May 22, 2025 • 29 mins
In this inspiring episode, Morgan opens with a powerful foremother meditation, drawing wisdom from the trailblazing legacy of Shirley Chisholm. Vanessa then leads a thoughtful self-care audit, followed by a lesson on the art of living creatively in community and envisioning the housing life they truly desire. Finally, Nyra returns to share insightful trekker testimonies, weaving stories of resilience and exploration. Tune in for a journey of reflection, empowerment, and collective imagination!
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:08):
We are sick and tired of being sick and tired.
The. Disrespected person in America
is the black woman, but still like dust.
Pretty girls in the VIP they came with drain.
(00:31):
They'll need ideas. The revolution will not be
televised, brother. You are by the new Joe John,
even if you are not ready for the day, it cannot always be
night. Welcome to self-care School.
(01:03):
Everybody listen. If you joined us yesterday, you
heard Miss Shirley Chisholm giveus the read.
She was like y'all better speak up.
Y'all better speak up family. We are walking five days a week,
30 minutes a day to save our ownlives and as we walk we put our
earbuds in and we listen to lifesaving skills.
(01:26):
We are walking in the footsteps of giants like Shirley Chisholm.
We have a badge to earn. If you if you have a high five
week, which means you are walking five times this week, so
you might be on day three or day4, you still can get to 5 by the
end of the week, you will earn a.
Shirley Chisholm bad y'all Shirley Chisholm is best known
(01:47):
for being the first black woman elected to U.S.
Congress, but she was also the first black woman to run for
president of United States. But one of her noteworthy
achievements, which is why she is being honored this week
through the badge, is that she actually impacted American
agriculture and land. Y'all, she was on the
agriculture committee. They tried to put her on the
(02:07):
agriculture committee because she was fiery.
And they was like, we gonna silence this black woman.
We gonna put her way out in the boondocks.
And she was like bet she got on there and she started advocating
for food access, for nutrition, for farmers rights, for rule
equality, and she changed the game in America, y'all.
So step out on your front porch as we celebrate the woman.
We are the daughters of Shirley Chisholm who expanded the food
(02:30):
stamp program. She invented SNAP, y'all, she
did so many great things. She educated or she advocated
for the black farmers and equityand farm bills, tenant rights.
She just was incredible. So as you stand on your front
porch, feel the sun on your again and get ready by taking
some deep breaths. Inhale and exhale.
(02:53):
Stand tall, feet firmly rooted, spine lifted up.
We're going to take some deep inhales through our nose and our
mouths. Listen, we are embossed and
unbothered like Shirley Chisholm.
We want to raise our voice and speak truth to power.
Keep breathing. Inhale.
(03:20):
On your exhale, say the word ha.Nobody's around.
You can do it. You can say it out loud, ha.
On your next exhale. Now we're going to bring our
lips together and continue to breathe.
(03:40):
Your next exhale. Let there be a hum in your
throat, a slow and steady hum, avibration in your throat.
Let the sound buzz gently aroundyour throat and your chest.
A hum. Repeat this two or three times
in full. Breasts just humming to
yourself, rattling, opening up that chakra, letting it vibrate
(04:04):
and reverberate in your chest and throat.
Listen your throat shocker is required for being a freedom
fighter y'all continue. Now inhale, exhale while softly
chanting a mantra called Ham. Just like you make ham on Easter
Ham. So ham, say it out loud and let
(04:26):
it resonate from the center of your throat.
Ham, feel this face around and let it clear out any bad energy
around your throat. Let it reverberate and get ready
to speak truth to power. Place one hand gently on your
throat. Breathe in and think silently.
My voice is steady. My voice is sacred.
(04:51):
Breathe out. I speak truth even when it
trembles. Shout out to Shirley Chisholm
and all the freedom fighters outthere.
Let's get started. Vanessa, are you there?
I am here, y'all. It's talked back Thursday.
We're in the middle of Week 6. We're talking about housing and
land. Thank you so much for that
meditation, Morgan. Y'all can step out into your
(05:12):
driveway now or wherever you're at if you're in a park or on a
busy St. We're going to get into the
self-care audit for today's episode.
Today's episode, by the way, we are going to learn two life
saving skills. The 1st is how to live
creatively and sustainably in community.
