Tell me about your children.
I have 2 children; my oldest son Gene is 42 years old. I had him when I was a teenager. He is a world renowned DJ in house music and travels abroad quite often to showcase his music. He has 4 children who I love very much. My youngest son, Christopher, is incarcerated. When I talk about mandatory minimum sentencing, he’s the one I’m fighting to get home. He received a 19 year prison sentence. This is his 7th year; we hope to have him home by this October. We are looking forward to him working in the business when he comes home and me being able to back up a bit.
I know that you have been fighting for his release for a while.
I don’t condone the selling or use of drugs, but I’m totally against the sentencing that the penal system gives to Blacks, Whites and Latinos. The sentencing doesn’t tend to match the crime.
What advice would you give to up and coming designers?
When you say designers especially with the young people, they think they have to come up with something that hasn’t been done before, and that is difficult to do. You want to have sustainability in this business. You have to do things that are realistic and put quality behind it. So I don’t think they should spend a lifetime trying to find a fabric that hasn’t been invented or make a skirt that turns into a sandwich. They need to focus on a proper fit and a well constructed garment.
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You have to also realize, that some things may need to take a back seat. It’s going to have to be about you. Are you really ready to say that you are going to be “100% about me”, and let go of all the other baggage that comes with life?
Let’s talk about the Barbara Bates Foundation.
The official foundation was started in 1999 and the purpose was to make prom dresses for young ladies who were teen moms. I wanted to inspire them to stay in school and let them know that becoming pregnant did not mean the end of their life. It has expanded to include girls who are in need and custom suits for young men. After my breast cancer diagnosis in 2009, the foundation took on another light; I started working with Breast Cancer Awareness.
"Are you really ready to say that you are going to be “100% about me”, and let go of all the other baggage that comes with life?"
Barbara Bates
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