Socialization: A Way To Heal From Soul Trauma

Since the early 17th century, the people of African descent have an unsettled debt beyond an agricultural and economic remuneration. The psychological, social and emotional damage that has occurred due to the continual systemic assault on Black identity, Black bodies, and Black life; it must be assessed and repaired. It is necessary to recognize the value in the original African ways of being and the indigenous social practices of both African people and the descendants of African people in that assessment and repair. In the African worldview, there is no separation of the sacred and secular such that their spiritual being inextricably connected to the physical, mental, and emotional well-being of the person and community.

ChristianEricka ElionSeptember 12, 2019African-American, Scolarly

Using Our Past To Brighten Their Future

A true educator never really retires. A true educator continues to be unsettled by the evidence all around us that there is much work yet to be done. The playing field for students labeled “at-risk” is still extremely uneven for numerous reasons. Now that I have retired from the “system,” I am free to be more strategic in my purpose and passion for lifting up our youth in the same spirit that others embraced and invested in me--a young girl from the projects. If we truly believe that our children are our future, then we should also believe that our lives become more meaningful when we commit some portion of our talents, gifts and wisdom to their benefit. We all have something to share. This has become my “Why”—the thing that drives me to make every moment a teachable moment. The inner voice that reminds me there is always something new to learn and pass on to someone else.

ChristianTyrenea M. SharpeSeptember 12, 2019African-American, poverty

A Shamanic Perspective on Capitalism

I was born a Ayisyen (i.e., Haitian) in Belgium. I acquired my parents' nationality, and, in many ways, I was raised as a Haitian child, too, partly in Belgium and France, partly in Senegal, moving "back" to Haiti as a young adult.

Later on, as an adult living in Ayiti, it felt natural and easy for me to dive deep into the world of Vodou ceremonies, close encounters and intimate communications with spirits, and to embrace the underlying Shamanic mindset that honors the great mystery through which everything that exists on the visible and invisible dimensions is interconnected.

This blog is about beliefs, shifting values, and resources.