JUSTNotes

“Sankofa” – an African word that comes from the Akan people of Ghana – literally means “to go back and fetch it.” In other words, we go back to our roots not to stay back, but to move forward.

Immediately I felt a warm blanket encircle me when I began reading Vernice’s emailed invitation to come, to gather with our people in Birmingham, AL for dedicated time together at sacred sites of ancestral sacrifice.

Thanks to The Church Within A Church Movements’ sponsorship, 11 Black folk are gathering in Alabama, starting in Birmingham, to visit some historical museums and events from specifically the Black experience.

June 19, 1865 – two and a half years after the Emancipation Proclamation – enslaved people in Texas were informed that they were now “free.”

My Juneteenth celebration this year was planned to bring family and community together to acknowledge our need for each other, just to survive, and to honor our ancestry that made it possible to live “free-ish” as Black folk in a country that has worked diligently to keep us second class citizens by denying us freedom and access.

June is Pride month as well as the celebration of Juneteenth. Amid all of the celebrations, I have been reflecting on liberation and freedom and their meaning.

The interview will Anna DeShawn from e3Radio & Queer News podcast is a place to be enlightened and inspired.