And the second is how to imagineand design the housing life that
you actually want. But first, we're going to get
(05:33):
into the self-care audit. If you have dreamed of buying
land with your people, I want you to step forward.
If you don't know who owns the home you were raised in, step
back. If you have ever lived in a
multi generational home with your aunties, your grandmas, or
(05:55):
multiple generations, give yourself a big step forward.
If you've ever wanted to live with someone you trust but
didn't know how to ask them or make it work, or if you desire a
different living situation than what you're in, take a step
back. If you have ever shared a home
(06:18):
to survive or support someone, take a step forward.
If you've ever been displaced, priced out, or evicted, take a
step back. Today we're going to talk about
some create creative ideas and ways that folks, especially
black women, are starting to live together and starting to
build community. There's a big Co housing
(06:41):
movement that is going on. There's a big expat movement
movement that is going on and the options are really endless,
especially as we think about howdo we want to age, if we want to
age and place together, who do we want to age with and how do
we want to build community together.
So on this Talkback Thursday, we're going to get into it, but
it's Talkback Thursday, y'all. So before we get into the
(07:03):
lesson, we got to get into the Talkback and that's why we have
my girl Naira on the line. Naira, are you here?
Yes I am. Hey y'all.
Hey Naira, Naira is our next Gen. home girl.
She's the one who's been monitoring everything that y'all
have been saying out there in the street.
She's the one who curates the voices that are going to come
through the phone today. Tell us what you got.
(07:25):
These ladies are phenomenal. Today we have our sisters Stacy,
Addie and Brandy, and then we can let their voices be heard
now. I love me some self-care school.
Can't wait for study hall to be up and running because I'd be
needing the notes and I can't always write things down when
(07:48):
I'm listening to self-care school on my track.
I pray you all have a blessed day.
I just. Want to say I am so excited.
I ran across the interest forum for the Mommy and Me crew
leader. I love that my baby girl who's
nine years old participates in Girl Trek with me.
(08:10):
I've taken her and she's worked the table, she walks the street,
she wears the gear. So I am so excited for the Mommy
and Me Girl Trek Lee. I hope and pray that we get
other mommies and daughters in the neighborhood to walk with us
because I know that this will encourage my daughter to stay
(08:31):
part of Girl Trek for lifelong. Hey, I'm bringing her up in the
way that I hope she will stay. Be blessed.
Hey girl trekker Stacy here fromTampa, FL.
This has been such a blessing tobe a part of these last 4 1/2
weeks in self-care school. I'm so grateful to the ladies in
my women's group who encouraged me to do this and we're doing
(08:51):
this together all across the country.
The conversation this week about7 croquettes brought back such
great and fine memories of my grandmother who cooked with love
and was love. And so it's just been such a
blessed experience. And for the young ladies out
there that are dealing with social media and all of us
honestly, let's be clear. You are the standard.
Comparison is the trick of the devil.
(09:12):
So be the best you you can be and watch how that changes you
and everybody around you. Like India RE said, I am the
light and since I am a product of the great I am, I can't help
but to shine. Happy Trails girl checkers.
Naira, thank you so much. So today I want to talk about
and teach the different types ofCo living and Co housing
(09:34):
situations that are starting to butt up.
There's a whole new movement that's really starting to butt
up that's starting to reclaim a lot of those practices for
folks. Co living is the sharing with
housing and sharing housing withfriends and family or chosen
community and sharing the cost and care.
Co housing is intentional community where residents share
resources and values. There's land collective groups
(09:56):
that Co own land together. There's tiny home villages,
there's multi generational households.
I actually want to queue up and play a clip.
I want to pull up this woman, her name is her name is
Elizabeth White and she's talking about she has a
community, a well lived life andshe said it is a life that is
shared. So let's pull in Elizabeth and
let's hear what she has to say about the Co living movement.
(10:19):
So let's go a little deeper on what New Age Co living is.
So yes, the architectural designis really important, but Co
living is more than just the architecture.
Co living is more than just sticking together a bunch of
apartments and calling it Co living.
At the heart, Co living is aboutbuilding community, and the
(10:42):
architectural design is to strike that right balance
between our need for privacy andour need for social interaction.
So what really is the right balance?
If you talk to developers and city planners about Co living,
generally they are talking aboutthe needs of young professionals
(11:04):
or creatives or remote workers, or they're talking about the
needs of people who want to livea nomadic life.
