Welcome back to magnificently black I am your host seven and at J here on the magnificently black podcast we will share our journey through life as we navigate through careers entrepreneurship financing travel and all things like let’s talk so welcome back to magnificently black um today we have the pleasure of
Having a guest his name is Bo Braxton so hey Bo how you doing today um can you introduce yourself and tell us a little bit about who Bo is and uh yeah okay so um like you said my name is Bo braxon uh my real name is Jarvis but don’t tell nobody it
But I go by Bo um uh I live in deada Georgia that’s a East Side uh Atlanta M of five Beta Sigma going on 21 years uh I am a police officer been a cop going on 15 years graduated from Vasa State back in 07 um currently live here in Atlanta with my
Family um just happy to be here thank you well we’re so happy to have you too um so we wanted to on this episode Spotlight people in our community that provide service and just give a light to our community as a whole so um Jennifer
Did you want to you can start off with some questions or how uh some questions you may have for B so first I just wanted to say um I know you’re you said you um have an organization that does community service what what what are you doing currently
In the community as far as like are you working with young adults are you working with older adults can you just give me a a little snapshot of what you’re doing in the community now okay so um I guess I kind of left that part off uh
Community service part uh I I I typically don’t talk about it I just I just just go ahead and do it U that’s why I didn’t cross my mind to bring it up um yeah uh I guess it’s not part um I don’t do community service a part is uh
As far as uh organization wise I just do it because that’s what something I’ve always been bred to do since I was younger um I always worked with uh with the community since I was a kid because U my parents kind of inbred that in
At an early age um back then it was uh it was Special Olympics that’s something I I did back when I was younger but now it’s more so uh in Atlanta is more so the talking to the youth talking to young black men that’s uh that look that
Seem as if they’re not going in the right path and and also dealing with uh the homeless population that’s in metro Atlanta um I do that uh through my fraternity um um yeah 5 the sigma the only greatest fraternity that you know about sure but um um as you know my
Fraternity is a is a community uh Service uh organization so I do a lot of service projects through my organization I’m actually the director of social action for my chapter so I I coordinate basically a lot of service project that’s going on in Atlanta um uh two of
My chapter Brothers they every last Sunday of the month they coordinate Feed the Homeless downtown I jump in with them coordinate with uh other uh Brothers in the chapter to get them out there with them every Thursday um in Maro Georgia I coordinate do food uh the food pantry with Maro uh Presbyterian
Church I do that through my job um just to get the outlet of of cops um I actually go out there in uniform actually giving out food and uniform just give people a different perspective on uh certain certain me say certain images I want to give to the public uh
Uh I wear certain things so out there wearing uh giving feeding the homeless I’ll be out there wearing letters wearing my blue and white when I’m out uh doing the food pantri I’m out in food just so people can get can remember uh who’s helping them um just give people different perspective on
Fraternities give people different perspective on um police officers u i just try to be out in the public as much as possible and get lasting impression on me um and the best way to get people a last impression to me is do all these these uh these projects in full
Uniform I’m saying like because I I don’t want anybody think it was just uh I guess I’m easy to forget if someone’s helping you but you remember that that black that black C with your wrasling voice helped me like yeah they’re like okay so and it’s like you have a friendly face the
Smile look we can see it now it’s just like give light so that’s one of the things I was seeing on like your social media and stuff you’re always so positive and you’re giving that light to people that may not have something that day they may not have had food so you’re
Like hey a cop BW white hey we’re giving we’re here to help you it’s not and it’s not to shame that’s the other thing is it’s not to shame people we’re here to help so like doing that in the Metro Atlanta area is one of the things that
Is really good because Metro Atlanta has a high population rate uh for homeless as well as young males that need a need guidance so we definitely appreciate you for that for sure yeah so when you say you have like you talk to young men and things um and you
Talk to them about hey what their life is like and things like that what is some of the like um a legacy you would like to leave or what’s some of the information you give to Young uh young boys young men to let them know like hey
You don’t have to be out in the streets doing stuff and you could just yeah and um I try to go speak to um uh I get contacted by different groups on on a regular uh uh um people that’s over that basically have nonprofits and they’re over the
