This interview is from the INDY’s Portrait of Pride series. You can read the rest of the pieces here.

If you could describe Taj to a friend in the third person, what would you say?

TAJ SCOTT: Taj is this eccentric young dude. He’s talking a lot all the time except when he’s not. He’s into fighting games, some would say to the point of obsession. He’s not a half-bad chef as well. He’s trying to learn how to skateboard but in being honest, he’s pretty bad as of right now. He’s pretty smart most of the time. Pretty big anime and manga nerd—kind of a nerd in general! Born in Durham.

What music and art are you into?

I’ve been listening to a lot of this artist called Misc—short for Miscellaneous. He does rap and hip hop in the style of MF Doom. I also love this band called OKPOP—it’s a K-Pop band. I like them, and I don’t really like K-Pop usually! It was started by a Youtuber, and he kind of stopped doing YouTube vids but they still release music. 

One of my favorite Mangas is Jujutsu Kaisen—the translation is Sorcery Fight (which doesn’t sound as cool when it’s translated in English of course). 

Who are a few people in the community who inspire you?

My mom who is super super awesome inspires me! Also, I participate in a young chess club called the Bowties Kings Chess Club, and Mr. Glenn is a pretty cool dude. One of the core tenets is effective communication with each other. We have a whole ritual where we talk about how our week has been and we meditate. It takes what could be an ordinary chess club and it expands on it.

Then there’s my mom’s friend, Mr. Derrick, who does really cool projects, photography. And I help him around the studio. He’s really cool!

What makes Durham special to you?

I love our specific community. The people who make up Durham specifically. So many amazing people and groups, it’s absurd! Not to mention the community storefronts. Things that aren’t big name brands, and they’re run by super cool people who sell super cool stuff. Downtown Durham is so beautiful at night. Durham is beautiful overall.

And I feel safe in my community. I know the subset of Durham that I participate in is very open-minded and communicative when it comes to different subjects. People aren’t afraid to say what’s on their mind and they speak up if they feel something’s not right. I would say I feel safe here. I’ve lived in Durham my whole life—as far as I’m aware. 

Do you think Durham is a good place for queer people?

I believe Durham is a very welcoming and open community. I feel like my identity has always been welcome—my Blackness and my queerness. I feel like it’s a safe space. In the parts of the community that I interact in, I feel like people are accepting. 

Just doing stuff like this INDY [interview] makes for a much more welcoming and open community, as opposed to communities where things like this conversation wouldn’t exist. At least 80 percent of the people I know fall on the queer spectrum somewhere, and I know a lot of people!

How do you define queer?

An overarching name for the LGBTQ+ community. I don’t say it that much, I usually just say whatever preference I am aware of, or I just don’t mention it. 

Queerness is special because it’s large and ever-growing. There are differences and similarities under the queer definition. This one word holds so many things under the umbrella. Two people can be attracted to the same person in different ways for different reasons and have different ways they see themselves and that person and still be under the queer umbrella in different parts of the spectrum.

If there’s a Durham kid who is queer, who may not be as comfortable with who they are, what would you tell them?

Don’t be afraid to find your community. There will always be a population and a place where queer people exist. Sometimes they may be more hidden or exposed, but don’t be afraid to go find them and connect with people who are having your same experience. People who can probably give you better advice than me. People are afraid to ask because they think they’ll react. But go a little further and maybe push yourself a little more to find the people like you.

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