Reunion – The Dream City Podcast, Episode 3

Adrielle Grant recalls the day his mother kicked him out. “That’s when she told me, ‘you can’t live in this house, cuz I don’t want no gays in this house.’ Then she said she would kiss her mother’s grave if she if she knew I was gonna be gay.”

Adrielle was one of thousands of homeless, young, gay immigrants in New York City when he told his story to Fi2W’s Von Diaz in 2011.   Today, as the city faces a deepening homeless crisis, Adrielle’s life offers a ray of hope.  Not only is he no longer homeless, Adrielle, who now goes by the name Leroy, has his own apartment and is in college studying to be a social worker.

Von and Leroy recently got together with Dream City producer Jocelyn Gonzales to talk about the making of that original story and Leroy’s journey since then, including a reunion with his mother.

Listen to earlier episodes of the Dream City podcast – In a Cairo State of Mind and Mona Escapes.

Fi2W is supported by the David and Katherine Moore Family Foundation, the Ralph E. Odgen Foundation, and the Nicholas B. Ottaway Foundation.  

AboutVon Diaz

Von Diaz is a writer and radio producer based in New York City. She is a self-taught cook who explores Puerto Rican food, culture, and identity through memoir and multimedia. Her work has been featured on NPR, American Public Media, StoryCorps, WNYC, PRI’s The World, BuzzFeed, Colorlines, and Feet in 2 Worlds. Von has an M.A. in journalism and Latin American and Caribbean studies from New York University. A graduate of Agnes Scott College, she earned a B.A. in Women’s Studies and focused her research on women in Latin America. She is a currently a producer at StoryCorps, and previously worked in community advocacy and communications for nonprofits focused on women, children, art, and Latino culture.