There is a Randall Kenan sized hole in the world, and a Randall Kenan sized hole in all our hearts. Randall was the kind of person who made you feel special—like you and him had this special thing that was just for the two of you, so it made you feel close to Randall, like you really KNEW Randall. My three things with Randall were a shared love of fried chicken (we always said we’d do a tour of NC to find the best fried chicken), flash mob videos (this was one of his favorites because the song “This Is Me” really spoke to him: https://youtu.be/4kf0TjPy93I), and justice. This last one was one that Randall lived in all aspects of his life. Justice for Black Americans. Justice for Queer people. Justice for anyone who has ever been marginalized. He wanted people to be seen and understood in all the ways that he wanted to be seen and understood, which was always apparent in everything that he wrote. The world lost a gifted writer, a compassionate teacher, a generous friend, and one of the kindest people I’ve ever had the pleasure of knowing. There is a Randall Kenan sized hole in the universe, and nothing can fill that void.