LESSONS OF LIBERATION

by Jeremy Danté

in love and liberation, this is a proclamation of identities being unionized in an effort of abandon. that abandon, is one of intentional purpose to give greater space to what lies on the other side. what lies on those outer limits is a greater freedom, a sensibility of connection and purpose that has been processed, consistently, for 10 years in this space. the name that i’ve built was initially constructed through a visage of my face. visually obstructed, as to hide within the content, my true face was shown and my most sincere voice heard. reactionary, disciplinary and conditional- this purpose grew into jeremydante.com. here, we’ve discussed and questioned aspects of beauty culture, fashioned ideas of femininity and have glorified the truths of such actions, in words and images. we’ve celebrated the presence of color, and questioned the moments of grey scaled silence, that left us bare with our light-less forms of contrast. together, we’ve remained unified in our ideas and identities of who we are, and how that is represented.

my own ability to self identify and build upon presence, has been a blessing. my greatest success in this space is showing you who i am, and my greatest gratitude is shown in the ways that you’ve accepted and honored me with your support and simple presence. while others were focusing on finding their significant other, or busy looking for starter family homes and baby proofing, i was looking inward. i remained an independent force, creatively, learning both emotionally and through the process of building my own digital home base; that no one can do it better than you can do it for yourself. in developing a creative structure, i was able to overflow into my emotional curiosity and support my own sense of self, through analysis in many of the same ways that i’ve viewed cultural markers and happenings of the world. whether fashion, or sociology, music or feminism; it was all connected. i was sometimes criticized for trivializing certain components, but real ones know my core purpose which is, purely, cultural activism. of course, over the 10 years that jeremydante.com has been around, there have been growth spurts, long form exercising efforts and breakthroughs. what was shown creatively became reflected emotionally. born of bi-racial ethnicity, i learned to balance the ethnic and the culturally bare. to understand flavor, and the tolerate the bland. it was in this art form of balance that i learned and craved contrast. emotionally, i learned of this balance through moments of loss, identifying gain. and in love, being sensitive to aspects of hate- learning of methods to maintain clarity and to magnify focus all the same.

with a 90’s divorce creating a division in my own family life, i knew that all things weren’t intended to remain whole; and that separation was at moments healthier and the better option than to stay and to suffer. i learned of the clash of masculine and feminine roles. to understand the anti-intellect of men, while favorably leaning towards the complexity of femininity and the beauty of womanhood- through struggle. being a witness of failed potential and tarnished hope, i had to find a way to craft my own development of self into a unique culmination of what inspired me of my mother, and had to solve the equation of the disappointment of my father, and those many failed potentials. in my adult life, the difficulties of such equations only multiplied, i started to understand certain breaks, why certain roads lead to dead ends, and why others were roads without ends all together. i learned that i didn’t identify with my white side, void of culture of emotional sensitivity, and through sensitivity that it was actually ‘white fragility’. what became vividly clear  was that there was unique, unbreakable sense of community that i felt, which became second nature, when in my filipino family unit.

my senses of taste, or style; notions of progression or concepts of creativity existed in those spaces. the elements of  white washed approach or with that ‘on the job’ form of behavior, or even speaking were programed methods of tolerance. in 2017, there was no doubt a turn of cultures, a redefining and barrier breaking exploitation of white privilege that was just far too loud to ignore. speaking only from my experience, personally, and in many cases secretly because it bared no greatness to even share or expose such connection- seeing victims of prescription medication abuse, or alcoholism pathways lit by lacking communication. it was all very simple, and the struggles to connect the dots were simple road signs directing you to turn the fuck around. all of those dark identities were coming from a link that was never intended to be tied to me in the first place, at least not legally. my father being a child who was never properly claimed, leading to a birth certificate which a young white female mother, absent-mindedly added a name of no actual origin. my father had the name, and later adopted, illegally, through use of adding this last name to school papers in grade 3.

my own filipino lineage being disconnected, because proper form and communication were both ignored. last names not revealed for intentional purposes to avoid legal action presently; but originally to just, create a name of my own. a name, by which i will actively point out, was given to me at birth anyways. to go from a four part name, to a two form simplification- it’s direct. it is my name, and has been all along; but the legalities that will commence this year will be the finalization that one hopelessly aims for with a significant other. legally, a name change to alter and remove a white last name, to adopt and ultimately create a singular presence is what i have done.

this proclamation, is one that is very personal; and almost dizzyingly dressed up, hidden amongst my choice of words. this is a process of matrimony to self. to enter into a new era, that secures what i have built, to clean and clear whatever bullshit was tied to old names in the first place. to be free, and unchained; to make the decision after feeling the sense of disconnection. all things on god’s time, this was a process that happened over time and with time, because in due time- i realized it was my time. my time to discover, to re-connect to disconnect and then to connect in a new way, that was more of a removal all together. no path was ever glittering nor was it ever the easiest, friendliest or happiest place to be. but all of those things help you to understand the meaning of such prosperities and luxuries. to assume a life of difficulties, means you will lavish in the many simplicities that life has to offer there after. and as a celebratory entrance into this new era, we have an amazing 10 years as an active, growing body of work to enjoy and be proud of. in the name of jeremy danté, allow the work that’s already been done, to fill your heart as much as it has my own, to create and present it to you.

in under 10 years, there are over 4,000 posts here, which have been read by readers in over 322 countries as of 2017. this is only the beginning, and we’ve already accomplished so many things together. with simple communication. and with that lead in for the new year, the full circle motion is enough of an announcement to share in what is to come. thank you to all of you for reading, sharing the work and providing support.