“The Real Housewives of Potomac” star Gizelle Bryant is opening up about how she continues to honor her late father, Curtis Graves, following a lengthy legal dispute over his estate.
During season 11, Bryant visited the United States Capitol with representatives from the National Brain Tumor Society to advocate for additional funding for brain tumor and brain cancer research.
The visit came more than three years after Graves, a former Texas state representative and civil rights activist, died in July 2023 at age 84 following a brain cancer diagnosis.
“My dad died so suddenly that I didn’t really know how to handle it, outside of just trying to do things in his honor,” Bryant said during a confessional in the show’s fourth episode.
Bryant also discussed her father’s continued influence on her life.
“I definitely feel my father’s presence,” she said. “I know that he’s with me. I know that he’s proud. I’m gonna tell my story, and hopefully, we can get more funding, so that less people have to die of brain tumors and brain cancer.”
The appearance follows Bryant’s revelation earlier this year that a judge had ruled against her in a legal battle involving her father’s will.
Gizelle Bryant’s Father Curtis Graves Was a Civil Rights Leader and Texas Politician
Graves was born in New Orleans in 1938 and grew up in a family involved in politics and civil rights advocacy.
According to his obituary, his childhood home frequently welcomed attorneys and activists, giving him an early introduction to the civil rights movement.
In a 2015 interview with Texas Monthly, Graves recalled growing up around prominent figures in the movement.
“I came up in a political Black family in New Orleans… my father was always involved with the N.A.A.C.P. and civil rights,” Graves said. “Thurgood Marshall slept in my bed while I slept on the couch — that’s a fact!”
Graves attended Xavier University of Louisiana before transferring to Texas Southern University, where he earned a business administration degree in 1963.
He participated in sit-ins and helped establish the university’s Progressive Youth Association.
Graves later served in the Texas House of Representatives from 1967 to 1973, becoming one of the first Black lawmakers elected to the chamber since Reconstruction.
According to the Legislative Reference Library of Texas, he served three terms as a Democrat.
During his time in office, Graves advocated for increasing the minimum wage, reducing taxes on food, and encouraging adoptions involving minority children and children with disabilities.
He also worked alongside Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
Bryant previously shared a photograph of her father with King on X during Black History Month.
“Love this,” she wrote. “Proud daughter!”
The RHOP Star’s Father Spent 30 Years Working for NASA
After leaving the Texas Legislature, Graves relocated his family to Washington, D.C.
He subsequently joined NASA, where he spent approximately 30 years working in educational programs and public affairs.
According to his obituary, Graves served as director of educational programs and later director of public affairs before retiring in 2003.
He moved to Tucker, Georgia, where he remained active in community organizations and continued pursuing photography.
Graves also served on boards connected to La Creole and Whitney Plantation.
His obituary described his love of entertaining family and friends.
“At home, they hosted big parties, with Curtis cooking barbecue, gumbo, and spiked bread pudding for 30,” the obituary stated. “Like his mother, grandmothers, and aunts before him, he was a great Creole cook.”
Graves received a brain cancer diagnosis on July 10, 2023, and died less than two weeks after undergoing surgery.
Bryant confirmed his passing in a July 20 Instagram tribute featuring photos with her father and her daughters, Grace, Angel and Adore.
“Thank you for being the best Dad that a little girl could ever want or need,” she wrote. “I will miss you every day of my life.”
Gizelle Bryant Revealed Painful Court Decision in Dispute Over Father’s Will
Bryant’s efforts to preserve her father’s legacy also became part of a legal dispute involving his estate.
During RHOP season 9, Bryant explained that she was challenging a will allegedly signed shortly before Graves died.
She questioned whether her father had been capable of signing the document and sought to have it invalidated.
“He had a will that we think somebody threw in the trash can,” Bryant told her daughters on the show. “The last week that he was alive, supposedly he signed a will. He didn’t sign it. He didn’t have the capacity to hold a pen.”
During the season 10 reunion in February 2026, Bryant revealed that the court had ruled in favor of her father’s widow.
“The issue was: Was I gonna be the benefactor, or was his wife gonna be the benefactor?” Bryant told host Andy Cohen.
“And after two years of going back and forth, the judge finally rendered a verdict. The judge sided with her, which was very painful.”
Bryant also addressed claims that the dispute was primarily about money.
“The money is not the issue,” she said. “The issue is my father was a very prominent civil rights leader. So, there are things that he had possession of that are a part of his legacy and his relationships with other civil rights leaders.”
She added, “All of that is very important to him for his grandchildren to have and to pass on to their children.”
RHOP Star Gizelle Bryant Makes Heartfelt Confession About Her Dad After Losing Legal Battle