In spite of shadowbanning, the Darden media campaign was still considered a success! They secured multiple interviews (we'll update you when they go live!) and are now entering the advocacy phase of their journey. Their petition has just reached 1,000 signatures- can you help us reach 2,000?
POWERS FAMILY
Angel and Jacques Powers are still fighting to access their 2.5 acres of land in San Bernardino, California! A corrupt water company has barred them from using the public road to access it and now want to buy their land and the invaluable water that courses through it, for next to nothing. Help us fight against this disgusting injustice by signing their petition.
PEARSON FAMILY
Back in August, you met the Pearson family from Livermore, California. The land they bought held a recreational easement, which meant that there was a portion of their land that they could not use. The wall erected to demarcate the easement was a stark reminder of the racially stratified world we live in, and it still stands today.
Russell City was once a beacon of Black independence and self-determination. Established in 1853, the town was a haven for Black, Latino, Californio, Mexicali, and Latinx residents as it was one of the few areas, they were allowed to live due to redlining and restrictive covenants that prevented them from renting or buying homes in other cities. Despite a lack of infrastructure and external support, Russell City residents were self-sufficient and cultivated a community where culture and arts flourished. In 1963, Hayward City and Alameda County declared the city was a “blight,” condemned it, and evicted all its residents.
Right now, the Russell City Group is advocating for what they are rightfully owed.
Where Is My Land Selected for Funding by The James C. Irvine Foundation
Where Is My Land is excited to announce our partnership with The James C. Irvine Foundation. The James Irvine Foundation is a private, nonprofit grant-making foundation dedicated to expanding opportunity for the people of California. The Foundation’s grant-making is committed to a California where all low-income workers have the power to advance economically. Since 1937 the Foundation has provided more than $2.4 billion in grants to nonprofit organizations throughout California. With about $3.2 billion in assets, the Foundation made grants of $187.3 million in 2022.
As we look ahead to 2024, Where Is My Land would like to give a huge thanks to every single one of our donors. Each one of you propels our work forward and helps sustain us on our journey towards racial healing and reparative justice. As we grow, long-term investments in our organization are critical. When our CEO, Kavon Ward, was campaigning on behalf of the Bruce Family in Manhattan Beach, there was little monetary support. "It was Black women using their own resources, time and energy, who got this done," she remembers. Black-women led organizations are chronically underfunded, help us rewrite that story.
I had the honor and distinction of venturing to Ghana as a delegate at the four-day reparations summit last month.
There was something incredibly powerful about returning to an epicenter of the transatlantic slave trade to reimagine what its descendants are owed. Convening with international scholars, diplomats and reparations experts was an energizing experience and helped me reground in our crucial work. Candidly, the life of an activist, and particularly an activist who is a Black woman, can be thankless. My organization's radical work is not popular. Not only does it ignite conversations about a long overdue reckoning, it also demands material consequences for the material harm Black people continue to face. However, being in Ghana amongst leaders in this field reminded me that the movement I'm leading at home is global, and only stands to gain more momentum.
Make no mistake, the conference was not without its flaws. As one can imagine, the diasporic wounds that white supremacy opened and salted for centuries still fester. Blackness is so often flattened but we contain infinite multitudes, interests, and traumas that we must simultaneously reconcile as we seek repair. The terms of reparations should be dictated by the harmed communities. But when those harmed communities are in the millions, and dispersed across continents, the conversation becomes even more complex.
I returned stateside feeling energized, a little overwhelmed at the critical assignment the Most High has for me, but fortified in my vision. As we look forward to 2024 and beyond, my spirit feels fortified and ready to bring radical healing to our world.
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