William Williams’ classmates called him white boy. They left the lunch table when he sat down. Life wasn’t much better at home, where his family battled poverty, sometimes going without water or electricity and struggling to eat.
Legally blind and living with albinism, a genetic condition that robs the skin of melanin and often affects eyesight, Williams had plenty of reasons to feel down. Instead, he has turned his obstacles into stepping stones.
William, 16, credits the Disney Dreamers Academy with re-igniting his passion to start a nonprofit that teaches youth to become proficient public speakers and, one day, to become president of the United States of America.
APPLY FOR THE DISNEY DREAMERS ACADEMY TODAY! DEADLINE OCTOBER 31, 2017
“Disney Dreamers said it doesn’t matter what other people say. If you feel like this is where you want to go then you need to take your first step and put your right foot forward and achieve it,” said William, a junior at Granby High School in Norfolk, Virginia. “That’s what Disney Dreamers showed me; that I personally could push through my dreams.”
Created in 2007 with Steve Harvey and ESSENCE Magazine, Disney Dreamers Academy encourages youth to dream bigger, discover a world of possibilities and make their dreams come true. The program targets U.S. high school students, ages 13 – 19, and the experience includes a 4-day all-expense-paid trip to the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida for accepted students and one chaperone.
Students compete for participation in the program by submitting an application and essay. A panel of judges select only 100 students each year from a pool of thousands of applicants.
During the program, Dreamers participate in hands-on-workshops, mentoring, inspirational sessions, networking, special entertainment, and of course, fun at the Walt Disney World Resort’s theme parks. As an added bonus, the students also work with established professionals and celebrities relevant to their career interests.
William heard about the program years ago and looked forward to the day when he could apply. He grew up in a predominantly Black environment, where blackness meant having a dark skin complexion. It often was hard for him to accept that he was African American because he had pale skin.
“Sometimes when you keep being told that you cannot be Black because you do not look Black, sound Black, or articulate in a way that is associated with being Black, you sometimes think within yourself and say ‘Well I can’t be Black,’ and reject yourself,” said William.
Despite his challenges, William stayed focused on his academics.
When he learned he was accepted into the Disney Dreamers Academy, he danced. At the academy, he met motivational speakers, entrepreneurs and other young men who, like him, face tremendous obstacles. “It was just mind-blowing because it wasn’t something I had experienced beforehand,” William said.
His mother Jenelle Williams described the experience as magical. “He described the children of the Academy as his friends, which is a word he never used,” she said. “I noticed that he started opening up and trusting people more which is something he always resisted because he was bullied for so much of his life. It gave him an opportunity to be himself.”
William shared his poem, “I Am a Dreamer” with his fellow Academy classmates, surprising everyone when he thanked the bullies from his childhood.
All I have to say to all those kids that dragged me through the dirt and made me feel like mud is THANK YOU because if you never shattered me into a hundred million pieces, I never get the opportunity to refashion myself into being something greater. So, THANK YOU for calling me white boy every single day so that I can show this generation that complexion does not make your race, so THANK YOU.
Once he finished, many of his classmates chanted his name. Others cried. William’s poem earned him the Courage Award for the Disney Dreamers Class of 2017, and even impressed Steve Harvey, who invited William to appear on his daytime talk show. Harvey presented him with a check for $10,000 to help his family. The mogul also committed to pay for William’s college education, which may not be cheap provided he wants to attend Brown University, a private Ivy League institution in Providence, Rhode Island.
Back at home in Norfolk, William is a celebrity in his community. He speaks at churches, volunteers with the NAACP and communicates with people who have albinism motivating them to follow their dreams.
He also holds fast to his dreams of becoming president and starting a nonprofit that helps youth master public speaking. He has a venue for the program and is creating a website. One day when William has achieved his goals, he will remember that it all started with a dream, belief in himself and a program that helped him realize that anything is possible.
Do you know a teen with unlimited potential who would benefit from the Disney Dreamers Academy program? Encourage them to apply TODAY! Applications are accepted through October 31, 2017. Students must register online here. To learn more about the Disney Dreamers Academy, visit www.DisneyDreamersAcademy.com.
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