Max MM
MM is the Roman numeral denoting million. Clever right?
Maximilian Hill
My Story:
First, I want to thank you for taking the time to come and visit my website. It will serve as a variety of purposes, the most immediate being sharing my Thomas J. Watson Journey with you all. This website will also function as a gallery for my photography—both film and digital— as well as having a professional angle, housing my resume.
So let's start with the Watson Fellowship. It is a one-year grant for purposeful, independent exploration outside the United States, awarded to graduating seniors. I was selected as a fellow in 2020, but the COVID-19 pandemic made it impossible for international travel. The foundation allowed me to defer the fellowship for up to three years, and after graduating with a Master’s in Public Policy from the University of Michigan (Go Blue!), I embarked on my Journey on August 28th, 2022. The first stipulation of the fellowship is that you design and carry out a project that is important to you; the second is that a fellow must remain outside U.S.for an entire year.
My project is titled Black Masculinity and Martial Arts. For the duration of the year, I will be in Thailand practicing Muay Thai, followed by Senegal, studying Laamb Wrestling or La Lutte, while in Brazil I will be learning Jiu Jitsu and Capoeira, in the Dominican Republic I will box, and lastly in JamaicaI will be learning Sambo. Long-story-short, the motivation behind my project is when my twin brother and I got jumped in the seventh-grade. In a culture of pride, tradition demanded that we retaliate and repay the offense. We didn’t. We, well let me speak for myself, I was scared. I was twenty-three at the time I conceived this project, and even at that age carried shame for the fear I had back then. It’s led to me overcompensating with bravado, tattoos, and women all in effort to keep me feeling like a man, like I was safe.
Using Jesus as the paradigm for masculinity, I’ve learned to deconstruct a lot of the harmful stereotypes I’ve associated with being a man. However that is an intellectual understanding, one that is based in word not necessarily in deed. Through this project, I will apply the knowledge gained through my faith. You see, becoming a great martial artist is not the intention of this project, it is just a vehicle or conduit for me to study masculinity in all its different forms and cultural expression. I have two goals for this year. The first is to learn ways to dismantle the passive/aggression dichotomy I feel most black men internalize; creating a confidence based in composure and not reaction. The second is to gain a tool-kit for creating genuine relationships with young men and boys that I then can take back home to use for friendships as well as mentorships
I believe healthy men, spiritually, emotionally, and physically healthy men are important to the community—it’s bedrock or foundation.I want to use the experiences I gain during this year to pour into other men, at work, in my church, at the gym, wherever I put down roots. As of right now, it’s looking like Metro Detroit will be home upon my arrival and I’m excited for the opportunities to serve the men of the city in whatever capacity I can.
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