WELCOMING NEW LIGHT

When we recognize the root,

Oh how light the soul feels.

All parts of self, receive an equal dose of recognition.

Your footsteps become lighter,

Your dance moves instantly to the beat of the drum.

Your heart knows unconditional love.

Your skin shines from within,

You see yourself in those that stand before you, moving beyond location and class.

You feel when they appear,

The cloud opens up,

Love is unconditional,

Clarity of your journey showers you,

All this when we recognize the root,

Giving thanks to the shoulders we stand on,

Oh how light the Soul feels

(Inspired by the young men of the HIS Project and the young women of the HER Project and our recent guests, Bill, Ayari, Anne and Domenic.)

The silence in my blogs is not from lack of writing but so much writing and so many stories to tell that it has been difficult to pick one. This short poem has been the Encuentro Diaspora Afro song for the past few months.

At our Black History Month event, we learned that our community needs ongoing spaces to address the internal conflict that they face every day around their identities. We have been fed a heavy dose of misinformation that gets in the way of us seeing our natural beauty or our true self in the mirror.

During our fishbowl dialogue and Q&A period, we heard the pain from the conflict of not accepting our Africanness. Many have been told that by doing so, you are going to be on the receiving end of everything bad and difficult. It is no secret in our spaces that this is deeply rooted in our psyche and will take time.

Many are forced to address their identity based on color of skin or by being parents to children who will have different experiences. What we know for sure is that we continue to be faced with the reality that saying I am black, I am an Afrodescendent, is a process. It is time to remove all the "different kind of black" that pull us apart.

The messages at home and from society have created a block to see race and ethnicity as two separate entities that can come together and uplift the soul. We need to get to a place that says, you do not need to deny any part of yourself. We need to understand that light skin, trigueño, and all the many terms we can reach for before Black, does not mean you are not an Afrodescendent.

The young men and the young women of the HIS and HER project are taking us on a journey that has our minds going a mile a minute and keeps us expanding and reaching for more.

We are faced with the reality that there is Pain in the exchange and we cannot lift it all. It is important to be patient of their process. There is joy when they arrive and see the light on their own. When the light shows up or as some say that aha moment showers them, what a beautiful sight it is.

During our Tree activity two of our girls learned that they might be related. Another one of our girls found out she has Chinese heritage. At the end of our Tree dialogues we invited community leaders to come in and share their family story. To see the excitement in the youths faces when they made the connection to a presenter was priceless.

They struggled with the visual of Ayari, a Puerto Rican, Mexican activist, being 'light skinned' and saying I am an Afrodescendent. One of the girls asked her directly, ' How do you know?' 'How did you get there?' When Ayari passed a drum around to speak about Bomba y Plena from Puerto Rico one of the girls went into one of the deepest explanations of Palo that I have witnessed. When she finished we all looked at her with a, 'tu eres Afrodescendiente', look. I kept saying to myself, the drums don't lie.

Anne and her Afro Dominican pride put the exclamation point at the end of this dialogue. The fact that she came to the US at the age of some of the girls, did not speak much English, and went through the Boston Public School system and went to Simmons College on a full scholarship was an extra, Aha moment for a few of the girls.

Bill Willis, Executive Producer, Writer of the film, 'The Last Shot' brought to light the importance of loyalty to our young men when he spoke of the reality of the streets of Boston and how our young men can move beyond the negativity.

Bringing current issues into the space is always interesting. We did just that when we shared Lupita Nyon'go's Essence Black Women in Hollywood and Oscar speeches. We had the girls read her words out loud and also watch the video. This landed profoundly on some of the girls who struggle with being "dark skinned." The fact that this woman who won an Academy Award spoke so openly about brought a light of acceptance to these girls.

We tried something new by engaging the young men in a dialogue on Beauty. They were so excited to share their thoughts. We took this opportunity to go deeper into what is done behind the scenes to make women look a certain way and the dangers of holding the women around them, their classmates, to those standards.

Allowing new light to come into the lives of these young people and our community has revealed the need to create more spaces and to try new things that make it feel safe to speak from the heart, and builds unity.

