A Black colleague from the LGBTQ community said recently that at least folks know how to celebrate #Pride.
It really made me think. It’s not like the LGBTQ community does not have to fight bias and discrimination on a daily basis. Still, it seems like that as a community they make a conscious decision to celebrate the wins, at least for 30 days.
The Black community may have only 28 days, but that’s still 672 hours in which to take pride in how far we’ve come, in what we’ve already overcome. To really celebrate, I hope we can catch the #pride spirit next February and celebrate the wins. March 1st, we can go back to singing We Shall Overcome and Glory. But how about we relish, for example, Black Wall Street before the angry white mob burned it to the ground? How about we celebrate how many patents Granville T. Woods had (60!) for inventions recognized by Thomas Edison, Alexander Graham Bell and companies like Westinghouse? How about we celebrate Simone Biles and UCLA’s fabulous gymnasts integrating culturally relevant music and movements into their routines? What about finding those old photos of our grands and great-grands in fine Jazz clubs in Harlem, Chicago, D.C. and yes, even on the chitterling circuit in the South? And what about, not confining that pride to those 28 days in winter?
If you have ever been to a #pride event, it often feels a lot more like Brazilian Carnival than an ode to Stonewall, although each has its place. I want that for the Black community too!
The #tulsaburning was NOT the main idea of Greenwood’s story.
This week my ask is, as you learn about Black moments history, look for the joy and achievement, those moments that often get lost as we talk about the struggle, oppression and the many, many horrific lynchings and burnings. You may have to dig a bit, because the search engines are still not so full of artifacts, but places like Blackpast.org or History.com are good places to start and there’s treasure there.
Note: Welcome to Summer!! After a year to beat all years, I’m on vacation–sort of! Be on the lookout for SmallBites summer #shorts on YouTube & co., as well as the regular Monday podcast and mini-blog, #SmallBites Lagniappe, on Apple, Spotify or your favorite podcast platform. If you miss me too much, feel free to contact me for fall PD or consulting.
Look for SmallBites Live again in August with lots of back to school fanfare!