March 2019
This
was an uplifting month. Hanging out in Harlem with two of my favorite people in
the world was priceless. Paola, Lidice and I walked around and took it all the
black love in the space. We spent time at the Schoomburg Library and had a
delicious southern meal for lunch. We were in NY for the 63rd
Session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women and Girls.
This
would be another collaborating year with Sistren Imani who always includes the
voice of black women from Latin America and the Caribbean. Our panel was
called, Reckoning: The Visible Invisibility of Global African Women.
This
year we had our new RMAAD General Coordinator my dear hermana Paola, our
Central American coordinator, my dear hermana Lidice and our fearless Brazilian
coordinator who on the main floor the day before called out the Brazilian
government for having a role in the murder of Marielle Franco. It was powerful!
We shared our truth which left folks in awe of a truth they did not know of.
March
also placed in my space that always confirms the importance of our work. For
the past few years I do an ‘Unmasking identity’ training with the young women
of the CHICA project. We always laugh, cry and leave grounded in the freedom to
embrace our full identity. It keeps getting better! Looking forward to next
year.
April 2019
April 2019
April 2019
April
was a month of balance. The first event of the month was about love and arts.
Bunker Hill Community College had an event celebrating my poetic mentor, Baba
Askia Toure.
I
have been blessed to follow Baba Askia around, sit with him and learn about his
scholar activist and poetic journey. He has shaped the way I approach poetry. I
was honored to share this out loud with others as we celebrated him. It was
truly a treat to read to him and to share the impact he has had on me that goes
beyond poetry.
Thank
you Baba Askia for all that you do and for taking the time to share your wisdom
with me.
The
month ended with what I am calling, ‘Renaming the Narrative’ moment. I was
invited to be the Keynote speaker at Harvard University’s Afro Dominican
Association Inaugural event, “Afro-Latinidad: Exploring African Heritage in
Latinx Cultures.”
For
the first time with great intention I spoke publicly or distancing myself from
using the term, Afro-Latina. I have arrived at this place after many years
wanting to be seen in a space that would never see me because it leans on
whiteness and highlights white supremacy. I know why I will use it politically
and when I will use it but it is not the term that best describes my journey or
who I am as an individual. I posed it as a question and a challenge to other
speakers, How many of you can say, Black, Negro, African and not hyphenate it? Many
had to pause and reflect on the question. By posing the question and thinking
about it, then you can move closer to answering the question, what table am I
working to be invited to and why?
It
was wonderful to share the space with many of the younger voices of the
movement. I left grounded in my ‘unapologetically black’ light and hopeful for
the future of the movement.
Here
is a wonderful piece written by one of the presenters at the conference and one
of the reasons I am very hopeful that our truth will be told. Gracias Janel!
Much admiration!
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