Today we’d like to introduce you to Anthony Hill.
Hi Anthony, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
DSMD started from a passion that has always been within me, a desire to see a race of people who’ve been through and continue to go through the many different hells that they face only because of the color of their skin, be treated, viewed, and experienced as equals amongst their fellow humans. This has always been there, but it reached a personal tipping point when what seemed like a target on African American males was not letting up, even with all the public outcry, video evidence, and lack of consequences surrounding instances of African American male deaths at the hands of others in public interactions. The urge to help others wasn’t fueled by vicariously experiencing others’ life stories but by experiencing many of these variances firsthand. From having my first cousin Antwan Sedgwick being found dead hanging after having an altercation with police officers earlier that day to me being racially profiled, pulled over, and asked, “What are you doing leaving out of this neighborhood” after leaving my low-income neighborhood only to be let go without incident. To be looked over and ignored and watch the same sales agent help customers that came in after me who looked like him when trying to purchase a motorcycle from a local dealership, which was a dream of mine once I finally saved enough money. These are only a few personal examples I dreaded going through and hated the idea that anyone else should have to.
Additionally, being a Father and having to prepare and explain to my children how to navigate these interactions, even in today’s society, propelled me into action. How can I inform my kids and give them a hands-on living example of fighting for what they believe in and taking qualitative and quantitative actions? This couldn’t just be instructional advice for my family alone; there were others like us, but they didn’t have someone relevant that could directly relate to their struggle. They didn’t have a “voice” fighting for them to learn and do better so that it would positively change their future and the future of those around them. I had to become that voice; I couldn’t place on someone else what I had the capability and capacity to do myself. If I wanted to see change, I had to become that change. That is the shortcut to how and why DSMD became what it is today. Not only fighting to change the stereotype of the African American Father(male inclusive) but to give my people a voice and a forum that will always fight for their Unity, Equity, and Importance.
Can you talk to us about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned? Looking back, would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Getting to this point has been challenging; we’re not even 5 years old. It still feels (and it is) incomplete and in its infancy. The process is filled with peaks and valleys, wins and losses, motivation and being unmotivated, but with all of that, staying focused on the fact that the endgame is bigger than me, bigger than my family and immediate circle drives me to stay the course no matter what the immediate results are. Most people need to realize that building a brand is challenging, especially from the ground up when it can be viewed as aggressive. I realized that growing a social media following is tuff. It is easy to get conned into thinking what you see on social media is easily obtainable; ohh, to the contrary. What we see as the final product online is all the pains and strategies of teams of people over time. Having the right team supporting, pushing, and challenging you is essential. Find the right team, even if it takes a while. It’s important to make sure the team is willing to be an extension of your vision and not be counterproductive. No one will be passionate about your vision and dream like you; don’t expect them to be, but do expect them to work hard towards the mission. If they can’t do that, then why are they here? Finally, initial finances. Having capital to sustain a startup is a must but also a chore. It takes money to do everything and especially for a non-profit organization. Become aware of alternative ways to provide capital for your organization until it can become self-sustaining. Otherwise, it can become a drain.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
What you should know about DSMD is don’t be fooled by the name alone. This is not a gun violence male-oriented organization. We are not an African American negative news reporting organization. If you are looking for consistent negative information, then kindly move on. We are here to support, inform, educate, and invite both male and female community members. Even though DSMD’s mission is to cater to the African American and Brown communities, we welcome all support from all ethnicities to further the mission, as stated on our website. As we focus specifically on our community and the stimuli surrounding it, we simultaneously do not promote or encourage any form of hate, racism, or discrimination to further our success and progression. DSMD specializes in providing tools and resources to assist the African American community with the educational, empowerment, and inclusion needs specific to them. We provide a platform for the audience to share and gain information important to their specific concerns and to have a place to help shape and strengthen their collective identity. We are known for being active in the community serving in public speaking events such as being featured at Old Dominion University’s Black History Month celebration focusing on Black Resistance. We also partnered with the National Technical Association Hampton Roads Chapter to be one of the sponsors for the annual tennis tournament held at Hampton University. We helped provide scholarships to three upcoming African American college students attending Old Dominion University, Norfolk State University, and Virginia Commonwealth University. What we are most proud of are the relationships with the community and the individuals we come in contact with, whether at events or through our mentoring resources or the ties we make with the African American-owned businesses we partner with to become equally beneficial to one another. We are proud of our mentality as an organization bigger than us. It’s about more than what the community can do for us but more about what we can do for the community we live in and serve. We offer different services, including mentoring, public speaking, event planning, vendor booths, DSMD merchandise, etc.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.officialdsmd.org
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dsmd4479/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dsmd4479
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/DSMD4479
