, Assata, 3, who lives with her mother.
ImageMr. Newsome, right, with his son, William, near a poster
advertising the congressional run of his sister, Chivona Newsome, his
partner in Black Lives Matter Greater New York.
Mr. Newsome, right, with his son, William, near a poster advertising the
congressional run of his sister, Chivona Newsome, his partner in Black
Lives Matter Greater New York.Credit...Michael Noble Jr. for The New
York Times
*WORDS*The first thing I do is open up my Bible to see what the
scripture of the day is. Then I’ll start checking my social media. When
I first open my phone up, there’s a number of messages that I have to
read through. I’ll start going through my text messages and decide which
ones I need to respond to. Usually, as an activist, this is 24/7. If
there is something pressing, I’ll put it in our team’s group chat. As
much as possible, unless I’m backed into a wall and need to deliver an
answer, I try to get the team’s opinion. But most of us think alike.
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*PUFF*Next thing I do, I smoke a cigar. My room door is closed, I reach
over and grab the ashtray, then take a couple pulls of my cigar. A good
cigar, man — it can be like a meal. I don’t drink, I don’t do drugs, I
don’t party. Cigars are my only vice.
*BROGA*I go kiss my son on the forehead and ask if he’s hungry. He says
yes, even if he just ate. So I’ll get him some breakfast. I’ll sit him
down at the table. Then I’ll do “broga,” my take on yoga. I’ve done yoga
for a number of years, but I am way too large to be considered a yogi.
So I do my stretches and routine.
*A COZY START*I’ll get back into bed and start making the phone calls
that I decided on. I’ll call our director of operations, Linda Cherry.
She knows more about me and my sister’s lives than we do. If my sister
is home, my sister will come in the room, and we’ll chat. My sister is
the only person I’ll really vent to. A lot of times I wake up to people
taking shots at me — or doing something crazy in the movement or some
politician saying something about me — but I could vent it to her. It
always ends positively.
*WORSHIP*If there’s anything I want back more than anything from before,
it’s church. Every Sunday I’d go, twice. I’d go to morning service at
eitherConvent Avenue Baptist Church
<https://conventchurch.org/>orAbyssinian Baptist Church
<https://abyssinian.org/>, both of which are two prominent Black
churches in Harlem. And then at night, I’d go toHillsong
<https://hillsong.com/>, which is like rock ’n’ roll karaoke church.
It’s earthshaking, filled with young people in hats, cool sneakers. It’s
come as you are, but everybody is coming fresh. I mean, you’ve got a
preacher preaching in like, Jordans and skinny jeans. So these days, I
watchT.D. Jakes’s <https://www.tdjakes.org/about/>daughterSarah Jakes
Roberts <https://sarahjakesroberts.com/roszo0w518x13zldpcm1snd388ntaw>,
who has a church stream at 12 p.m.
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*PREP*Now if there’s an early rally, I got to get ready. I’ll shower,
get dressed and I’ll throw on my bulletproof vest. In that early call
with Linda, we’ll start calling everybody to make sure they’re going to
be where they are. I rent cars and switch them up because it’s safer and
nobody could keep track of what I’m driving. Most of the time it’s a big
truck like a Suburban. I’m too big to fit in cars.
Image
Mr. Newsome has a team he relies on, which includes his sister. “I’m
really just the bad one, the mouth,” he says.
Mr. Newsome has a team he relies on, which includes his sister. “I’m
really just the bad one, the mouth,” he says.Credit...Michael Noble Jr.
for The New York Times
*EN ROUTE*So, by early afternoon, I’m out of my house and in the truck.
My sister is there. Linda is there. The core team. They really run the
organization; I’m really just the bad one, the mouth.
Image
Sometimes Mr. Newsome can squeeze in a haircut.
Sometimes Mr. Newsome can squeeze in a haircut. Credit...Michael Noble
Jr. for The New York Times
*THE WORK*Now we meet the rest of the team. We move like a tight unit.
Everybody is always late. People start trickling in. People are getting
suited and booted. We grab the flags, grab the posters. We say a prayer.
Now we walk. We march in a formation to the event. When we get to the
event, we scan the crowd. We say what’s up to our people and check in
with the leaders of the event. Once we’re established, we’ll do some
security sweeps and then give our speeches.
*STRATEGY*These days, we march toward the back for two reasons. At the
back a lot of things happen. You’ll get people who want to break the
lines with cars. We try to block any threats to anybody ahead of us.
Another reason is we are the last line between the marchers and the
police. They’ll put the cars behind us and bikes on other blocks to
shadow us. So while we’re moving, we’re sending our people to scout to
see where they are and what they’re doing, to check on the protesters.
Usually, I’ll have one or two people assigned to my personal security.
Toward the end of the march, when it starts getting dark, somebody will
walk up to me and say, ‘Hawk, it might start getting a bit funky out
here.’ We send a runner to the front to let them know we’re dipping and
they need to cover it. Then we leave as a unit.
Image
His mother, Doris Newsome, checks in often. They shared a FaceTime
session while he relaxed at Amy Ruth’s Home Style Southern Cuisine in
Harlem.
His mother, Doris Newsome, checks in often. They shared a FaceTime
session while he relaxed at Amy Ruth’s Home Style Southern Cuisine in
Harlem.Credit...Michael Noble Jr. for The New York Times
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*REFUEL AND RECAP*We have a usual spot in Harlem on Lenox Avenue
calledBarawine <https://www.barawine.com/>. They have this vegan pad
thai that I’m absolutely in love with. The team loves the not-so-vegan
rum punch. We usually have a couple trucks, and we’ll park outside and
eat out of the truck. So we’ll be outside with the music pumping,
decompressing and taking in the day. I’ll take off my shoes for a bit.
It’s a crash after that action, like a roller coaster drop. Adrenaline
transitioning into life, and suddenly.
*CHECK-INS*I’ll respond to emails and texts; my mother would have called
like three times by now. She insists on calling us, in the middle of a
protest, so we could order Uber Eats for her. I’ll say, ‘Mom, I’m in the
middle of a rally about to speak to 2,000 people!’ And she’ll start
saying something like, ‘Listen, that Italian was a little too salty last
time.’
Everybody will be talking and socializing, checking in with their loved
ones. We’ll go over what happened. We’ll be out there till about 10.
We’ll talk to people passing by, listen to music, talk to people who
might challenge us. And not long after that, we’ll start heading home.
*FAMILY*I’ll get home, usually my son might still be up and in the
kitchen. I’ll wash up and sanitize. I’ll take off my shirt, take off my
vest and air out. My kitchen space is an office now. I’ll maybe call my
daughter, who is 3, and check in with her. I’ll FaceTime with her and
sing her songs, watch her run around the house, showing me toys. So then
when my son comes in, I’ll put a mask on. We’ll play a bit. I’ll wrestle
him, ruffle him. And ask him how his day went.
Sunday Routine readers can follow Hawk Newsome on Instagram
@hawk.newsome or on Twitter @IamHawkNewsome.
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