Mentoring young men um okay uh like I said I’ve been a cop 15 years so I’ve come across all these type of kids since since 09 so oh man so I I see what you I see him at 12:3 and now I’m seeing him as adult doing the same
Thing so I get contact by lot of different groups and a lot of different organizations for me to come out there and talk to their kids talk to them in person talk to them as uh Icebreaker conversations talk to them at large panels um I do it on a regular and and
Like I said I do it in full uniform um um I don’t talk to I don’t like talk to these kids in in regular clothes I could but I think it it’ll be a little bit more meaningful talking to these kids and talk let them know
I I look like you I talk like you but I took a different path when I was younger and it’s because you’re taking this path right now you can still change your lifestyle um but but but you have to want to um it’s it’s it’s hard sometimes
To listen to some of these kids stories because a lot of the times that’s all they have um they don’t have a a strong family uh Village like like most like some um people have growing up when I was I had a whole village uh back in us
Have my folks in the house so right now with with with my two boys uh Nas and ASA you know I’m saying they 14 and four but they got a thousand sigas and Zetas supporting them supporting their Sports to check up on them texting them sending their money coming by for their
Birthdays make sure they good when when when n’s mess up it’s about 10 Brothers com to the house know I’m saying just to check know I’m saying just make sure yeah and and that’s what we’re doing with our kids with our our young men and our our young ladies we’re staying on
Them to make sure they do be successful in life and get them able to put their best foot forward but sadly in metro Atlanta a lot of kids don’t have that so so I try to just go talk to them just let them know because a lot of them
Don’t like Co Spirit yeah yeah yeah for sure a lot of young men are being bred to hate cops so I try know saying me I I’m in your face talking to you check know I’m saying having a conversation with you just know look bro I’m not like
Everybody else I’m to you if you need me let me know but um I I see it more and more the kids are getting younger um these gangs are getting out of control in metro Atlanta you know what I’m saying they just don’t have a village to
To support them so when support them it’s supporting the nonsense they got going on so so so what would you say for a person who now I know you say your kids have you know that support from the fraternity and from the sorority but what about those kids that don’t have
That connection what advice would you give those kids because I know there’s a lot of kids who don’t have that Legacy from parents who are in a fraternity or sorority for instance me and my husband neither one are in a f uh fraternity or sority um my daughter is welcome to do
It I was going to do it when I was in college but decided not to but what would you say to huh what you was gonna do I will not tell I’m gonna make my assumption leave it like that go ahead H your assumption what is your assumption all her people
Are blue and white all all what I said man we’re not here for that go ahead that’s what I said because all her friends is what so so yeah so I’m I’m thinking about all of those kids who are out there who are struggling you know especially you know in bigger cities
Sometimes smaller cities who are struggling with that support needing that support especially in the African-American Community what would you say for that that needs that support I mean that doesn’t have it in the home well well honestly um just like my son is in high school now I didn’t know there were so
Many different clubs and opportunities to serve and be mentored it’s it’s like my son’s school has I was say about 120 clubs wow man I don’t know that’s all high schools but I know I didn’t have that back I but my son has a over a hundred
Different clubs in the school but uh I think he’s in three of them outside the sports but outside of sports if there’s there’s there’s there’s always something to do uh if you’re in high school but the problem is number one they might not know about it or number two they just
Don’t care yeah or they’re not a go-getter you know sometimes I have to tell my daughter if you want something you got to go get it you got to go inquire uh you can’t just sit back and wait for it to come to you so I try to
Push that in steal that in her um at at her school I don’t think there’s about aund and some clubs there is clubs there for her to be involved in I tell her be involved in these things um because you’re going to need that support system you’re going to need that kind of
Communication and um social activity later on one thing because that’s one thing I will say by being active in high school will lead into like when you get to College being active for organizations or just being active in your dorm or getting out being active in your community because in high school I
Wasn’t I was very active in high school and then when I got to college I was just like yeah I want to be more active in the community so I did try to I did make that step of okay let me start being active with certain organizations um Al also it was a
