2024 Voice of the Voiceless Award Honorees
Leila Wills, Manuel J. Oquendo, and Pierre Stallings
CHILD USA honors Leila Wills, Manny Oquendo, and Pierre Stallings with the 2024 Voice of the Voiceless Award. The award recognizes them for using their voices to speak out for the victims of child sexual abuse and neglect in the hip-hop community.
Leila Wills is a journalist, filmmaker, and media director of an at-risk youth non-profit. Through several multimedia projects, she tells stories of struggle and highlights social justice issues, particularly the black struggle. Because of her relentless work coordinating the 2023 NYC Hip-Hop rally in partnership with CHILD USA, the NYC Hip Hop Museum omitted Afrika Bambaataa in its collection.
Manuel “Manny” J. Oquendo is a prominent community leader, activist, and entrepreneur. With over three decades of experience, Manny has been at the forefront of teaching hip-hop as a means of cultural organization for youth. Manny is a victim of Afrika Bambaataa, who came forward and reported the abuse. The hip-hop community shunned Manny; however, he is still an active hip-hop philanthropist and hip-hop leader contributing to hip-hop culture & entrepreneurship daily, nationally & internationally, regardless.
Pierre Stallings has been a member of the premier hip-hop organization, Zulu Nation, leading many youths throughout the city for over twenty years. We honor Pierre particularly for his bravery in speaking out against Afrika Bambaataa. Though Pierre is not a survivor of Bambaataa, his dedication to advocating for those who cannot speak publicly, despite backlash from the hip-hop community and Zulu Nation, is admirable.
The unfolding story of child sexual abuse in the hip-hop and rap music industries continues to make headlines, turning a spotlight on the large secret universe that exists under the glamor and glitter of the entertainment business. Names like Sean “Diddy” Combs, Rap music mogul, and Afrika Bambaataa, founder of Universal Zulu Nation, face allegations of abuse and debauchery that have rocked the black and music communities.
Leila Wills
Leila Wills, a media professional whose work has centered on black history, says she has been an activist and Hip Hop fan practically her whole life. She now works for Landmarks Illinois, developing a heritage trail of Black Panther Party Locations in Chicago.
Wills spent eight years making every effort to expose the abuse and supporting survivors, which she is still doing today through Hip Hop Stands with Survivors. “This is a loose organization of people like me, a group of supporters who have come forward to help survivors of the industry find attorneys, get information, find counselors, etc.,” she says, “and I talk with victims every day.”
In 2016, four survivors came forward with allegations of abuse by Hip Hop Founder Afrika Bambaataa. New York’s Child Victims Act provided a two-year look-back window that allowed adult survivors to sue perpetrators where the statute of limitations had run out. One survivor who remains anonymous for fear of reprisals, John Doe, filed a lawsuit that alleged Bambaataa not only repeatedly sexually abused him, but trafficked him to other men for money beginning when he was twelve years old. This case has yet to go to trial. Eleven other survivors have sought Wills out after Hip Hop Stands with Survivors was founded.
In 2019, Wills contacted CHILD USA’s Marci Hamilton to arrange an interview, as she was researching an article on his victims and wanted to learn about pathways to justice. “I was just starting out on this journey, and I believe Marci was one of the first two interviews I conducted, trying to educate myself,” Wills says. “It was then I began to truly realize the scope of this horror taking place right under our noses.”
Black male victims experience more layers of nuance than others when deciding to come forward and report the abuse, Wills believes. “Black and brown men are not coming from the same playing field as white men, which is not to diminish their pain and anguish. However, the broken homes, the low-income communities, and the lack of opportunities mean black and brown men often overcompensate with machismo to exert their manhood.
“Mass incarceration is a reality in the fabric of black peoples’ lives,” she adds. “Rape in prison is the taking of your manhood – it’s a matter of power and control. Once some of these men are released from prison, they continue on the ‘down-low,’ which is why black women post some of the highest HIV positive statistics. It makes victims of the entire community.” All of these circumstances combine to create a toxic stew that is ripe for exploitation.
Manuel J. Oquendo
Manuel J. Oquendo, who joined Bambaataa’s Zulu Nation in 1992, is a survivor who came forward and if the opportunity presents itself, is willing to testify in court. “I originally joined Zulu because it correlated and vibrated with the things I was into – martial arts, physical training, researching knowledge, knowing your roots, learning about your race and its culture,” he says. “There was fellowship and family, an awareness of unity and building on the spirit and drive of Martin Luther King and Malcom X, leaders of generations before us. Zulu also represented hip-hop culture and music. It was and is great!”