They're not yet talking about the needs of older adults and
this is something that New Age Co Living wants to change.
And I am over the moon that there are now over 30,000 of you
who are engaged and interested in changing this too.
(11:28):
Right now, Beyond architecture, New Age Co Living is thinking
about the services and programs that will support Wellness and
community, and I look forward tohearing from you about it and
sharing with you what we find out.
Thank you. Morgan, do you remember when we
(11:49):
visited, I'm not going to mention the name of it, but we
visited a Co living space in Georgia.
Maybe it was like at the beginning of yes, we visited a
Co living space in Georgia and y'all, there are communities
that are being built right now where people are considering
everything from the the width ofthe sidewalk so that the
(12:10):
sidewalks can accommodate peoplewalking and talking together to
the communal areas in which we break bread and share.
Even I visit a Co living space in Seattle where they even the
the walkways between residents and apartments were built in a
certain way. You had to come through the
communal areas to get to your individual area.
(12:33):
And so the Co living movement right now and the Co housing
movement right now that's reallybudding up.
It's being driven by design thatis focused not just on how do we
have shelter, but how do we actually build community, shared
knowledge, lift each other up inpositive and powerful ways.
And that for me, is what's superinspiring, thinking about the
(12:53):
movements that are going. And that place that we visited,
Morgan was a place that I felt was particularly, by the way,
designed to keep people out not in.
This is one of the things that it struck me about this place
that Morgan and I visited. It felt like it was a community
that was trying to build a bubble.
And so I was thinking about thatand I've identified some
communities that are black LED that are Co living and Co
(13:15):
housing where it's not actually about keeping people out or
necessarily or creating a bubble, but it's about serving
the communities or the people who are in there in more
specific ways. And one community that I
actually googled and researched and studied that I didn't know
that much about was the Republicof New Africa.
(13:36):
And I don't. Have you heard of the Republic
of New Africa? So three years after the
assassination of Malcolm X, led by his inspiration in teaching,
a group of his followers in the Malcolm X Society LED over 500
activists into a convening in Detroit where they formed
something called the Republic ofNew Africa.
(13:59):
And for them, it was actually, they even created a provisional
government and they were trying to actually reclaim land so that
we could actually have a sovereign community where we
could actually govern ourselves and where we could actually not
just build housing, but actuallybuild kind of like institution
within the community. That was particularly for us.
(14:21):
And the Republic of New Africa was learning and borrowing from
a lot of communities across the across the world that have been
doing this historically and for years.
In Jamaica, I visited a community Morgan called the IT
was called the Akampong village.The Akampong village was a
historical Maroon village. It's in the hills of Saint
(14:42):
Elizabeth Parish. And they're also a community of
indigenous Tiano people and Maroon people who were the
enslaved people who escaped Thislong story.
We follow the Queen Nanny Black history boot camp episode to
learn more. But they're an independent
community that's in Jamaica. And so the Republic of New
Africa was saying we can do thisas well.
(15:04):
And that the they wanted the United States government to give
us land so that we can actually be sovereign.
And I just want to shout out to them because they're still
actually organizing to this day,the Republic of New Africa.
And they're still actually investing in land and
communities across the country so that folks can live safely,
Black folks. So they're one example and and
(15:24):
then there's a new community that's been popping up.
I think you've probably have seen some of this on Instagram,
Morgan, they're called the Freedom Georgia Initiative.
Have you heard of them? I have and I've seen, I've also
seen the work similar to that. I don't know the name of it in
Baltimore that's happening, these kind of collectives and
communities that are being built.
And then but I want to hear moreabout it.
(15:46):
And then also, you know, that village in South Africa or in
South Carolina, it's like Oyatunji, yeah.
Yeah, I was trying to find theirname, but I couldn't.
But yes, there is a community inSouth Carolina.
Exactly right, Morgan. Yeah, people are doing brave
things. They are the Freedom Georgia
initiative was initially 19 black families bought 96 acres
(16:11):
to build a safe town. It's called the freedom Georgia
initiative and in fact, if you go on their website right now,
they have some homes that peoplecould consider buying.
They put the price there and they explain what their
community is. They were established out of an
extreme sense of urgency to create a thriving safe haven for
black families in the midst of racial trauma in a global
pandemic and economic instability.