Sorority that I was act actually interested in um and later I became a member and I did do start doing community service with them but like Bo was saying it’s just like you have to know like hey these these kids over here need help so how can I help them how can
I show that um show that support so like when he was saying going going to like Mentor I used to Mentor in college and going to high schools and reading and tutoring and I used to love it now here in Atlanta my way of supporting I feel
Like I do always am like well let me give money but I want to give more time but it’s just like now I’m like okay I’m so far away now I have to drive to Atlanta which is like 40 minutes for me sometimes but like but was saying like
He has two brothers that do um that make bags and things um that’s one of the things that we actually I’m actually looking forward to going to um so it helps with the community and just letting them know hey we we here we see you you’re not just a person because
Right it is something that is serious and that um that’s called need to feed that’s every Sunday need to feed um my brothers uh Zeke and brother Eric they do that every Sun every last Sunday of the month since uh jary last year um we meet at the same spot and we just
Walk around um downtown Atlanta underneath the uh underneath the the expressways over there and in in TT Village I don’t even know about Village yeah about t Village yeah you know I do not but I mean I know that California has something like T Village as well but I didn’t know
Atlanta had one yes they’re everywhere in metro Atlanta what happened was um our home um the the homeless shelter that we the only homeless shelter we had downtown uh I don’t know what happened as far as the the MoneyWise but it closed down about two years ago so it’s only it was
The only the only Hess Shelter in metro in downtown Atlanta shut down so what where all these people have to go right right yes so no shelters at all and what no that’s I’m like we get so like that’s what I’m like now it’s like give whenever you see a fundraiser and
Listeners we definitely will actually be posting the information about uh the feeding um feeding operation because you can send money through cash app so that we can actually fill the bags and give more than what we already have so that’s one of the ways that we would love to
Give back to our community is giving money so we can feed more people and give more the more we give the more we I actually not gonna hold you I feel warm in the Heart by actually being there and just being with my brothers and sisters
At because I am a Zeta I a member of Zeta F auor Incorporated um by just being with my family as well as being with my family in the community also is just like yeah and with me everything I do everything I do in the community
Outside of uh during school hours uh I bring my son with me I bring my old I’m saying just just so he can see a different perspective than than what he got at you feel I’m saying like a lot of kids what I saying is some families like to uh like to block
Certain things that’s happening around it oh yeah try to protect their kids from what’s really out there but little do they know in a couple years your kids gonna be out there absolutely I try to make sure my oldest um he sees the downside certain some some some
People’s uh decisions you know yeah um from decisions from financial decisions from uh uh drug decisions uh just just just just let them see that outside this household where where you think you sad and depress CA what going on in your school I’m G take you time to go feed
These people who’s out here on the street living in tense with their kids yeah that’s your age yeah so iy to tell my daughter that too she she she forgets a lot you know everything’s given to her I said everything’s not given to you you got to realize there’s people that do
Not have you’re saying you’re not gonna eat leftovers you’re not gonna eat leftovers what you know I mean it’s you have to let them know ahead of time you know there is because they live in their own world kids live in their own world they don’t know what’s going on out
Outside of what other people are dealing with they’re just kind of enth throttled with themselves so I have to remind her you know even around Christmas time I tell her we’re going to help you know at the food bank and we’re going to do different things so you understand
There’s people out there that need everybody doesn’t have a a cushy life you know they have real problems so I have to explain to her and now she understands a little bit more now that she’s in high school because she’s seeing some of these things within High
School there’s kids that do not have cor and they they get free lunches and that kind of thing and so now she’s seeing that you know it’s not all about everyone having everything I’m trying to give deal though that’s I need to jump on that I ain’t gonna lie though
Yeah I I cuse I a know because uh because I forgot to pay my son bill and I got that negative balance email yeah I know at her school they have snack if you don’t have food or if you can’t bring your lunch you go to the