As you know, I always have a question for us to sit with, in the hope that we as a community can reach for the answer together. How do we continue to unmask the impact of colonialism? How do we dismantle the long term impact of the 'Willie Lynch Letter.'

Staying on this road is no easy task, but we believe we are where they want us to be and we believe in those who guide us. That light that we reach for allows us to see a truth and an unconditional love that is my greatest hope for Our People.

I hope you know my pen is always to the paper and I will be back soon to share more of this journey with you.

In peace, love and light,

Yvette

A Revolutionary Compass for 2014

A Revolutionary Compass for 2014

Happy New Year familia!

I hear the word revolutionary a lot. Most times it is used in a way that seems, odd or negative. For 2014 I would like to claim it as a word that implies our act to love ourselves unconditionally and reach for what is rightfully ours.

In 2013 I wrote about searching and reaching beyond the words written in the books that do not speak our truth. I shared the words of Mrylie Evers Williams from her Inaugural address, “their spirit infuse our being to work together with respect, enabling us to continue to build this nation, and in so doing we send a message to the world that we are strong, fierce in our strength, and ever vigilant in our pursuit of freedom.”

I wrote about my beloved Colon, dedicated one of my Reflections to my Papa, one of the Silver men, and shared my thoughts on my trip to the Dominican Republic and Nelson Mandela. It was a year of reaching for truth.  For 2014 we hope to continue on this path by highlighting a few areas.

The first is of great organizational and collective interest. It is the Dominican –Haitian conflict. I truly believe this is our compass. This is the compass, for Afro descendents to know if we are moving in the direction of prosperity, for all.  If we cannot get a people to see that this act is far from just a migration issue but of a deeply rooted conflict of black identity, then we are in conflict as a whole of our blackness beyond the color of our skin.

The other is the work with the young men of the HIS (Hermanos is Solidarity) Project and the young women of the HER (Hermanas Exchanging Roots) Project. These young people have touched the very core of my soul. Sitting with them every week has confirmed that our compass took us to the right place.

They confirm the need to address the first issue as most are Dominicans and are struggling with the message they have heard for years, their personal experiences and their journey to awareness as they sit with us week after week.

My heart is heavy when they say; Ms. Being black in DR is not easy. My heart is heavy when I hear their dislike, towards Haitians without any real exchange with a Haitian. My heart is heavy when they do not know they are black based on skin color or roots. This is deep familia, and this is our future if we don’t address the direction of this compass.

We need to re root the direction of our compass to face the truth, address the misinformation of history and truly embrace who we are.

The final area is my ever beating heart of areas. This is the ongoing fire to uplift my home community of Colon. Although in a state of crisis, I still wake up believing that the compass will direct us, not to the Colon of the past but a Colon of the future that will have an inclusive voice, a Colon that will benefit from the richness it creates but is denied to retain.

Embracing our full self is not an easy journey but let us all give it a Revolutionary try for 2014. A compass is about forward motion in the right direction to successfully reach your destination.

For 2014 our wish is for a revolutionary compass that will uplift our righteous crown and direct our heart to love the face in the mirror and the face that reminds you of your abuelo/a, tia/o.

Let us look in the same direction, a direction that will say success in Dominican Republic means success in Haiti. Success in Colon means success in Colombia. Success in Boston means success in South Africa. Let us direct our youth to a place of internal healing that will transfer to a positive self image. That will be our Revolutionary compass, the Revolutionary act to be Negro y Orgulloso.

 In light and peace,

Yvette

 

What Nelson Mandela means to this Panamanian, Black Zonian child

What Nelson Mandela means to this Panamanian, Black Zonian child


Since Nelson Mandela became ill, I began reflecting on when I first learned about him and his journey to Freedom.
...
I then remembered the very moment. It was in the 8th grade when I wrote a Social Studies paper on Apartheid.

My reflecting led me to think of why his fight was more than just for South Africa then and now. His fight/journey was for all people of African descent and for those who believe in peace and justice. His journey was definitely for this child from Panama who understood the depth of his act.

I grew up in Jim Crow imposed laws. My community was segregated and we were the Majority, that is what Apartheid looks like.

