Category Archives: Gullah/Geechee Sacred Areas
Gullah/Geechee SEA & ME: Celebrating and Saving Coastal Legacy
The Gullah/Geechee Sea Island Coalition has always centered its work on ensuring that Gullah/Geechee land would be in Gullah/Geechee hands for generations to come. When we first started our work over two decades ago, I didn’t realize how true “De wata bring we and de wata gwine tek we bak.” would be. However, it is due the water’s consistency that we have witnessed the erosion of our coastline and also the rising of new collaborations within the Gullah/Geechee Nation.
Gullah/Geechee Living Heritage and Sustaining Legacy on the Land
In America, the word “heritage” is often bantered about without a clear examination of its definition in English and the origin of what is being considered “heritage.” So, I thought it not robbery to take a journey into the etymology of this word for “Gullah/Geechee Cultural Heritage Awareness Month.” A brief online examination of the …
Gullah/Geechee Cultural Protection Overlay District Supporters File Court Motions
On August 3, 2023 during “Gullah/Geechee Nation Appreciation Week,” four groups filed independent motions to intervene to defend Beaufort County’s denial of plans for three (3) 6-hole golf courses on St. Helena Island in the appeal initiated by Pine Island Property Holdings, LLC. The Gullah/Geechee Sea Island Coalition (filed by the South Carolina Environmental Law Project), The Penn Center (represented by Jack Smith of Nelson Mullins), Coastal Conservation League (represented by Ross Appel of McCullough Khan Appel), and individual landowners Leon and Joan Heyward and Robert New are fighting to uphold the Cultural Protection Overlay District zoning law.
OCEAN-Ocean Community Engaging Action Now
Although I grew up living in the Atlantic Ocean on the Sea Islands of what is now the “Gullah/Geechee Nation,” no one could have told me that there would be global and national celebrations of this body of water. Of course for centuries, there have been traditional African rituals honoring the waters and the spirits of that element. However, when the world sits down to declare an international Ocean Decade, it seems that folks would immediately take notice. I guess I did because the survival of my people and our cultural heritage is tied to the ocean and the estuaries and creeks that flow to it.
S.A.L.T.-Saving a Lowcountry Treasure
Salt is not the only thing that adds flavor to the coast of the southeast. Gullah/Geechee culture is also quite flavorful not only due to the way we enhance our cuisine, but because of the vibrance and tastefulness that folks find unforgettable about us when they encounter us. One of the places that you will often find us is amidst the salt marsh casting nets or going after blue crabs or picking oysters to feed our families while breathing in the very air that feeds our souls. Like the spartina grass or salt marsh that is a major part of our ecosystem, we’ve migrated up and down the waterways and held in place a cultural landscape for multiple generations as our roots go deeper into the soil and we stand tall bringing healing to this land.
Gullah/Geechee Drums of Freedom Beating During Summer 2023
The dancing and shouting will continue during Gullah/Geechee Nation Appreciation Week on this resilient Gullah/Geechee Nation coast and we pray that you will join us here this summer in celebration of freedom in our powerfilled nation!
Celebrate St. Helena Island’s Gullah/Geechee Cultural Protection Overlay District Saturday, May 27th!
We STOOD UP for Gullah/Geechee people, self-sufficiency, cultural heritage, and rural lands. We STRENGTHENED the St. Helena Island Cultural Protection Overlay!
We thank you for joining this fight for the soul of our sea islands. Now, we invite you to celebrate a victory by attending the celebration on Saturday, May 27th!
Jayn we fa Gullah/Geechee Famlee Day 2023!
Jayn we fa de annual reunion of de Gullah/Geechee Famlee pun historic St. Helena Island, SC een de Gullah/Geechee Nation! E gwine be a time!
Biden Administration Supports Resilience in the Gullah/Geechee Nation
Queen Quet, Chieftess of the Gullah/Geechee Nation who was an Expert Commissioner on the inaugural Gullah/Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor Commission and who served as the General Management Plan Chair will be engaged in several of the projects that will be funded. She stated: “Tenk GAWD fa disya! We land da we famlee and disya gwine keep we coast ya fa de Gullah/Geechee famlee stay ya. We binya and ain gwine nowhey! I have personally been focused on engaging with numerous divisions of the US government and with various sustainability, adaptation and resilience partners for decades in order to have them assist us in making the Sea Islands more resilient especially in the face of climate change. Therefore, I am looking forward to engaging in the numerous projects that NOAA will be funding along our shoreline especially the ‘Gullah/Geechee CREATE Debris Removal Project’ that we will work on with South Carolina Sea Grant which has been a part of the Gullah/Geechee Sustainability Think Tank since its inception. I’ve worked on living shorelines with SCORE (South Carolina Oyster Restoration & Enhancement) for decades. However, the Gullah/Geechee have truly scored this time! Tenk GAWD!”
Celebrating St. Helena De Gullah/Geechee Epicenter
Interestingly enough, I never drew the connection between helping write and establish the Cultural Protection Overlay District law and the fact that it took place the same year that I made world history by taking the human rights of my people before the Human Rights Commission of the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland until I just typed out the year. I did reflect on the fact that on my UN anniversary this year (April 1st), I was leading the “Coastal Cultures Conference” and sitting amongst national leaders focused on assisting with protecting the rich environment of St. Helena Island and helping the island to be even more resilient. The Gullah/Geechee Nation Sustainability Plan calls for us to ensure that the mission of the Gullah/Geechee Nation is adhered to and that we protect our people by enhancing their quality of life. We can only do this by protecting and improving the land and water quality and lessening the stress of them having to fight to keep protecting themselves and their homeland. Yet, as our ancestors did, we find ourselves on a battlefield once again protecting our rights as was done during the US Civil War, the Jim Crow Era and the Civil Rights Movement. I am proud to be in the number leading the human rights movement!