Using Artistry fa Support de @GullahGeechee

Gullah/Geechee Nation ♦ August 22, 2020 ♦ Leave a comment

In one of the most trying times that the world has ever seen, people from all walks of life have come together to support each other as human beings and to support the cause of dismantling racism by sharing the truth. Many of these individuals have also decided that the best way to support the BIPOC communities is via financial support so that the economic wealth gap can be closed and the BIPOC communities and families therein can be sustained. Fortunately, a number of organizations and individuals have stepped up to join and support the Gullah/Geechee Sea Island Coalition in the efforts that it has led for over two decades.

The Gullah/Geechee Sea Island Coalition

• advocates for the rights of all Gullah/Geechee people around the world
• promotes and participates in the preservation of Gullah/Geechee history, heritage, culture, and language.
• works toward Sea Island land re-acquisition and maintenance.
• celebrates Gullah/Geechee culture through artistic and educational means electronically and via “grassroots scholarship.”

In staying true to this mission statement, the Gullah/Geechee Sea Island Coalition and All Mobile Productions™(AMP™) worked with A Growing Culture to insure that in spite of the pandemic, the Gullah/Geechee Nation International Music & Movement Festival™ was not cancelled. They brought together a wide array of native Gullah/Geechee artists to present at the first telethon every held in world history to raise funds for Gullah/Geechee land so that they can keep their legacy alive which is even more difficult to do with social distancing and an economic downturn taking place. The event was watched by people around the world and is still being viewed on Facebook and Gullah/Geechee TV (GGTV):

People continue to contribute to $GullahGeecheeNation via CashApp and via GoFundMe at https://www.gofundme.com/f/gullahgeechee-land-legacy-fund as the “Taking a Stand for Gullah/Geechee Land! #GullahGeechee2020” telethon called for.

Higher Ground of the Anthropocene Alliance stepped up to create a social media campaign in support of this campaign in which they used this clip of Queen Quet, Chieftess of the Gullah/Geechee Nation (www.QueenQuet.com) and Founder of the Gullah/Geechee Sea Island Coalition speaking to the issues involved in why there is a need for the Gullah/Geechee Land & Legacy Fund:

Many other artists have now decided that they will also use their artistry to assist with insuring that the funds are totally raised for the Gullah/Geechee Land & Legacy endowment. Artist Jacqueline Maloney decided that she would create a visual representation showing the clash between the pro-golf / gated area mentality folks and the Gullah/Geechee Nation coupled with an essay by Emily Maloney that points out the destructionment that those areas bring to the environment and puts a focus on the sustainability of cultural communities such as that of the Gullah/Geechees: https://www.jacquelinemaloneyart.com/post/what-a-flub-golf-its-impact-on-earth

Maloney is hosting a benefit sale of prints that will make a contribution to the Gullah/Geechee Sea Island Coalition:  https://www.jacquelinemaloneyart.com/product-page/the-bound-dragon-meets-the-eégún-limited-ed-print-package

The essay emphasizes how “the Gullah/Geechee people rely on skills their ancestors brought from coastal West Africa, which they adapted to coastal America during and after their enslavement. These skills not only allow the Gullah/Geechee to survive, but to thrive–as many land-based cultures do when they are empowered to personally tend the resources they need in a place they are free to call home.” They juxtapose this to the destructionment that the leaders of the Gullah/Geechee Nation and members of the Gullah/Geechee Sea Island Coalition have fought and continue to fight against including “When coastal developers create seawalls, jetties, and raise the land using fill and grading, they are ignoring invaluable ecological wisdom gained by land-centered cultures like the Gullah/Geechee, indigenous Americans, and the contemporary scientific community. All of these construction orders increase the speed of coastal erosion, and amplify the impact of harsh storms and surges.” The essay clearly points out “Gullah/Geechee people know to build homes a certain distance from the shore, and have warned newcomers against building right on the shore. This wisdom has been ignored.”

More people are paying attention to Gullah/Geechee wisdom and they are standing up with the Gullah/Geechee Sea Island Coalition and the Gullah/Geechee Nation‘s leaders to uphold this wisdom and prevent additional degradation of the Sea Islands via greenwashing of resorts and golf courses as “ecotourism.” Headlines sprung up this week as the Governor of South Carolina wrote how he agrees with Queen Quet, Chieftess of the Gullah/Geechee Nation against the destructionment at Bay Point near historic St. Helena Island, SC which is the largest contiguous Gullah/Geechee Sea Island community in the Gullah/Geechee Nation. Since these recent headlines, more people have signed the petition on Change.org to stop this destructionment: http://chng.it/gcmmgqFq

The Gullah/Geechee Sea Island Coalition has long been an organization that celebrated bringing together creative intellectuals. So, in the midst of all that is going on in the world, they are truly celebrating the artists that have come to join them in their activism and advocacy efforts. Tenki Tenki ta all hunnuh chillun wha da use artistry fa hep @GullahGeechee.