(16:33):
Their vision is developed is to develop a vast resource rich 502
acres of land. They're just outside of
Toomsboro, Georgia, and they want to establish an innovative
community, environmentally sustainable living, health and
Wellness, agriculture and economic development, arts and
cultures. And this matters because right
(16:53):
now, Morgan, there's a woman who's out there and potentially
she didn't have kids and potentially she's maybe she's
just a whirling dervish. Maybe she's just trying to
figure out, you know, where is the community that is going to
hold me in a community that I can hold.
And these type of communities are really drawing individuals
in so that they can be a part ofa village or they can be a part
(17:14):
of a tribe. Another community that I just
learned about is called the parable of the sower intentional
community Cooperative. Of course, shout out to the
parable of the sower book. But the parable of the Sower
community is a Co-op and their mission is to develop is to
develop their Co-op as a housingmodel for Black women organizers
and worker owned intentional communities.
(17:37):
And they're trying to build holistic services that include
housing and health. And simultaneously they are
trying to alleviate the social stigma of living alone, Morgan
for women by creating this powerful community together.
And then the last thing that I want to talk about as it relates
(17:59):
to Co living, Morgan and Co housing is just to acknowledge
that there are genuinely some communities and places this an
unsafe world for women in many, many ways.
And there are some intentional communities that have popped up.
And there's one particularly in Kenya and it's called a Moshe.
And this is a village where because of high rates of sexual
(18:22):
violence and sexual crime against against women, these
women actually came together andcreated a village where men can
visit, but they cannot stay. Y'all men can visit, but they
cannot stay. It's in the Rift Valley of Kenya
and they're building a safe community.
It's for women who have experienced sexual violence and
(18:44):
it's for women who just want to keep themselves safe.
And so those type of communitiesare also popping up in
Baltimore, Morgan in particular,there is Black women build.
They are buying up housing out there, renovating the housing
and selling it back to black women and black families at very
affordable price at a very affordable prices.
The Guild in Atlanta is another grouping community that's doing
(19:08):
it. And then I wanted to do a
solidarity spotlight. I personally it's two years ago
now went visited in Durham, NC farm that was so beautiful and
it's called Earth seed land collective and Earth seed land
collective. It's a black woman LED
community. They are reclaiming what is
stolen. They have 48 acres of sovereign
(19:31):
land. They farm together.
They teach farming there. They teach healing practices.
It's a space. You can do community events
there if you reach out to them. They're really thoughtful about
who they bring into the community.
And one thing that really struckme, Morgan, when I visited is
that they don't share the address unless they really know
you. Yeah, that was incredible.
(19:52):
And I think there's a growing, there's also a growing number of
people who are repatriating to the continent.
And so I just want to give a shout out to all of those
people. Before we transition into the
second skill, second skill, which is imagining the life that
we want and the type of housing that we want for ourselves.
I actually want to play a clip and give a shout out to maybe
(20:13):
what is the best example ever inpop culture or in history of
black women Co living together in a beautiful experience.
Shout out to the women of LivingSingle.
Let's just play this clip. It's just fun.
It just brings a smile to my face and they I think, are one
of the original blueprints of what it looks like for women to
(20:34):
come together and live together.Remember, this used to be the
gym. Hola.
When it's cold out, the high high.
(20:55):
I got the month of Maine. Great, breaking out good, I
guess you say. What can make me feel this way?
My girl. My girl.
Which girl? My girl.
(21:16):
My girl. Much money you're.
Envy me, I've got the sweetest song, baby.
(21:54):
I was cracking up. I was like, OK, we getting into
it, but I was so glad it played until Maxine Clark came.
Because Maxine Clark was the prototype for every
revolutionary black girl and of our generation.
I loved her so much. So when she came in with the
bass in her voice, I was like, come on through, Maxine.
Literally, they're such a blueprint.
Maxine herself is such a blueprint.
(22:16):
And actually, God has been so good to me.
And I have had the opportunity to spend some time recently with
the actress Erica Alexander, whoplays Maxine.
She was at the gathering that I went to in Puerto Rico and she's
been in a couple of other placesI've been.
And one, she's a huge fan of Girl Trick and she's just like,
however, y'all need me, put me in coach.
