“When an elder dies, a library burns to the ground.”

In 2021, I worked with my uncle to film a series of short interviews with my 95- and 96-year-old grandparents. My grandfather was showing signs of dementia and I wanted to capture his and my grandmother’s stories before they were lost. When my grandfather passed away last year at 98, I was incredibly grateful to have these videos and to be able to share them with my family. Black people, on the Continent and across the Diaspora, have a long-standing oral tradition. Storytelling is in our bones. I’m proud to have participated in this practice with my grandparents and will continue to foster storytelling in my life. (Hillary Bridges, Liberation Table Co-Author)

In preparation for our Liberation Tables at the end of the week, we encourage you to take time to reflect on your own personal and family histories. One way to do this is to interview an elder in your family or in your community about their life story. Whether you plan to conduct an interview now or in the future, who would you be interested in asking about their history? What questions would you ask? Alternatively, if someone were to interview you, what stories would you share?

TODAY’S PRACTICE: Watch an Oral History Interview with Edward Theodore Taylor from the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History.

DAILY REFLECTION:  What are your family’s stories? Who are the people who shape who you are where you come from?

TAKE ACTION: Determine who will facilitate your Liberation Table. The Liberation Table Guide leads you through the Liberation Table practice from A-Z.