This past Thursday, Feb. 2, the United Black Students Society invited Jeffrey Dessources to speak to students in the Campus Center Theatre. Dessources, the author of The Almighty Black Group Chat, explained the context behind a hand-selected collection of poems and encouraged an interactive discussion where students shared their own experiences. The anthology will be released on February 15th, so the students who attended were among the first to encounter Dessources’ latest literature.

The purpose of the Almighty Black Group Chat is to express the importance of having a safe haven in a society where you are the minority. “In that group, I don’t know if there is any more freedom,” Dessources expressed. The book was inspired by twelve of his great friends that he has known since college, and has had the opportunity to be vulnerable with.

In the discussion, Dessources listed a variety of instances where he felt as if he did not fit in, whether it was the mispronunciation of his name, speaking a different language, or not growing up in an affluent area. He concluded the event by stressing how important it is to “find your community,” and when you find yourself in these spaces, to “know where your boundaries are.”

When Dessources is not writing novels, he is fulfilling his role as co-founder of the company Trill or Not Trill. This organization travels nationwide to help people from all walks of life gain leadership skills and be successful in the workplace. To learn more about what Dessources does, explore the company’s webpage: https://www.trillornottrill.com/about-us/