(22:37):
And two, you know how sometimes we come across people and it's
just like they have an internal grounding that is so just like
warm and real and authentic. Like Erica Alexander is that
person. Like I watched her from afar and
I was just like, wow, this womanis.
So I told her this actually. I was like, you're so abundant.
Like I just haven't met someone who's abundant in the way that
(22:59):
she is when she's around people.So I love that living single
clip. I love all of those voices and
those examples, Morgan and I wanted to play that right now
because I, I want to ask a few reflection questions of everyone
out there. Let's consider this a recess
while you're walking, and I justwant you to soften.
Your just one. Can I just add one thing in
(23:20):
here? When you started to queue up the
clip, I was it was interesting because you were like this clip
was such a prototype for Co housing or Co living and I was
like, is she going to play 227? Is she going to play women's?
Oh yes, and. Mostly what I was thinking is
that most of our stuff, whether it was living single or whether
(23:41):
it was, what was the other one with with.
Tracee Ellis Ross Girlfriends. Girlfriends, I mean, like we
have been communal and even all of our stories are communal.
And so I, I, I didn't know you were going to play Living single
and it was such a great clip, but I just wanted to shout out
that black women have been doingthis.
I'll be a broken record here because I want us to feel like
(24:03):
we are in the asset and that we are leaning in and leaders of
culture and not that we are following behind other
prototypes. Yeah.
Yes, and I love that you broughtin women of booster place.
I love women of booster place and it is a good and 227.
Those are so such good examples of different types of ways that
we've Co lived together. So, so for just a moment, let's
soften our gaze and let's just get into our bodies with some
(24:27):
breath. Because whether you imagine
yourself sitting on the stoop with your girls in a busy
bustling city and y'all are talking.
Or whether you imagine yourself in a home like 227 where there's
a partner and some neighbors whoyou really love.
Or whether it's something like living single where you are Co
living together. I want folks to feel that you
(24:48):
have abundant opportunities and abundant choices when thinking
about your housing. So I want to ask a few questions
for you and the answers are justfor yourself, just to get your
mind thinking. The first is how do you want to
feel when you get home? Maybe you're already
(25:09):
experiencing it, but how do you want to feel when you get home?
The second question is who do you want to share your space
with? Like in an ideal world, do you
close your eyes and do you see ahouse full of all your kids
because really, they ain't left at 3234, You really want them
(25:30):
around? Do you want some girlfriends?
Do you want grandparents in the house?
Do you want a diverse community of folks who you can kick it
with and connect with? Who do you want around you?
Who do you want to share your space with?
The next question is to think about and ask yourself, could I
(25:53):
live in a duplex or Co own a house with friends or family?
Just imagine for yourself. Could you do it?
And I want you to imagine it because some of us because of
financial situations, some of usbecause of health situations,
potentially might have to have this choice regardless.
So I want us to imagine living in a space or living on land or
(26:19):
sharing it and who you're sharing it with.
Do you got a courtyard? Do you got your own space?
But then there's other people around you as their connecting
door. What could become possible
emotionally if you were living in this space financially,
(26:40):
spiritually, if you stopped thinking about housing is just
for you or your immediate family, but for community.
Those are the questions that I have.
I hope they brought up somethingfor folks.
So I hope y'all, whoever is listening, that this has
inspired you to think about what's possible.
(27:02):
I want to share some affirmations, Morgan, as we get
ready to close. And I'm just going to say them.
And if you could just repeat them in for so that the women
who are walking can repeat them to themselves.
I just really appreciate it. I just want to call this in for
us. And the first affirmation is I
am worthy of home. I am worthy of home.
(27:22):
The second affirmation is I am capable of building.
I am capable of building. The third affirmation is I do
not have to do it alone. I do not have to do it alone.
That's right, the last affirmation is I am part of a
(27:44):
legacy of visionaries. I am part of a legacy of
visionaries. Yes, I am part of a legacy of
visionaries. So y'all, you can say those
affirmations to yourself over and over again.
I am worthy of home. I am capable of building.
I do not have to do it alone. I am part of a legacy of
visionaries. I trust and believe that
(28:05):
whatever you want for yourself, you can call it in.
And I'm so grateful that you arepart of this sisterhood and this
community as we are building together.
Thank you, y'all. Thank you for joining us.