Impact office and they’ll give you food for the day I’m about to pull up and also what um what I used to do with him when he was younger because I know um it was easy for him to explain himself like when he was in Middle to write down how he feels about
Stuff so I used to do back then when I used take like been in commun service for for years now and when when he got up age like uh fourth fifth grade I started taking him with me so he can see everything I do outside the house
Outside police life so what I used to do is ask him uh how did he how did he feel about what he did today what did he see who did he see and how did you feel about um seeing the kids and so I let
Him write it down so now he’s old enough now and I have a conversation like how you feel about today yeah and it’s always it’s heartbreaking his uh his respon always uh his a little heartbreaking and saddening and say but I try to get him to express
Himself I know when it come to black men we don’t really Express how yeah and I’m just not trying to get better at it so I’m trying to uh I guess I’m I’m at a point in my life now I’m trying to express myself as you should but I was never
Told when I was younger to express oh yeah my feelings when it com to certain things but now I’m trying to get him know I’m saying like to get to you’re at an age now where you’re and people G listen a young black man um I I I would
Like you for you to be able to be in a place where you can express yourself to anybody and just because you’re comfortable so so when it come to him hey bro how you feel about that and see that’s good that you’re doing that with him so then he knows
Like as he gets older he should be able to he’s gonna be able to express himself and as a black man he will be able to do it as a good way and not feel like oh I can’t I shouldn’t express myself and he should be able to do that with everybody
At work at in school anything so that’s really good that that you’re instilling or doing that with them because that’s something you can also share with like you said everybody as a black man you should feel comfortable to speak you should be a you should be comfortable to
Be you you should say because you don’t want to just be like yeah I’m okay when you’re not really okay like yeah I think just talk too much now be like write it down a journal you doing much talking School shut up oh yeah that is definitely my daughter but
I do love when she comes home and says Mommy I got something to tell you you know it’s really good for us to keep that communication open kind of know how their day is going if they’re down I know immediately if my daughter has had a bad day as
Well him being a teenage boy like like you said earlier they be in their old little world I guess now we have to sit up down for him to come Express himself because because um um my son plays uh three Sports he wrestles he he wrestles lacrosse and he swims so his
Competition swim so when he comes home from practice he he does his chores and he does his homework then he’s in his room so we have to go find where he’s at just go tired yeah but I he beening all day he don’t want people no more with
His when we do get him he doesn’t he doesn’t come forth but if you want to talk to him he’ll talk your head off but but uh but yeah he good kid yeah okay so why do you think I have a why do you think it’s so important for
African-American males like you were just explaining how you take your son out to community service why do you think it’s important for them to commun to communicate as well as to be active in the community um well first especially your community especially if your community looks like you let’s just let’s just say
That um um as you know as you know you might not know but a lot of Atlanta’s Atlanta’s Chocolate City you know I’m saying yes I know that come on now I know that in Durham North Carolina hey hey hey hey I know exactly what Atlanta I’ve
Been to Atlanta several times and I have the people in Atlanta too you drove by you drove through oh no you was on vacation you was passing through come on I um when it comes to for example Metro Atlanta know I’m saying everybody here look like
Meing SE hey bro everybody look like you here know I’m saying but I’m telling you Atlanta everybody ain’t gonna look like you right so so first I I want I want to be able to inella in especially with um him and my my fraternity brother’s kids and some of my my son’s friends
Especially with them white black they a little bit everything but I try to get them out in the community with him as much as possible between their Sports just so they can see like look bro it’s like we out here like we we on the street bro and not just a certain type
Of race know I’m saying like in this area right now bro this us like we like this our people know say out here living living on the street so don’t get twisted what you see on the news it’s just white folks it’s us too yeah
So that I especially in Atlanta I just I I try to get them to see another another lifestyle that our people are are currently in you know what I’m saying um it’s not a postive lifestyle but still a lifestyle that they’re in that they have to that they adapted to with their own
Families living on the street so when it comes to us as men us as young black men us as black folks period like just to go out there and see like look look that’s our people out there so why wouldn’t you want to go help our people yeah