I understood him because he gave me another name to define my story.
Many Blacks died in Panama fighting this reality. Many Panamanians fought and died fighting the concept and construct that they could not walk in streets of the American territory that was smaller than an entire country.

To celebrate Mandela's life is to celebrate what Freedom should be yet it has not been attained by the Majority around the world.

The pain is felt all over the world and deeply by this Panamanian, Black Zonian child who still walks around with the thought, how did we not go to the Skating Rink until the communities where intergrated, it was right around the corner from Rainbow City.

As I reflect more on what this has meant to me, I think that segregation helped me in many ways to see what Black sacrifice , Black Unity and Black Love looks and feels like.

As an activist who stands for many of the same issues, he means more to me today. His lessons are many and in sharing these thoughts, his greatest in this moment is Forgiveness.

Speaking truth is to be Free. To be free in mind and heart is to be willing and able to forgive. I forgive and love, as I cherish that segregated and integrated community.

Madiba is our loss. A loss to all who can see right from wrong within their own complicated story. Because of him, I know I chose the right side.

He is a physical loss. He is what sacrifice for your people, sacrifice for truth, is.

I know he will be received by the ancestors in a joyous loving way because it is his time to rest.

Rest in Peace Madiba. Thank you for opening the eyes of this Panamanian, Black Zonian child. Thank you for loving me.

Fist up!

Alaafia

In truth and peace,
Yvette

 

Yes I believe it; Racism is Alive

Yes I believe it; Racism is Alive

“Usted se parece a una, Reina India.’ ‘Gracias, pero yo soy una Reina Africana.’

I have been sitting with this Reflection for more than a week as I worked through my emotions from recent events and my trip to Santo Domingo.

My opening line was my exchange with the waiter at breakfast, my first morning in Santo Domingo. As I sat with other hermanas from the Red de Mujeres Afrolatinamericanas, Afrocaribeñas y de la Diaspora, with my African dress and head wrap, he looked at me and called me an Indian Queen and I had to correct him and say, Thank you, no, I am an African Queen.

In understanding what this exchange means to the country I was sitting in, I believe what is happening with the Dominican Republic Constitutional Court ruling and what happened to 7 year old Jakiyah McKoy, tells us, racism is alive.

Jakiyah McKoy, lost her crown in the Little Miss Hispanic Delaware contest when her parents could not provide proof that she was ‘at least one-quarter Latina.’  The family states that her grandparents were Dominican.

After seeing the picture of this beautiful young girl, most who know of the racial identity crisis in the Latino community, knew this happened because Jakiyah is visually an Afro Latina. I say visually because our work has taught us to not assume that those who are visually Afro Latinos identify themselves as such.

The Dominican Republic Constitutional Court ruled to “retroactively alter the criteria for citizenship under the constitution for those born to foreign parents between 1929 and 2009--a decision which could leave hundreds of thousands of Dominicans stateless.”

Both incidents bring to light an internal and external conflict that exists in the Latino community. If you know the Dominican Republic history and the use of words to identify self, then you understand why he reached for the word ‘India’ first. In 1937 Dictator Rafael Trujillo ordered the killing of 20,000 Haitians in five days. This was his response to reports that Haitians were stealing cattle and crops.

 

These incidents highlight the Racial Identity Crisis we are facing, not only in the Dominican Republic. We are struggling with the question, how do you identify, culturally and racially? When I hear folks speaking on both these stories and they ask, can you believe it. I respond without hesitation, Yes, I believe it!

When a woman in the Dominican Republic, has to fight in the courts for her ID to say ‘Negra’ because the only option she has is Morena, Blanca or India, then you believe why the Dominican Republic courts ruled in such a deeply racist way.

When 7 year old, Jakiyah McKoy’s crown was stripped from her because she could not prove she was a Latina, the crisis hit a low point. One, marking this child for life and two, saying out loud, Black is not Beautiful or Latina enough.

In our trainings and presentations we stand before those who cannot see their Blackness or identify it because many have not had the conversation. For a long time, we have been naming our racial identity as our cultural and ethnic identity and doing everything to stay away from that sentence that I stand proud to say, Yo Soy Negra, I am Black.

These deeply rooted acts of racism continue to exist in our community, in our society, it is time for all to believe that racism is alive.

