“Living in My Skin” Documentary Depicts Lives of 33 Black Men and Boys in San Antonio

A new documentary, titled Living in My Skin, shares the stories of 33 people who range in age from 10-to-90-years-old, chronicling life as a Black man or boy in San Antonio, TX.

The two-part documentary, which debuted on Tuesday, Feb. 2 on KLRN's website, was made by co-executive producers Brandon Logan and Seymour Battle, Bank of America and Valero Energy Foundation serving as its main sponsors, and was directed by Lionel Sosa.

The film aims "to get people to have a better understanding of each other," and points out that "the Black population of San Antonio is only 7 percent, yet it hosts the largest MLK march in the nation. Additionally, 63 percent of our citizens are Hispanic, making us a majority-minority city. Many perceive San Antonio to be culturally enlightened and highly evolved. Is it?"

Logan says that a pivotal moment in his life as a Black boy in San Antonio was when he was called the n-word by a police officer.

"That was the moment that I realized there was much more to my story that I didn’t know about," Logan said. "So it’s important, considering the times we’re living in now, to be intentional with raising the conversation around the Black male experience."

"The ugliest underbelly of America is rearing itself. And there is a real fight for the soul of this country. And that is why I thought it was important for us in San Antonio to identify men from varied backgrounds to share their story.”

Both Battle and Logan are hoping their efforts with the documentary and art exhibit will bring about change.

"If this exhibit reaches one person, if it reaches one heart, if it changes one mind or makes one person empathetic, then the goal of this project is reached. Because that’s what we want to do: reach one person at a time,” Battle said.

Living in My Skin is available on KLRN’s website. Check out an interview with the co-executive producer Brandon Logan.