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![Self portrait of Emanuel Frowner wearing a rainbow tank top with the word "PROUD" written on it. He is looking at the camera and smiling. Text reads: For this reason, Byron was overprotective of Emanuel, not letting him play with other people because he thought his son would get injured easily. At school, unfortunately, this was a reality. Although Emanuel had such honors as being named student of the month, he was bullied by other students and teachers for being different. Eventually, his father had to homeschool Emanuel from sixth grade until completing his GED in 2000. Byron was against the curriculum being taught at the school, too, especially the content in history books. Another reason Emanuel was homeschooled is that Byron did not wish for his son to be diagnosed with a disability. Having a label meant having to take special ed classes, which would hinder Emanuel's chances to grow academically. He also didn't want Emanuel's brilliance and sensitivity to be overlooked just because he thought and acted differently from others. Emanuel's father loved him and wanted him to be happy and excel in whatever he set out to do, and homeschooling turned out to be a blessing. "Being homeschooled helped me excel academically," Emanuel said. "It also helped me develop a strong work ethic, and it helped me to think outside the box." Perhaps Emanuel's most significant life challenge is connecting with the people around him. He had trouble making friends, especially during his time as a student at both Bronx Community College and St. John's University. He tells us that he had one childhood friend, a student called Jonathan, from elementary school. They would hang out at Emanuel's place to play video games and sometimes go to Knicks games together. However, as they got older, they drifted apart until they never spoke again. Emanuel told us recently, "I had to learn things on my own without my folks giving me unwanted advice on stuff like that. I have also had to end a few friendships and cut some people off because I had my autonomy taken from me by others trying to control me, which is not healthy for me." However, he adds more positively, "I made a few new friends along the way in part because I am in the process of unmasking myself and have set a few healthy boundaries and [am] working on myself." Throughout his life, he knew he was different. But his father dismissed it whenever Emanuel tried to talk to Byron about this. He would tell Emanuel to stop worrying so much about it, that no one wanted to hear Emanuel's problems, and not to focus on himself so much.](https://assets-global.website-files.com/6089c2fc60760268a67c4d0f/65f77de1f454717c9ec21ff1_64d6b9d534cd231e1bc61352_2.jpeg)
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Re-Route Magazine is a project of Alora Farm, a 501(c)(3)public charity.