The Grand Dragon Warning: Traveling While Black Gen X in Polk County

In 2008, I had just started my own law firm in Central Florida and was commuting daily through the quiet backroads of Polk County. One day, a young woman in my mentor’s office pulled me aside and said, “Be careful driving through that town — the Grand Dragon of the Ku Klux Klan lives there.”

That moment stopped me cold. Not because I feared what might happen, but because it revealed something deeper — that even decades after Jim Crow, the echoes of history still shape how we move through certain spaces.

In this episode, I revisit that conversation, unpack what it meant for me as a Black Gen Xer, and reflect on how generational awareness — even from those born long after the civil rights era — reminds us that history doesn’t fade just because the laws change.

Join me as I explore why awareness isn’t paranoia, why silence doesn’t equal safety, and why talking about history isn’t divisive — it’s survival.

🎧 Listen, reflect, and share this story with someone who believes history no longer matters. 💬 For exclusive reflections and bonus commentary, visit my Patreon at linktr.ee/anthonyreeves.

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