GirlTREK

Why hasn’t someone made this into a movie!? Angola is the huge country below the equator on the west coast of Africa. That’s where it all started. ...ground zero for the transatlantic slave trade.  White missionaries, greed, exploitative trade, tech advances that made exploration by sea possible, a massive need for labor and yes, tribal wars.  It was the perfect storm for the greatest crime in human history, the capture, sale, and violent exportation of our ancestors. Yes, and we know that the first enslaved Africans arrived in America 400 years ago, in 1619. The next part is not as well known.  20 or so Africans were the first to walk on American soil.  They were survivors.  They survived wars on the continent. They survived a 70-mile walk down the Kwanza River.  They survived the humiliation of baptism and branding by Catholic traders of enslaved people.  They survived the dungeons, the canoe ride to the ships, the months at sea, the sickness, filth, violence, and murder.  They survived the day that their Portuguese ship was jacked by British pirates in little-ass boats.  They sailed to America and were sold on the shores of Hampton, Virginia.   They survived. And one of those survivors was a woman named Angela.  ...In Virginia, Angela X lived with Captain Whoever and his wife and two other indentured servants from England. Slavery wasn’t legally codified yet. We know this because, in 2017, something amazing happened.  Buried beneath her home in Jamestown, archeologists found four cowrie shells.  Evidence of her journey  -  the most exciting archeological find in decades – or ever – if you ask us. Today, we honor Angela and every African woman whose names we will never know.Join us in a conversation about survival and the systematic destruction of Black women that began on the coast of Africa and was fortified through The Virginia Code just 50 years after Angela arrived.Join the 21 Day Black History Bootcamp at https://bit.ly/blackhistorybootcamp to receive specially curated emails with inspiring words, survival tips, speeches + dedicated songs to listen to for each featured legendary Black woman.Disclaimer: We do not own the rights to the music played during this broadcast. Original content can be found here:Celie Shaves Mr./Scarification Ceremony (From "The Color Purple" Soundtrack): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JFTvbp-FjkkStill I Rise by Maya Angelou: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qviM_GnJbOM&feature=youtu.be

Lucille Clifton was the GOAT. The fact that we are not all walking around quoting her like we do Jay-Z or Drake is beyond understanding. She could have stepped into a booth with either of them, holding a cup of chamomile tea, and whispered two bars (because she liked to get to the point), drop the mic and walk out. It would have been over. Her words are so stunning. So precise. So full of celebration for Black people. You could quote only Lucille Clifton poems for the rest of your Instagram life and you would never run out of profound things to say. And this masterful body of work came from a woman who wrote for 30 years before being published. A woman who had six children and buried two, but still kept on living and producing beautiful art.  There is so much to learn from this legendary writer. Don't miss the conversations. Join the 21 Day Black History Bootcamp at https://bit.ly/blackhistorybootcamp to receive specially curated emails with inspiring words, survival tips, speeches + dedicated songs to listen to for each featured legendary Black woman.Disclaimer: We do not own the rights to the music or speech excerpt played during this broadcast. Original content can be found here:“Won't You Celebrate With Me” | Lucille Clifton: https://vimeo.com/197834578Lucille Clifton & Sonia Sanchez: Mirrors & Windows: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O8aCnU9oArI

Orson Welles called her “the most exciting woman in the world.”  And she was. Eartha Kitt sang in 11 languages. Danced with Katherine Dunham. Broke boundaries for Black women in Hollywood when she played Catwoman. She was nominated for Tony Awards, Grammy Awards, and Emmys. And still, she felt unwanted, unloved. At the end, she was asked to summarize her life in six words. She said, “Rejected, ejected, dejected, used, accused, abused.”Join the 21 Day Black History Bootcamp at https://bit.ly/blackhistorybootcamp to receive specially curated emails with inspiring words, survival tips, speeches + dedicated songs to listen to for each featured legendary Black woman.Disclaimer: We do not own the rights to the music or speech excerpt played during this broadcast. Original content can be found here:Eartha Kitt - Live 1968: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HdsHKw6939kEartha Kitt Interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MpPq8vlld_E&mc_cid=6605522284&mc_eid=b187d8127e 

