28 Days Later — OFF THE PORCH

As the 28 days come to an end for Black History Month or African American History Month, (which ever saying you prefer)……you still acknowledged the shortest month of the year as a celebration of those that survived the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade, as we acknowledge the ascribe and achieved status of Black folks that laid the foundation for us today and yesteryear.

This particular Black History Month celebration was different for me. I found myself as one of the spokespeople for an entire agency for essentially being Black. I was elected as co-chair for Peace Corps’ Employee Resource Group called Sankofa. The purpose of Sankofa is to serve as a advocacy system for African Americans within the agency. Sankofa was a great resource for me in 2015, it made my transition easier from being a Peace Corps Volunteer to being a Peace Corps Employee. I was afforded to be around Black Returned Peace Corps Volunteers by the multitude, completely unlike my Volunteer service. 3 years later I am now one of the heads of the table, with the mission to assist new Black employees with that same feeling of “home” as I felt upon my arrival. Sankofa’s first initiative of the new year was to kick off Carter G. Woodson’s creation with a meet and greet over coffee and donuts. Just so happen that Peace Corps is a majority white space, so there was plenty of room for teachable moments. This particular kick-off was to serve as an introduction for what was to come later in the month, however.. events would stall out due to lack of coordination and time constraints. Empty threats of a 2nd government shutdown By Donald Trump that never happen…really affected the way we operated. So although we were able to set off the month correct, we did not end it so well, things fizzled out and we lost momentum. However, we are planning to continue more events because we don’t just celebrate Black one day out the year. Its’ Black 365.

I attended Alfred Street Baptist Church that following Sunday, which is by far one of the best churches I’ve ever attended. The Revered Dr. Howard John Wesley is phenomenal, he really has a way of connecting with the congregation and making people feel at home, especially in a space like the DC Metro area, where there are plenty of “educated negro’s” (as W.E.B Dubois would laud) that attended HBCU’s and joined Divine 9 fraternities and sororities, and love to tell you about the newest Black podcast, and “Trap” anything, but ain’t never sold not a lick of drugs..(people like me)…With that being said, it’s really a great space and one can’t help but feel this immediate solidarity when entering the house of Black Jesus and his followers. So much so, that during Black History Month, Alfred Street saw fit to have an “HBCU Sunday” where folks came out in their alma mater and D9 regalia, to praise the lord collectively while some debate about the “Real HU”. Regardless of the institution or colors of the paraphernalia, it was all love. My HBCU Norfolk State University played a huge part in my life, and I understand the significance of a Black college for any young Black student that is on their quest in higher education.

Soul Food Vinyl record.. Southern Classic.

February 11th, I was asked to moderate a panel at The Florida Agricultural Mechanical University commonly referred to as FAMU also an HBCU. I facilitated a Black Experience in Peace Corps panel at the request of my coworkers Grant and Jared, whom are white men. I appreciate their efforts for wanting to make this an authentic discussion by trusting me to take lead. The panel started later that evening, however Jared and I arrived to campus around 10 am. We spent most of the morning doing class room talks and building relationship with faculty and staff that would hopefully later be community stakeholders. Nonetheless, after a couple of hours of walking up and down and speaking to many people, we got hungry. Jared asked me what I wanted to eat, and I knew I wanted soul food, thanks to the google machine I looked up the nearest soul food spot and came across a FAMU staple called Oleans. Oleans had the aesthetic that it had been serving up the community for a long time, with the line out the door. Oleans had pictures of patrons from the Reverend Jesse Jackson and church scripture along the wall, and even had meal deals specifically for Black History Month or my go-to…the Biden’s Choice Which was a “heaping helping of fried chicken, macaroni and cheese and collard greens” as Cee-Lo of Goodie Mob would put it. My colleague Jared got the Biden Choice as well; Jared and I chomped down on that chicken and talk about the importance of diversity and inclusion in any respective industry, it was a scene right out of No Reservation or Parts Unknown, Anthony Bourdain would be happy.

My co-worker and friend Jared in front of Oleans.

I’ve never really celebrated Black History Month, not in the sense of doing something special to commemorate the 28 days. At most I fell victim to capitalism by purchasing merchandise from Nike’s Black History Month collection or taking a fantastic voyage to Wakanda by going to see Marvel’s Black Panther, that’s pretty much where it stopped. However, Black History Month 2019 was different for me, I felt like I was able to take action and play a meaningful role, and aid in educating others about the significance and relevance of Black voices that have contributed so much to society. Black people are not a monolith is a phrase that is overly used and rightfully so.. we come in so many variations, not just in the form of civil rights activists or the downtrodden. We have found success in medicine, literature, travel, science, entertainment, law, and so many more. Quite contrary to how the media has historically portrayed us, a Black Revolution is upon us in the form of a Black liberation movement.

Andrew Demese Gillum is an American politician who served as Mayor of Tallahassee, Florida, from 2014 to 2018. He was the Democratic nominee for Governor of Florida in the 2018 election.