Nate Parker

We all serve a purpose. My purpose isn't to be rejected. My purpose isn't to think small or to be introverted. This door closed is literally pushing me to the next door.

I immediately felt the need, back when I was a managing tech engineer, to attach myself to Nat Turner. And to research him and learn about him and try to find ways into his life that I could apply to my life.

Women have been such an important part of my life. I try, every day, to be a better father to my daughters and a better husband.

I, for one, believe that partisanship should have nothing to do with the actions of Christ. You're either Christlike, or you're not.

The crazy thing is a lot of people - a lot of men, if I'm just speaking for myself - don't really start thinking about the effect of hyper-masculinity and false definitions of what it means to be a man until you get married or until you have kids. Because then, all of sudden, you have something to protect.

The black community is my community - the LGBT community, too, and the female community. That is my community. That's me; it's who I am.

I do believe, as a person of color, the disparities are great. A lot of the roles that were sent to me were 'Gangbanger No. 1.' And when a role did come up that I felt carried and represented my community in the best ways, I wasn't the only one that knew it existed. So I'd have to compete.

I coach a high school wrestling team and a middle school team. I consider myself a coach and an activist, so I'm really involved in the community.

Identify your niche and dominate it. And when I say dominate, I just mean work harder than anyone else could possibly work at it.