A Sunday View From A Pew:We Are Not All the Same — And That’s a Good Thing

Every week, I sit down with a group of brothers — an attorney, a doctor, a Fortune 500 professional, a college administrator, a business owner, an ex-military man, and then there’s me. Seven Black men. Seven different journeys. Seven strong opinions.

If you were a fly on the wall, you’d witness lively debates that bounce from politics to faith to football. We challenge each other, laugh until we can’t breathe, and sometimes roll our eyes so hard it’s a miracle we don’t strain something. But no matter how heated the conversation gets, we always leave with one thing intact — respect.

Because even though we’re all Black men, we’re not all the same. And that’s a truth our community needs to embrace more often.

Just the other day, our lawyer friend spent half the afternoon defending Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas — yes, that Clarence Thomas — and sharing stories about his friendship with South Carolina Senator Tim Scott. The rest of us looked at him like he’d lost his mind. But when the laughter died down, we did what real brothers do — we listened. We didn’t agree, but we respected his right to see the world differently.

That’s the beauty of what we’ve built — a brotherhood that can disagree without falling apart. We don’t have to think alike to love one another. We don’t have to vote the same to value each other. Some of us are Democrats, some are probably closet Republicans, and a few are floating somewhere in between. Yet, every week, we pull up our chairs, break bread, and remind ourselves that unity doesn’t mean uniformity.

Too often, we’ve fallen for the lie that being Black means being politically, spiritually, or socially identical. But that’s not how growth happens — and that’s not how freedom works. Every Black person didn’t vote for Obama. Some even voted for Trump. While I might not understand it, I understand this: America was built on the right to think for yourself.

If you ever find yourself in a room where everyone agrees with everything you say, it’s time to find a new room. Growth doesn’t come from comfort — it comes from challenge. Iron sharpens iron.

So my brothers and I will keep meeting, keep debating, keep laughing, and keep loving one another through it all. Because unity isn’t about sameness — it’s about strength in our differences.

That’s the lesson I’ve learned sitting around that table.
And maybe, just maybe, it’s the lesson our whole community needs right now.