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ELI ROGERS

AGE: 24 LOCATION: GRAND RAPIDS, MI

CURIOSITY: Women of a different ethnicity or race

Eli is an aspiring rapper who will stop at nothing to become a successful artist. He’s the definition of the underdog: struggling and hustling to support his family and realize his dream. Eli lives with his girlfriend Brittney and their 15-month-old son, Xavier. Brittney and Eli have been together for 3 years but what started as a blissful romance has since started to turn stale and tense. A major point of conflict in their relationship is Brittney’s lack of support and understanding of Eli’s career. Eli feels like Brittney is negative, unsupportive and unaffectionate. At times, he feels like the only reason they are still together is because of their son. Eli is hesitant to leave her because he does not want to destroy the family they have built. 

Growing up in the suburbs of Grand Rapids, Eli was surrounded by white people. He has only dated Caucasian women his entire life.  Additionally, the type of women he has dated have been materialistic and narrow minded about his career choice. Eli admits that he has never felt accepted in the “hip hop” community and never truly at home in the conservative, Caucasian suburbs. Eli is curious about dating an African American or Muslim woman. He is extremely curious to learn about different religions and see if a woman with a significantly different ethnicity, upbringing and perspective could be a more positive, and healthy fit for him. Although he’s interested in exploring his curiosity he’s worried about damaging his relationship with Brittney and disrupting their family unit. Eli needs to consider his son in this equation. Eli hopes to learn who and what else there is beyond the confines of his suburban life.