Look, Marsha said she ain’t do it!Although legend has it that it was Marsha P. Johnson who threw a shot glass at police inside of the Stonewall Inn in NYC in 1969, as an act of resistance against the police who were there harassing patrons, Marsha later said, she didn’t start the riot - she said she came running as fast as she could though once she knew it was happening, because baaaby, she was a fighter and was tired of the BS.What happened that day at Stonewall (“The Stonewall Uprising”) is considered by many to be the catalyst that launched the modern L.G.B.T. civil rights movement and it was Marsha who would lead the fight in the streets. She, along with co-founder Sylvia Rivera, established one of the country's first safe spaces for transgender and homeless youth, Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries (STAR). She also tirelessly advocated on behalf of sex workers, prisoners, and people with HIV/AIDS. Marsha’s work was powerful, but it didn’t keep her from a fate that far too many Black women have met. Marsha died in 1992. Her body was recovered in a river in New York and her death was ruled a suicide. Authorities later reclassified the cause, ruling it drowning from undetermined causes. The case remains open, and the mystery of her death reminds us of the ongoing violence black and transgender people face all too often in this country. Tune in live today. You don’t want to miss it.Join the 21 Day Black History Bootcamp at https://bit.ly/blackhistorybootcamp to receive specially curated emails with inspiring words, survival tips, speeches + dedicated songs to listen to for each featured legendary Black woman.Disclaimer: We do not own the rights to the music played during this broadcast. Original content can be found here:En Vogue - Free Your Mind: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i7iQbBbMAFEJamila Woods - Holy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t3MhH2WekcY

"Baby Esther" was a phenomenal scat singer, and one of the most charismatic performers of her time.  She was a trained dancer and acrobat.  At 4-years-old, Russian-American theatrical manager Lou Bolton saw her performance and was blown away.  "She's a young Florence Mills," the newspapers said. Like Josephine Baker and many performers of her day, Baby Esther was not accepted in America because she was Black.  Instead, her manager arranged a European tour in 1929 and she was described as the highest-paid child artist in the world. She sold out the Moulin Rouge and performed for royals.At GirlTrek, we say "never ask permission to save your own life."  We say it WHILE we work together to topple oppressive systems because we believe that we have what it takes to thrive.  But this story reminds us of the many things that have been stolen from us - resources, culture, reputation, royalties, and childhoods.  Let's take stock on today's call.Join the 21 Day Black History Bootcamp at https://bit.ly/blackhistorybootcamp to receive specially curated emails with inspiring words, survival tips, speeches + dedicated songs to listen to for each featured legendary Black woman.Disclaimer: We do not own the rights to the music played during this broadcast. Original content can be found here:Black Beauty - Duke Ellington: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U4fP4cGo6scFingertips (Pts. I & II) - Little Stevie Wonder: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k3ubgVjp3CY

If “I said what I said” was a person, it would be literary great Zora Neale Hurston. A writer. An anthropologist. The belle of the Harlem Renaissance. Unapologetically Black. A woman wholly committed to being herself. Today we talk about her life and the lessons she has to teach us about worth, value, speaking truth to power, and jumping at the sun. Join the 21 Day Black History Bootcamp at https://bit.ly/blackhistorybootcamp to receive specially curated emails with inspiring words, survival tips, speeches + dedicated songs to listen to for each featured legendary Black woman.Disclaimer: We do not own the rights to the music or speech excerpt played during this broadcast. Original content can be found here:Zora Neale Hurston '28 Sings "Halihmuhfack": https://youtu.be/Ut0xmfgcK3wRuby Dee on the Humanity in Zora Neale Hurston's Work: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=__d8NS1IiWE&feature=youtu.be

