To: Future allies in this intergenerational struggle

Dear Friend of the Future, 

My name is Val and I’m from New York City. My parents were born in Haiti in the town where the infamous Christopher Columbus spent his first Christmas.  Since I learned and shared this history, our whole lives have been a journey of conscious awakening, re-humanization and reunification.

In the United States,  as children, we pledge allegiance to this nation every day in schools. As we grow older, some of us begin to look to that statement and truly wrestle with the loyalties we’ve pledged. This pledge has filled me with shame and hope; (1) shame for the Black and Brown people around the world whose lands and communities we’ve policed with impunity and (2) hope that one day this nation can be worth pledging to. These complex feelings propel my creative, professional and community work everyday as my understandings of “morally bankrupt” deepen my commitment to love as methodology, epistemology and ontology.

Currently, I find this country descending deeper into fascism. Unmarked cars have been seen kidnapping protestors, we’ve seen over 50 days over 110 degrees in AZ and our country’s “leader” continues to roll back environmental protections. We’ve watched police kill people by kneeling on their necks or shooting up Black women/girls as they sleep safely at home and we currently stand by as our “president” threatens not to peacefully transition power if the election doesn’t end in his favor and incites his supporters to protest continuing the count of millions of lawful votes . For over 7 months, we’ve been socially distanced in our homes to help protect us from coronavirus while our national leader hosts super-spreader events where thousands have been left stranded without transportation to walk miles back to their vehicles in freezing temperatures. The world is watching the USA (a former “world power”)  showcase our truth instead of our best. This isn’t the land of the free, it’s not even the land of civility. This is the land where asylum seekers face forced sterilization, family separation and threats of indefinite imprisonment or deportation. This is the land where the death of one 87 year old woman could mean millions of people’s human and civil rights are up for debate in Supreme Courts. This is the land where popular votes are ignored while the electoral college fortifies and magnifies Republican strongholds.

I’m scared for the future of this nation. I know I won’t live to experience true justice but I work towards it for you, friend in the future. I hope as you’re reading this letter, you know we worked for you, we walked for you and we want a better future for you. I hope you know about the the work started by Black people, indigenous communities, their descendants and followers who have been tirelessly organizing on the margins of society because we will not let these injustices go on without resistance. We’ve been working for generations against erasure, racism, sexism, capitalism, homophobic and transphobic violence and other forms of hegemony and we will die fighting.

I hope the world you live in has universal healthcare. I pray the world you live in has ended homelessness and abolished the police. I know the world will never be rid from suffering but I hope everyone has the chance to pursue their humanity, passions and creativity. I imagine a future where people’s success isn’t determined by their zip-code. I imagine a world where we celebrate the knowledge bearers (and “sharers”) who carry culturally relevant stories of progress that propel us to new understandings of “liberty and justice for all.” 

Friend from the future, I hope you live in a time where institutions are not characterized by their cruelty but how much they infuse and remind us of our shared humanity.  I hope you pledge allegiance to those on the margins, committing to collective action, empathy and sustainability. I hope you learn from our mistakes and remember the power of love, kindness and creativity. I hope you learn from your mistakes and continue propelling us towards justice, inclusion and radical progress.

Although I’m no longer with you,  we’re still connected. You have a friend in me. You can always reach me by communing with the Earth. 

Be blessed & be a blessing. 

Love, 

Val