Now that we got that out of the way, what are we going to do about it?

I say WE because this is not a DR-Haiti problem. It is a problem of each Afrodescendent when a country plans to remove hundreds and thousands of CITIZENS, stating it is a migration issue when, based on the history of the country and its relationship with Haiti, racism is at the core of the decision.

We need to name it people! When those who chose to act on it in such violent ways, we need to name it, loud and clear.

I just got back from Santo Domingo to participate in the Forum of Feminist Organization, Assembly of the Red de Mujeres Afrolatinoamericanas, Afrocaribeñas y de la Diaspora and the CEPAL XII Conference on Women.

On the first day of the Forum of Feminist Organizations, some of our sisters walked around with t-shirts that said, “Todos Somos Haiti, We are all Haiti.”

At the end of the Forum a statement was released supporting Dominicans of Haitian descent and the sisters in the struggle.

On the first day of the Assembly of the Red de Mujeres Afrolatinoamericanas, Afrocaribenas y de la Diaspora, our hearts and minds where on this ruling that violates the human rights of Dominican citizens.

My Diaspora presentation was dedicated to Sonia Pierre who fought very hard for this ruling to never come to fruition. She knew what the numbers would be like and she knew the impact on a community that has only called Santo Domingo home. Sonia herself would be one those affected by this horrible ruling.

As we moved through the Assembly we knew it would be important to have our voices heard. The opening of the Declaration of RMAAD states; “CONDENAMOS por unanimidad,  la desnacionalización a miles de dominicanos y dominicanas emitida en la sentencia del Tribunal Constitucional en un documento que viola principios fundamentales de los derechos humanos establecidos internacionalmente.

 

Hemos considerado que los acontecimientos ocurridos constituyen una gravísima violación de los derechos y un abuso a la población dominicana de ascendencia haitiana, la cual ha nacido y crecido en el país, no teniendo vínculos de vida con el hermano país de Haití, teniendo en cuenta que este grupo humano ha tenido que sufrir el impacto de la colonialidad, que se expresa en niveles de pobreza y fragilidad social, que afectan fundamentalmente a mujeres, la niñez y los jóvenes.”

“CONDEMN unanimously thousands of denationalization of Dominicans issued in the judgment of the Constitutional Court in a document that violates fundamental human rights established internationally.

We considered that the events constitute a serious violation of rights and an abuse of the Dominican population of Haitian descent which were born and raised in the country, having no living links with the neighboring country of Haiti, given that this group of people have suffered the impact of the colonialism, expressed in levels of poverty and social fragility, affecting mainly women, children and youth.”

During a down time, a few of us went to the supermarket. As we stood waiting for one of our colleagues we kept looking around. We all looked at each other with teary eyes because all we saw was Black people, beautiful Black people. All we kept saying on our way back was this is a Black Country.

This ruling is denying children an education and proper health care. This ruling is deporting a group of citizens who only know the Dominican Republic as home.

The Dominican Republic/Latino identity sentiment is also here in the US and creates a deep struggle of identity amongst our youth, who like Jakiyah, will face a hard and sad reality.

‘Negro’ is not a word used in Santo Domingo, unless in a negative way and only associated with Haitians. The other time you hear the word is by those Dominicans who are proud of their Black identity.

It is time to address this issue, time to sit and really work through the pain that we see on the faces of the young women and men that we work with in our HER and HIS Project. This issue has caused and continues to cause a deep level of pain in our community.

When one of the young girls in the HER Project shared, “Ms. It has taken me a long time to say I am black because I grew up feeling bad because it was associated with Haitians. My mother helped me when she said; there is nothing wrong with being black.”

I made a promise after Sonia made her transition that I would continue to speak up on the issues she fought so hard for. She fought for this one because this one would affect her and her children. She loved this country even though, it rejected her.

Black people everywhere should be standing with our Dominican brothers and sisters who are being treated like criminals for being Black. If we stand by without raising our voices then we are saying as a people, as a community, as a society, that we are allowing this pain to sit within and that we will turn the other cheek unless it is affecting us directly. This is about US so it is time to take care of US.

I am Haiti!!!

In peace and light,

Yvette