Today I Give Myself Permission to Dream
Dr. Reginold Daniels
Growing up in the Sunnydale Projects of San Francisco, Reggie Daniels wore a mask and a street name know as RD. He grew up seeing street performers, hustlers and boosting in the area. His parents did their best, but he ultimately spent his teen years with his grandparents in Potrero Hill. This is when he got into a fist fight with a local gang and was shot.
“That was when I lost my faith in the system and believing it was there to protect me. I realized my life could end at any moment.” He was then led by street mentors who advised, “You need to protect yourself,” and Reggie began to believe the Commandments of the streets.
“The first time I held a weapon, it was as if it held ME. I felt the cold steel of the gun go through my body and I could feel the change. It was a very transitional experience for me. I felt a sense of power and I felt powerless without the weapon. People FEARED RD. Reggie Daniels was the guy who went to Riordan and was easy to get along with. RD was a bit more edgy – ruthless with a gangster flare and retaliatory. I felt powerful. I felt like if anyone was going to be a bully, it would be me now. I became what I feared. I exposed myself to a different type of harm. I exposed myself to mass incarceration. The cycle of mass incarceration and addiction would go on for a decade and a half.”
Reggie was introduced to the Omega Boys Club and embraced the teachings of Dr. Marshall and Jack Jacqua. “Omega changed my life!” They empowered Reggie to understand what he wanted to do as collective as he began to feel a new sense of belonging. He started a Friday night Book Club at Omega which allowed space for him and the Club members to study and discuss culturally relevant books together.
“The book club would give us a place to share, to redefine what was important, to redefine community and redefine ourselves. And it more than just reading the information but having a place to process it with folks of similar experiences and cultural backgrounds.” Although this was an incredible space Reggie created, “there were still some things inside of me that had not yet been processed. There was hurt, trauma and fear…and anger. My rage would come back up and I would eventually recidivate.” The cycle would last until the age of 40 before Reggie decided to give himself the ultimate gift.
“I wrote a poem and an article called, ‘Today, I Give Myself Permission to Dream.’ I gave myself permission to rewrite my narrative and dream of a vision that was more encompassing and spoke to my drive and passions.” He continued to pursue the dive within himself and wrote a play, ‘Man Alive’, which documented his life and spoke about the goals he had for himself. “I spoke the achievement of my goals into existence,” shared Reggie. Father Steve Privett, who was president of University of San Francisco, witnessed the power of Reggie’s story and play and personally invited him to attend USF. He completed his undergraduate degree USF in 2012, and then his Masters at USF School of Management in business in 2014.
“Modeling is extremely important. I didn’t know any doctors in my community. I didn’t see people even having goals of becoming a doctor of any sort in my community, but Dr. Marshall actually did that in our community,” continued Reggie as he remembered and recognized the light Dr. Marshall shined as his role model. “It allowed me to say, ‘I like that! Maybe I can aspire to be that!’” And Reggie’s path was brightened by Dr. Marshall being the example and creating the atmosphere where people like Reggie felt like he had access to the accomplishments he didn’t know how to think about before.
“Here I am, Dr. Reggie Daniels following in the footsteps of Dr. Joseph Marshall,” he said with a proud smile on his face as we celebrate his completion of his Doctorate of Education in 2019. He currently teaches a class on Diversity at USF and helps others to redevelop and redesign their own narrative to get them back on track.