Many young men were attracted to the music and lifestyle, to the ideals of Zulu, and to the camaraderie. Then Hip Hop took over the streets; they had leaders in a group of older charismatic men in the music industry, and many joined to be part of a “family.” Wills notes survivors have told her that as they became immersed in the attention, the parties, the glamor, and the trappings of the lifestyle, the predatory behavior of the older men seemed normal.
Oquendo says survivors came forward because “we were tired of being trapped in this hidden culture and to support each other. I saw Hassan Poppy Campbell’s story, the first survivor coming forward, and had to stand up for him. Many survivors are afraid to show their faces because they are still traumatized, even years later as grown men, and relive their experience each day.” Oquendo continues, “They are afraid of repercussions, and they don’t know who to trust. Also, they and their families may be ridiculed and may bring unwanted attentions and confrontations.”
When the abuse allegations first surfaced, Oquendo was shocked by how many survivors there were and how many of the stories were similar. “We were innocent, immature adolescents with little knowledge of the predatory behavior toward teenaged boys,” he says. “We never knew how big this plague is, thinking it only happened to females. It’s an embarrassment, a feeling of shame from being bamboozled out of childhood and manhood. It takes time, but you can free yourself from it, becoming strong enough and knowledgeable enough to wipe away the pain and guilt to stand up for yourself, your children, your family, your profession, your culture and your Almighty God. There’s no room for this type of destructive manipulation to control and drain the lives of our young men and aspiring leaders!”
Oquendo is grateful to Wills for assisting him in every way possible, and credits her as a reason he came forward. “She was the only one who stood up for survivors,” he says. “I have therapy services and resources because of her help. I call on Hip Hop to stand with survivors, and survivors, know you are not alone!”
Oquendo, known in the community as Shaka Zulu King Acer, is partner in the accredited tax firm Chosen Tax Service, which provides financial services. He also operates Chosen Hip Hop with his business partner, Emanual Roman. Chosen Hip Hop serves as “an education hub that explores the intersection of hip-hop culture, are, music, financial literacy and fostering connection and understanding among diverse groups.”
“The other brothers and I are grateful for CHILD USA and its many accomplishments,” Oquendo adds. “We stand with them; we share common goals and interests for survivors. We believe the statute of limitations should be lifted entirely so other survivors can have healing and closure, and can come forward to get justice for themselves.”
Pierre Stallings
Pierre Stallings, who records and releases music as the independent hip-hop artist “Jus P”, joined the Zulu nation in 2000 when he was 18 years old, attracted to its tenets of being a strong individual in mind, body, and spirit while overcoming negatives and turning them to positives.
“When I joined, hip-hop was a powerful tool for change, for getting our messages out, and it was also a progressive outlet for pushing culture forward,” Stallings says, “and it still is a powerful force. These allegations put a stain on all founding fathers of Hip Hop and affected relationships with many long-term friends. I felt betrayed.”
Although he is not a survivor of abuse by Afrika Bambaataa, he is a strong advocate for the victims. He bravely blew the whistle to expose Bambaataa in support of the victims, knowing the backlash he could face from the Hip Hop community and The Zulu Nation organization. “Zulus around the world had no idea this was happening,” he says. “It destroyed many bonds within the organization and destroyed my respect for leadership. For Zulu to have any continuation, Afrika Bambaataa and any and all of his supporters must be held accountable for the damage they have done.”
Stallings echoes Oquendo’s sentiments that many survivors don’t come forward due to embarrassment and fear of ridicule. In addition, Bambaataa still has powerful supporters, and repercussions are problematic within the community. “The statute of limitations should be lifted,” he adds, “because it can take years for a survivor to process the abuse and feel the strength to come forward and seek justice.”
Now 47 and someone impacted by incarceration, Stallings currently works for Alliances of Families for Justice, helping families with loved ones who are in prison. He runs a mentoring program for at-risk youth in New York City, and is an active participant in a coalition working for the full restoration of voting rights to the incarcerated.
All three honorees are actively working to make more people aware of the devastation sexual abuse wreaks on black and brown communities.
“None of us is isolated,” Wills says. “We’ve all heard about ‘Chester the child molester,’ but the truth is predators can be nice, they are crafty, and you would never know that in wanting a break, or asking a neighbor or friend to take your kids for a night, you can put them in danger. Young women in our community are also being abused and trafficked, and the MeToo movement is silent.”
Wills believes the best path forward is the road of public education so that children are not left unprotected. She is grateful for the CHILD USA’s education and legal work, including planning to conduct a survey on the barriers that keep the black and brown community silent about their abuse.
“I am honored to be a part of the receiving this award, and grateful for the platform to shine a spotlight on this dark space, and to give a voice to those voiceless people that no one ever listens to,” Wills concludes.