Better to Cry Now

From segregation to celebration: the remarkable journey of a gay Black trailblazer.

In Better to Cry Now: Shaping the Flow of a Gay Black Man, award-winning author and educator Geoffrey Newman shares his extraordinary life lived at the intersections of race, sexuality, and art.

Growing up in the segregated classrooms of the 1950s, Geoffrey was one of the few Black students in an all-white school. Told by teachers that he was destined to fail, he refused to accept that verdict. Through resilience, curiosity, and the transformative power of the arts, he forged a life defined not by limitation but by courage and purpose.

Geoffrey’s journey spans the discovery of his creative voice, a life in theater and performance, and a pioneering academic career that took him from pioneering drama programs at Wabash College and Howard University to becoming dean of the arts at Montclair State University.

Told with honesty, warmth, and reflective insight, this memoir explores identity, authenticity, and the lessons learned along the way. The title, inspired by his mother’s counsel —

*“Better to cry now than later”* — captures Geoffrey’s belief that vulnerability can be a source of strength and a path to self-acceptance.

Winner of the National Indie Excellence Award for LGBTQIA Non-Fiction,*Better to Cry Now* invites listeners to find resilience in adversity, joy in authenticity, and purpose in living boldly true to oneself.