As a man born of a Nigerian father and a white mother, Jawando is our guide for the essential gift of mentorship and how staggeringly transformative it can be for an entire community. It’s a reminder of how even a brief encounter of positive mentoring can make all the difference for all our children, most especially those at risk. Will Jawando is an attorney, an activist, a community leader, and a councilmember in Montgomery County Maryland, a diverse community of more than 1 million residents. Called “the progressive leader we need” by the late Congressman John Lewis, Jawando has worked with Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Sen. Sherrod Brown, and Pres. Barack Obama. HE is the author of My Seven Black Fathers: A Young Activist’s Memoir of Race, Family, and the Mentors Who Made Him Whole (Farrar, Straus and Giroux 2022).

Interview Date: 7/8/2022   Tags: Will Jawando, Kalfani, Joseph Jacob, Deen Sanwoola, Nigeria, grandmothers, Dean Hoge, NAACP, Barack Obama, affordable housing, low-income housing, mentors, mentoring, mentorship, Social change/politics, Personal Transformation, Men’s studies, Community