Inspiration: I am inspired by the individuals making changes within themselves, their community, households, or beyond and wake up every day without any acknowledgment of their accomplishments or existence. While I understand public and national recognition within a system that erases the history of African American people and the African diaspora, there are other levels of acknowledgment. In addition, I believe that there are key figures who spoke against the dominance of patriarchy and homophobia within the civil rights movement that were omitted from historical accounts such as black womxn, femme, trans womxn, and gender-nonconforming individuals. It goes beyond acknowledging the efforts of Black womxn but monumentalizing their actions and change-making. I have been inspired by Black people whose everyday reality is impacted and often defined by systematic racism, white supremacy, anti-blackness, internalized racism and other powers working against Black people and the diaspora. The main question I based my piece on was "What does it mean to recognize Black Womxn?". I feel as if we often ignore or devalue everyday people who maneuver through these systems of hate at the individual level. Therefore, I am dedicating my piece as a means towards celebrating individual efforts and recognize everyone who feels unappreciated or unrecognized.
Submitted by Anisa Antonio