Absolutely that’s one thing that’s the reason I became a cop I’m saying like uh y’all might have know this I grew up in south Georgia that’s you know saying like I be repping I don’t know you can see that like oh yeah I see I’m straight Southern Southern Southern
Georgia I grew up I remember growing up and saw and seen a little KKK house outside Savannah yeah I I remember passing by KKK house how many k at KKK how many k three k three yeah I remember seeing it’s something different now right and that was back in
The early 90s know I’m saying I remember seeing that growing up I remember how the cops treated us back then because I had RADS I had locks down my back I had a grill in my mouth I had whole bunch of I remember I remember how those those uh
Those cops treated me and my friends because the way we look and the way we it but that’s what everybody did back in south Georgia if he was black everybody had locks yeah so reason I became a cop because I wanted folks to see a different side of of law enforcement I
Want f look like me to know I look like you but I don’t act like some of these CS know what I’m saying with this so that part of ser a community I wanted to serve my community that looks like me yeah I’m saying like everybody where
I’ve been a account 15 years the county I I I work in look like me so I want to serve people that look like me uh I want to serve these kids that that look like me so they give them a a different perspective of what they
Hear what they see on social media look I don’t know what you talking about that ain’t me what you got going on bro to me I don’t care about all that but that’s my that’s my only reason I got into this job is to serve people
That look like we love that and we love to see people that want to serve our community definitely we need it we need it for sure for sure yeah yeah because I TR when I’m off work I try to serve as far as uh Feed the Homeless me mentor
And stuff like that uh when I’m in uniform I try to go uh do the food patries out in open but when I’m actually at work at work uh my job is now is community relations you know what I’m saying like that’s all I do now is
Community relations I did all the the foot chases the car chases oh man I did Undercover for six years because oh man I don’t look talk like the typical cop so I did years I did active shooter unit for two years but now I’m getting a
Place where I want to serve my community a little bit more more so instead of the protecting my community type thing serving whatever you need that that aspect of law enforcement um uh I on Valentine’s Day I was at my desk at my office I was I just I was just
Randomly know what I want go to the the local element school and just give out candy to all the kids I got my chief got got the card bought like a lot of a lot of candy i g tell put I put it in the bucket I got
One them School carts I was just walking but stuff like that know saying those kids remember that yeah absolutely when they see me at Walmart hey you hey officer say you want to get me candy that so that that kind of interaction matters to me at this point in my life
When it come to law enforcement yeah uh that’s my new appreciation of the job is to be out in the community as much as possible and serving that way um kids look like me because leaves a lasting impression on them it does fulfilling for you too I suspect you know it is be
Like so if you can’t tell Bo is always in the community he actually just got nominated for an award as well yeah I didn’t even know until until everybody thought I was dead oh no I woke up I woke up to like 10 text messages 15 phone calls you good
Yeah yeah why bro check Facebook man I get on Facebook it’s a nomination to me and and my frat brother that’s over bless his little heart my frat brother that did the flyer know say it got me up there look like with the glory oh
No um but the uh the award is from um it’s called the Pearly Awards it’s for uh Greek nominees uh Greek nominations of the divine nine that’s do excellent work in the community and um and I was nominated for Sigma the year for uh uh community service in in metro Atlanta so
So once I find out what was going on and then then I made a joke of it I made my own post and made a joke of it uh y’all don’t K me y’all don’t K me off early this morning but I than them for the nom for
The nomination and we’ll see how that goes uh I thought that was pretty cool though well congratulations right I mean like yeah so we look the nomination we’ll probably post that like a little flyer of it um for the followers so followers we have if you haven’t noticed we have switch
Little platform so you can follow us on IG um at NE nelby designs and at court Mitch I’m on Facebook and you can find Bo he is on Facebook and IG um his IG is fit cop if you can’t tell he he’s a cop that is probably fit and he also throws
A lot of let’s say events uh through sou Southern Hospitality so and the events vary from cruises to parties at lounges and everything like that so check out his Facebook want to you can give us some more information about the yeah Southern Hospitality is is is me and my best friend