And Caleb, thank you for closingus out with this beautiful poem
about sisterhood. We be out here on our Nettie and
(28:26):
Sealy, nothing but death keep usfrom it.
I thank God for the squad I can summon.
If I'm calling, they coming. That's why when I'm balling is
nothing because when I'm fallingthey ground me.
And if I don't say it enough today, I want to say it loudly.
I'm grateful for each of you. Even though you're all proud of
(28:48):
me, you better know I'm nothing more than a reflection of the
women I keep around me. Ain't nothing like sisterhood.
We are sick and tired of being sick and tired.
The. Disrespected person in America
is the black woman, but still like dust.
Pretty girls in the VIP they came with drain.
(00:31):
They'll need ideas. The revolution will not be
televised, brother. You are by the new Joe John,
even if you are not ready for the day, it cannot always be
night. Welcome to self-care School.
(01:03):
Everybody listen. If you joined us yesterday, you
heard Miss Shirley Chisholm giveus the read.
She was like y'all better speak up.
Y'all better speak up family. We are walking five days a week,
30 minutes a day to save our ownlives and as we walk we put our
earbuds in and we listen to lifesaving skills.
(01:26):
We are walking in the footsteps of giants like Shirley Chisholm.
We have a badge to earn. If you if you have a high five
week, which means you are walking five times this week, so
you might be on day three or day4, you still can get to 5 by the
end of the week, you will earn a.
Shirley Chisholm bad y'all Shirley Chisholm is best known
(01:47):
for being the first black woman elected to U.S.
Congress, but she was also the first black woman to run for
president of United States. But one of her noteworthy
achievements, which is why she is being honored this week
through the badge, is that she actually impacted American
agriculture and land. Y'all, she was on the
agriculture committee. They tried to put her on the
(02:07):
agriculture committee because she was fiery.
And they was like, we gonna silence this black woman.
We gonna put her way out in the boondocks.
And she was like bet she got on there and she started advocating
for food access, for nutrition, for farmers rights, for rule
equality, and she changed the game in America, y'all.
So step out on your front porch as we celebrate the woman.
We are the daughters of Shirley Chisholm who expanded the food
(02:30):
stamp program. She invented SNAP, y'all, she
did so many great things. She educated or she advocated
for the black farmers and equityand farm bills, tenant rights.
She just was incredible. So as you stand on your front
porch, feel the sun on your again and get ready by taking
some deep breaths. Inhale and exhale.
(02:53):
Stand tall, feet firmly rooted, spine lifted up.
We're going to take some deep inhales through our nose and our
mouths. Listen, we are embossed and
unbothered like Shirley Chisholm.
We want to raise our voice and speak truth to power.
Keep breathing. Inhale.
(03:20):
On your exhale, say the word ha.Nobody's around.
You can do it. You can say it out loud, ha.
On your next exhale. Now we're going to bring our
lips together and continue to breathe.
(03:40):
Your next exhale. Let there be a hum in your
throat, a slow and steady hum, avibration in your throat.
Let the sound buzz gently aroundyour throat and your chest.
A hum. Repeat this two or three times
in full. Breasts just humming to
yourself, rattling, opening up that chakra, letting it vibrate
(04:04):
and reverberate in your chest and throat.
Listen your throat shocker is required for being a freedom
fighter y'all continue. Now inhale, exhale while softly
chanting a mantra called Ham. Just like you make ham on Easter
Ham. So ham, say it out loud and let
(04:26):
it resonate from the center of your throat.
Ham, feel this face around and let it clear out any bad energy
around your throat. Let it reverberate and get ready
to speak truth to power. Place one hand gently on your
throat. Breathe in and think silently.
My voice is steady. My voice is sacred.
(04:51):
Breathe out. I speak truth even when it
trembles. Shout out to Shirley Chisholm
and all the freedom fighters outthere.
Let's get started. Vanessa, are you there?
I am here, y'all. It's talked back Thursday.
We're in the middle of Week 6. We're talking about housing and
land. Thank you so much for that
meditation, Morgan. Y'all can step out into your
(05:12):
driveway now or wherever you're at if you're in a park or on a
busy St. We're going to get into the
self-care audit for today's episode.
Today's episode, by the way, we are going to learn two life
saving skills. The 1st is how to live
creatively and sustainably in community.
