Nov 06, 2009  |  By: Staff & Wire Reports  | COMMENTS     

Brian Watson, 28, got involved with gay activism almost by accident. The Oklahoma City, Okla., native was living in Philadelphia, where he’d been going to college, and found a job working for the Colours Organization, a black gay group in Philly.

“It was just the first place I heard back from,” he says. He started dating a guy from Washington and ended up meeting the late Wanda Alston at a Nancy Wilson concert in New York. He soon moved to the District for a job opportunity with the Carl Vogel Foundation. Soon after moving he joined a mayoral gay advisory committee and that was his entry into D.C. LGBT activism.

Watson started working with Transgender Health Empowerment three years ago and has led the organization through the establishment of a homeless center for local LGBT youth named in Alston’s honor. Watson is dating someone but says it’s not serious. “At least not as serious as I’d like,” he says with a laugh. Watson lives in D.C.’s Petworth neighborhood. He loves shopping for shoes, dining out, traveling and attending plays and concerts.

How long have you been out and who was the hardest person to tell? I have been out since my senior year in high school. My godmother. She basically raised me and is very religious so she didn’t take it well and still doesn’t discuss it.

Who’s your gay hero? All the gay activists who came before me and made it easy for me to be me.

What is Washington’s best nightspot, past or present? The Edge/Wet. When I moved to D.C. it was the first place I went to and I used to hang out there a lot.

If gay marriage were legal, would you tie the knot? I think gay marriage should be legal and an option for people. I don’t think I’ll ever get married, but I’m open to it. 

What non-gay issue are you most passionate about? I think all issues are gay issues since we are human beings and live our lives just like anyone else. But breast cancer, my aunt recently passed away from it.

What historical outcome would you change? AIDS

What has been the most memorable pop culture moment of your lifetime? Pedro Zamora on MTV’S “Real World.” I didn’t know other gay people existed or even much about AIDS until that show.

On what reality TV show would you fare best? “Real Housewives of Atlanta” because I need to show them a gay man who looks good without a pair of heels on.

What item of clothing has been in your closet since high school? A baseball cap I used to wear with the marching band. I was drum major so I kept it.

If your life were a book, what would the title be? “You Think You Know But You Have No Damn Idea”

If science discovered a way to change sexual orientation, what would you do? Say it was a conspiracy to get rid of us all.

What do you believe in beyond the physical world? There has to be a something out there behind this. You live a life and go through all the crap we go through, so there has to be a God and a heaven. That’s what gets me through the hard days.

What would you order for your last meal? Soul food definitely. Chicken, mac and cheese, collard greens and cornbread.

What would you walk across hot coals for? A cute pair of shoes.

What gay stereotype annoys you most? That all gay men know how to do hair and makeup.

What is the best gay film ever made? “The Color Purple” was actually a gay movie it’s just usually in the wrong section. Every gay man can quote it by heart.

What is the most overrated social custom? Marriage — it’s too much money and fuss.

What trophy or prize do you most covet? I honestly can’t say I have one. Every time I get one, I put it on my wall.

What’s your advice for gay teens? Be yourself but remember you have to be better than everyone else because you will be judged 10 times harder or be 20 times better.

Why Washington? Why not? It has so many opportunities for everyone. It’s been very good to me at least.