I’ve learned that I still have a lot to learn

Maya Angelou

Every day in my activism journey is an opportunity to learn from the activists, scholars, and writers who came before me. While I believe we make our own way, I still seek the knowledge and strength of my elders and ancestors who paved the path while living through some of the most gruesome, violent, and inequitable times in history.

But for all the trials and tribulations my people have suffered, there is innovation, versatility, and a sense of humor only Black people possess. I carry this with me every day. I’m also carrying a, first of many, new reading list into 2021, complete with the works of inspirational Black activists and Black feminists.

• The Fire Next Time, James Baldwin
• Malcolm X Speaks: Selected Speeches and Statements
• Women, Race & Class, Angela Davis
• Sister Outsider: Essays and Speeches, Audre Lorde
• Hood Feminism, Mikki Kendall
• How to be an Antiracist, Ibram X. Kendi
• Eloquent Rage, Brittney Cooper
• The Color of Law: A Forgotten History of How Our Government Segregated America, Richard Rothstein