And the second is how to imagineand design the housing life that
you actually want. But first, we're going to get
(05:33):
into the self-care audit. If you have dreamed of buying
land with your people, I want you to step forward.
If you don't know who owns the home you were raised in, step
back. If you have ever lived in a
multi generational home with your aunties, your grandmas, or
(05:55):
multiple generations, give yourself a big step forward.
If you've ever wanted to live with someone you trust but
didn't know how to ask them or make it work, or if you desire a
different living situation than what you're in, take a step
back. If you have ever shared a home
(06:18):
to survive or support someone, take a step forward.
If you've ever been displaced, priced out, or evicted, take a
step back. Today we're going to talk about
some create creative ideas and ways that folks, especially
black women, are starting to live together and starting to
build community. There's a big Co housing
(06:41):
movement that is going on. There's a big expat movement
movement that is going on and the options are really endless,
especially as we think about howdo we want to age, if we want to
age and place together, who do we want to age with and how do
we want to build community together.
So on this Talkback Thursday, we're going to get into it, but
it's Talkback Thursday, y'all. So before we get into the
(07:03):
lesson, we got to get into the Talkback and that's why we have
my girl Naira on the line. Naira, are you here?
Yes I am. Hey y'all.
Hey Naira, Naira is our next Gen. home girl.
She's the one who's been monitoring everything that y'all
have been saying out there in the street.
She's the one who curates the voices that are going to come
through the phone today. Tell us what you got.
(07:25):
These ladies are phenomenal. Today we have our sisters Stacy,
Addie and Brandy, and then we can let their voices be heard
now. I love me some self-care school.
Can't wait for study hall to be up and running because I'd be
needing the notes and I can't always write things down when
(07:48):
I'm listening to self-care school on my track.
I pray you all have a blessed day.
I just. Want to say I am so excited.
I ran across the interest forum for the Mommy and Me crew
leader. I love that my baby girl who's
nine years old participates in Girl Trek with me.
(08:10):
I've taken her and she's worked the table, she walks the street,
she wears the gear. So I am so excited for the Mommy
and Me Girl Trek Lee. I hope and pray that we get
other mommies and daughters in the neighborhood to walk with us
because I know that this will encourage my daughter to stay
(08:31):
part of Girl Trek for lifelong. Hey, I'm bringing her up in the
way that I hope she will stay. Be blessed.
Hey girl trekker Stacy here fromTampa, FL.
This has been such a blessing tobe a part of these last 4 1/2
weeks in self-care school. I'm so grateful to the ladies in
my women's group who encouraged me to do this and we're doing
(08:51):
this together all across the country.
The conversation this week about7 croquettes brought back such
great and fine memories of my grandmother who cooked with love
and was love. And so it's just been such a
blessed experience. And for the young ladies out
there that are dealing with social media and all of us
honestly, let's be clear. You are the standard.
Comparison is the trick of the devil.
(09:12):
So be the best you you can be and watch how that changes you
and everybody around you. Like India RE said, I am the
light and since I am a product of the great I am, I can't help
but to shine. Happy Trails girl checkers.
Naira, thank you so much. So today I want to talk about
and teach the different types ofCo living and Co housing
(09:34):
situations that are starting to butt up.
There's a whole new movement that's really starting to butt
up that's starting to reclaim a lot of those practices for
folks. Co living is the sharing with
housing and sharing housing withfriends and family or chosen
community and sharing the cost and care.
Co housing is intentional community where residents share
resources and values. There's land collective groups
(09:56):
that Co own land together. There's tiny home villages,
there's multi generational households.
I actually want to queue up and play a clip.
I want to pull up this woman, her name is her name is
Elizabeth White and she's talking about she has a
community, a well lived life andshe said it is a life that is
shared. So let's pull in Elizabeth and
let's hear what she has to say about the Co living movement.
(10:19):
So let's go a little deeper on what New Age Co living is.
So yes, the architectural designis really important, but Co
living is more than just the architecture.
Co living is more than just sticking together a bunch of
apartments and calling it Co living.
At the heart, Co living is aboutbuilding community, and the
(10:42):
architectural design is to strike that right balance
between our need for privacy andour need for social interaction.
So what really is the right balance?
