2021 Recipient: Zeke Thomas
Joshua “Zeke” Thomas is the CMO of Isiah International; Celebrity DJ extraordinaire; and, son of NBA legend and Hall of Famer, Isiah Thomas. When he’s not taking the world by storm, he advocates for mental health and overall wellness initiatives - something he’s very passionate about doing. His passion is sourced from his own dealings with traumas, specifically sexual assault. As a survivor and someone who has grown up in the limelight, Zeke exudes a tremendous amount of intestinal fortitude to progress and live life abundantly . It’s how he caught our attention at GOTU.
Zeke Thomas is a GOTU 2021 Crucial Point Award Recipient for his work in Perception Erasure (Notoriety) & Male Survivorship Activism. He is singlehandedly working to increase awareness of male survivors of sexual assault and abuse all while dismantling the notion that people with a specific social standing are immune to this type of harm.
During a Q&A session, we had the opportunity to learn about Zeke, his amazing work and perceptions about survivorship.
How has sexual assault impacted you?
Being assaulted removed me from my person…who I was. It also detached me from my family unit. Those things were a result of how I responded to being victimized. Specifically, it was from my survival and coping mechanisms that I developed because of the individual traumas. Working through the trauma allowed me to see how I may have hurt others and how others may have hurt me. It helped me understand that it’s my responsibility to apologize for the things that I did that hurt other people. It also put me in a situation to ask whether or not I wanted certain people in my life.
What does healing look like for you?
We are never fully healed. We will be doing the work for the rest of our lives. Life is going to continue and keep happening. So, we have to do our best to be as prepared as possible to handle it.
What big thing have you learned about sexual assault survivorship?
Here are the three big things:
COVID forced me to sit down and learn discipline. And the more disciplined I am, the better I am. Whether chores, self care, etc., it helps me focus and make healthy choices. Being disciplined goes a long way to ensuring proper self care.
I’m a proponent of going to therapy. It’s important to get things out…talk about them…learn how to safely process them. And, a good therapist can teach us to do that. Regarding finding a therapist, I firmly believe in “shopping around” for a good therapist. We have to realize that we have options. We have options in our health care. We have a right to be heard. It goes beyond taking an Advil.
We have to be mindful. Specifically, we need to meditate and try to slow down time. Meditation allows us to “floss” everything in our brain..take the time to do it and breathe. There’s power in breath. If you can truly breathe and get to a peaceful state, you’ll realize that part of the trauma can heal itself.
What do you want survivors to know?
Life isn’t going to stop. Things are always going to happen and you have to find ways to deal with them. If you don’t deal with them, they’re going to keep happening and eventually pile up. I know in the beginning it’s painful and demoralizing. But, it takes time [to pick yourself up and move forward]. Me, for example, where I am today is different than where I was six months ago. Right now, I’m at the best place that I’ve ever been concerning my mental health.
What do you have to say to survivors who want to come forward about being victimized?
It’s not an easy journey. But, if you take the first step, you will feel more fulfilled and be on a better path in life…if you let go and take a breath. I think you may have a better life if you get it out. There’s power in a survivor just letting it out, letting the trauma out. It doesn’t matter how other people respond. If they take the “air out of the tire”, that’s on them. It’s not a survivor’s responsibility to own or manage the feelings of others.
What advice would you give to someone who may be told about a friend or family member’s victimization?
Affirm what you heard and just listen. Don’t have an answer. If the survivor screams or cries, let them let it out and just listen.
Learn more about Zeke via the below links:
EPK: http://bit.ly/epkZekeThomas
Bio: www.crowdMGMT.com/zekethomas
Reel: http://bit.ly/ZekeThomasREELcrowdMGMT
HIGHLIGHTS:
Zeke Thomas on GMA sits with Robin Roberts (Sexual Assault Advocacy & Rape Story):http://bit.ly/ZekeGMAcrowdMGMT