Brand uh mean uh Trey SOS but AB call him Wiggles I don’t call that man Wiggles I his mama call but me been friends since seventh grade uh oh wow yeah so what’s that I guess that be like 27 20 28 years now um we went the high school we the
Middle school together high school together we played Sig together uh you be had all my kids birthdays and vice versa um uh it’s a little harder now as far as our kids birthdays because we’re a little older now and got jobs and stuff careers and but but we talk all
The time we business partners now we uh created uh a business uh we created in college and the name changed like 10 times uh it was five star it was Dope Boys it was dope it was blue crew ENT and Five Star entertainment but then we
We we um we kind of LED on the southern hospitality I think maybe like maybe like uh eight about seven eight years ago so I think we was Trey was listening to a old Outcast song I like Southern Hospitality better yeah yeah whole Outcast song yeah
Hospitality came up in in the song he called me up hey bro let’s change the name it this yeah we are the definition of Souther hospitology so but um but it ranges from um uh like I said uh it ranges from community service projects through through my brand ranges from
Parties uh Kickbacks uh meet and greets cruises um uh I just coordinated uh an event July 13th that’s gonna be I’m doing a a shades of yellow party Downtown as out indoor outdoor lounge type thing we done did parties on cruises we done did parties internationally um we did I did a party
A allwhite party and and u i r out a club in uh Mexico and uh inata in Sonata Mexico I run out of a club for all white part I run out a rooftop in the Bahamas um uh what say I got a party in Augusta
This Friday I’m working on a party in Indiana uh Indianapolis uh um I’m just trying to be inally know I need I need to come through I need to come through I told you the best and the best thing about it so I be having all these these functions
And it’s never no issues because everybody know I’m a cop so yeah yeah I Ain withone that dumb stuff so I’m just here for for entertainment and fun a about that just the house but that’s all we want is fun and fun and fun for the giggles that’s I I’m come
Down for a few Giggles let me pick me so Jen you coming out of chocolate City oh you know I am you know I am know anything about chocolate City so I need to come through April 25th to the 28th I got I got I got my birthday weekend during blue Atlanta weekend
Okay it’s four days it’s like eight parties what okay Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday from the time know something in May see uh what’s going on man I think uh I think maybe we got regionals so so I’ll be throwing a party in the boms oh what okay okay B all right get
Details honestly like I be having a conversations with folks folks be asking me when do I sleep I was like have you noticed everywhere I go I sleep yeah yeah I be sleep I be sleep everywhere get it planned and then go to sleep yeah man I be I don’t even sleep I
Take naps cat naps I I so all of our listeners you see that we have we’re having parties in look April May whenever you want to have a party if you want to come to Atlanta hit Bo up or he’s gonna be in the Bahamas um yeah he everywhere like you said he
Want to be International so he gonna be everywhere we we taking it all the East Coast West Coast whever everywhere in the United States I just did a party in Cali in last year last month what so let’s get this start Let’s Get It Started um we wanted to thank you today
So much for giving us some information on just how to get involved with your community and how you are making positive let’s say you’re making very you’re making great changes and just giving people a business to stand on like you’re standing on business in the community as in whether it is in your
Police uniform or a member of five to Sigma you are doing your thing brother so we want to thank you and give you your flowers and be I don’t want to many last flowers I got they killed me off on Instagram and Facebook let me I can find this thing before you
Get off hold up now hold up S your board look at this and then and then look and then then my my business partner gonna edit it he Ed G put gon put me in a I okay here it is right here hold on I’m sorry look look at the do all right
Here you go that’s the actual one so so you do a quick look it look like I with the glory yeah and and then my jerk jerk of a business partner gonna put Doves on it and the doves is what did it the do was the worst one it be your own people
Man always always so thank you for uh joining us today on our podcast and check Bo out and Southern Hospitality look and we just want to appreciate you and thank you so much for joining us today thank you thank you thank you I’ll see you I’ll see you in April
Jen that’s right you will you will the VIP section look I got the VIP section oh yeah I’m coming pH it when I get there I got you I’m gonna put a magnificent section that’s gonna be that’s section do that’s gonna be name of section I love it I love it okay
Thank you for joining us for today’s episode we hope that today’s episode inspired you to continue to be the best version of yourself and remind yourself that you are met with a certainly black everything black is beautiful until next time
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