Robert Ford
Publisher of THING magazine, Robert was undoubtedly a Black intellectual. He was the creator of Think Ink and, along with Trent Adkins and Lawrence Warren, was a co-founder of THING. Ford was a writer, DJ, publisher, advocate, and cultural documentarian based in Chicago. In addition to working as the creative director of Rose Records from 1982 to 1990 and publishing THING, he contributed articles to publications such as Babble and Planet Roc.
Ford saw himself more as a “documentarian” than as a leader in the gay and African American communities. He believed that being a leader meant actively approaching a defined goal. But being a documentarian meant not being able to promise what may happen to those who might follow him, “but anyone is welcome to come along for the ride.”
Robert Ford passed away at the age of 32 on October 4, 1994, due to AIDS-related complications. His friends and family preserved his work and contributed it to the Chicago History Museum in 1995.
Larry Warren
Larry was always smiling and could quote so many Black authors your head would spin. He was our quick-witted James Baldwin! Three things Larry loved: being Black, gay, and Black men in general. Larry passed in December 2016 due to complications of diabetes.
Trenton Adkins
A man of many talents, Trenton was a creative spirit and the influencer of our time. He wore many hats, including makeup artist, fashion stylist, fashion editor, writer, motivational speaker, etc. A natural in any setting, Trenton was a social butterfly in many different spaces and knew a lot about everything. If you sat next to him, there was no topic he couldn’t broach. Always ahead of his time, he could spot the trends and pluck out what it was that we should all be paying attention to. Trenton passed from complications of AIDS in 2007.