20 Facts About Emanuel Xavier

Emanuel Xavier was raised by his mother and her live-in boyfriend, who was separated from his wife but remained married throughout the years.

Emanuel Xavier was never told anything about his real father.

Emanuel Xavier grew up in Bushwick in the 1970s, at a time when it was mostly an immigrant community made up of Puerto Ricans, blacks and some Italians.

Emanuel Xavier was bused during a time to a mostly white elementary school in Queens where he experienced racism.

Emanuel Xavier survived the streets as an underage male prostitute at the Christopher Street West Side Highway piers and became involved with the House of Xtravaganza and the 1980s ball scene.

Emanuel Xavier moved to the West Village and became a drug dealer at New York City gay nightclubs.

Emanuel Xavier has said that he viewed poetry as an "outlet to unleash pain and anger".

Emanuel Xavier self-published the poetry chapbook, Pier Queen in 1997.

In 2002, Emanuel Xavier hosted the 14th annual Lambda Literary Awards ceremony at the Tribeca Rooftop on DesBrosses Street in Tribeca.

Emanuel Xavier appeared in the Wolfgang Busch documentary How Do I Look and co-starred in the feature film The Ski Trip.

Emanuel Xavier was selected as a featured speaker for TEDx Bushwick on March 21,2015.

Emanuel Xavier filmed for a documentary from Spain which included poets from around the world.

Emanuel Xavier helped organize the first After Sunset: Poetry Walk at The High Line with The Academy of American Poets.

Emanuel Xavier has performed a rendition of his poem "Americano" with Grammy Awards nominated Latin jazz musician, Bobby Sanabria.

Emanuel Xavier appeared as part of the Geraldine R Dodge Poetry Festival in October 2024.

Emanuel Xavier announced on social media that he has completed a screenplay based on his 1999 novel, "Christ Like," and a memoir.

Emanuel Xavier shared a new poem about gun control, and after criticism, he was uninvited back as a speaker.

In October 2005, Emanuel Xavier was brutally gay-bashed by a group of about 20 young men in the Bushwick area of Brooklyn.

Emanuel Xavier recovered from the paralysis; however, he became deaf in his right ear In 2015, he announced on his personal website that the acoustic neuroma had returned.

Emanuel Xavier is the recipient of a Gay City Impact Award and the Marsha A Gomez Cultural Heritage Award.