I THINK ABOUT MY FATHER BEING CALLED 'BOY', MY UNCLE BEING CALLED 'BOY', MY BROTHER, COMING BACK FROM VIETNAM AND BEING CALLED 'BOY'. SO I QUESTIONED MYSELF: "WHAT DOES A BLACK MAN HAVE TO DO BEFORE HE'S GIVEN THE RESPECT AS A MAN?"; SO WHEN I WAS 18 YEARS OLD, WHEN I WAS OLD ENOUGH TO FIGHT AND DIE FOR MY COUNTRY, OLD ENOUGH TO DRINK, OLD ENOUGH TO VOTE, I SAID I WAS OLD ENOUGH TO BE CALLED A MAN. I SELF-ORDAINED MYSELF MR. T SO THE FIRST WORD OUT OF EVERYBODY'S MOUTH IS "MR." THAT'S A SIGN OF RESPECT THAT MY FATHER DIDN'T GET, THAT MY BROTHER DIDN'T GET, THAT MY MOTHER DIDN'T GET.