Forget what your 8th-grade teacher taught you.Sojourner Truth's life was so juicy, so "say what!?," that you cannot miss this live discussion.  She is everyone's favorite spiritual leader, yes.  But did you know that Sojourner Truth bore the child of a slave owner, then - when she escaped his bondage - she sued his ass for custody and won!  Sojourner Truth was the first Black woman to go to court against a white man in America and win. Bring your tambourines as we hit the streets for a Truth Revival! We honor her hope and fervent calling today.Join the 21 Day Black History Bootcamp at https://bit.ly/blackhistorybootcamp to receive specially curated emails with inspiring words, survival tips, speeches + dedicated songs to listen to for each featured legendary Black woman.Disclaimer: We do not own the rights to the music or speech excerpt played during this broadcast. Original content can be found here:Sweet Honey in the Rock - Sojourner's Battle Hymn: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DwSZgLLqPy8Cicely Tyson performs Sojourner Truth's "Ain't I a woman?": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-0YR1eiG0us

From London, by way of Jamaica, Olive Morris lived 27 years and she made every one of them count. She was Gangster with a capital G, organizing with the Black Panther Party Youth Collective, occupying empty and abandoned buildings to demand fair housing rights, and setting up the first networks for women of color in Britain. Despite her powerful work, Olive Morris, like countless other Black women, has been left out of the telling of our history, until now! Join us live to talk about her legacy, and how Black women today can start to unite with our sisters abroad to get this liberation party really poppin’ off.Join the 21 Day Black History Bootcamp at https://bit.ly/blackhistorybootcamp to receive specially curated emails with inspiring words, survival tips, speeches + dedicated songs to listen to for each featured legendary Black woman.Disclaimer: We do not own the rights to the music played during this broadcast. Original content can be found here:Judy Mowatt - Black Womanhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jHUQg5rvBEg

Did you know Nina's government name was Eunice Kathleen Waymon!?  Us either.  Here's the story.  She was at a nightclub singing, trying to protect her family's good name.  She started calling herself Nina and the rest is history. She became the voice of a generation - brave, uncompromising, raw.  She taught us to practice fearlessness and – in her very public battle with mental illness – she reminds us that genius is delicate and must be protected at all costs.  Join us as we honor this classical musician who wrote the book on soul. Join the 21 Day Black History Bootcamp at https://bit.ly/blackhistorybootcamp to receive specially curated emails with inspiring words, survival tips, speeches + dedicated songs to listen to for each featured legendary Black woman.Disclaimer: We do not own the rights to the music or speech excerpt played during this broadcast. Original content can be found here:Nina Simone - How It Feels to be Free:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5dlrXCYrNYINina Simone - Freedom Interview:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ySYRI4wXUpo

Welcome to day 5 of GirlTrek’s Black History Bootcamp.  As we celebrate the life of Breonna, we look to the words of literary giant Toni Morrison for comfort and direction. Toni Morrison refused to let Black women be invisible. Without apology she centered us in her work, writing about the Black experience with precision and beauty that was unmatched. She gave voice to our pain, our love, our loss, and our joys, and today we explore her life and look to the lessons she taught us. Let today’s walk be a celebration of life. Come with your sadness and your rage and lay it down at the altar for just 30 minutes. Walk through the tightness and let the energy and the footsteps of the thousands of other Black women who will be walking with us, transform you.Join the 21 Day Black History Bootcamp at https://bit.ly/blackhistorybootcamp to receive specially curated emails with inspiring words, survival tips, speeches + dedicated songs to listen to for each featured legendary Black woman.Disclaimer: We do not own the rights to the music or speech excerpt played during this broadcast. Original content can be found here:Happy Birthday · Stevie Wonder: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RcVZfJO01NIWhite People Have a Very Very Serious Problem - Toni Morrison on Charlie Rose: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n2txzMkT5Pc