If you talk to developers and city planners about Co living,
generally they are talking aboutthe needs of young professionals
(11:04):
or creatives or remote workers, or they're talking about the
needs of people who want to livea nomadic life.
They're not yet talking about the needs of older adults and
this is something that New Age Co Living wants to change.
And I am over the moon that there are now over 30,000 of you
who are engaged and interested in changing this too.
(11:28):
Right now, Beyond architecture, New Age Co Living is thinking
about the services and programs that will support Wellness and
community, and I look forward tohearing from you about it and
sharing with you what we find out.
Thank you. Morgan, do you remember when we
(11:49):
visited, I'm not going to mention the name of it, but we
visited a Co living space in Georgia.
Maybe it was like at the beginning of yes, we visited a
Co living space in Georgia and y'all, there are communities
that are being built right now where people are considering
everything from the the width ofthe sidewalk so that the
(12:10):
sidewalks can accommodate peoplewalking and talking together to
the communal areas in which we break bread and share.
Even I visit a Co living space in Seattle where they even the
the walkways between residents and apartments were built in a
certain way. You had to come through the
communal areas to get to your individual area.
(12:33):
And so the Co living movement right now and the Co housing
movement right now that's reallybudding up.
It's being driven by design thatis focused not just on how do we
have shelter, but how do we actually build community, shared
knowledge, lift each other up inpositive and powerful ways.
And that for me, is what's superinspiring, thinking about the
(12:53):
movements that are going. And that place that we visited,
Morgan was a place that I felt was particularly, by the way,
designed to keep people out not in.
This is one of the things that it struck me about this place
that Morgan and I visited. It felt like it was a community
that was trying to build a bubble.
And so I was thinking about thatand I've identified some
communities that are black LED that are Co living and Co
(13:15):
housing where it's not actually about keeping people out or
necessarily or creating a bubble, but it's about serving
the communities or the people who are in there in more
specific ways. And one community that I
actually googled and researched and studied that I didn't know
that much about was the Republicof New Africa.
(13:36):
And I don't. Have you heard of the Republic
of New Africa? So three years after the
assassination of Malcolm X, led by his inspiration in teaching,
a group of his followers in the Malcolm X Society LED over 500
activists into a convening in Detroit where they formed
something called the Republic ofNew Africa.
(13:59):
And for them, it was actually, they even created a provisional
government and they were trying to actually reclaim land so that
we could actually have a sovereign community where we
could actually govern ourselves and where we could actually not
just build housing, but actuallybuild kind of like institution
within the community. That was particularly for us.
(14:21):
And the Republic of New Africa was learning and borrowing from
a lot of communities across the across the world that have been
doing this historically and for years.
In Jamaica, I visited a community Morgan called the IT
was called the Akampong village.The Akampong village was a
historical Maroon village. It's in the hills of Saint
(14:42):
Elizabeth Parish. And they're also a community of
indigenous Tiano people and Maroon people who were the
enslaved people who escaped Thislong story.
We follow the Queen Nanny Black history boot camp episode to
learn more. But they're an independent
community that's in Jamaica. And so the Republic of New
Africa was saying we can do thisas well.
(15:04):
And that the they wanted the United States government to give
us land so that we can actually be sovereign.
And I just want to shout out to them because they're still
actually organizing to this day,the Republic of New Africa.
And they're still actually investing in land and
communities across the country so that folks can live safely,
Black folks. So they're one example and and
(15:24):
then there's a new community that's been popping up.
I think you've probably have seen some of this on Instagram,
Morgan, they're called the Freedom Georgia Initiative.
Have you heard of them? I have and I've seen, I've also
seen the work similar to that. I don't know the name of it in
Baltimore that's happening, these kind of collectives and
communities that are being built.
And then but I want to hear moreabout it.
(15:46):
And then also, you know, that village in South Africa or in
South Carolina, it's like Oyatunji, yeah.
Yeah, I was trying to find theirname, but I couldn't.
But yes, there is a community inSouth Carolina.
Exactly right, Morgan. Yeah, people are doing brave
things. They are the Freedom Georgia
initiative was initially 19 black families bought 96 acres
(16:11):
to build a safe town. It's called the freedom Georgia
initiative and in fact, if you go on their website right now,
they have some homes that peoplecould consider buying.
They put the price there and they explain what their
community is. They were established out of an
extreme sense of urgency to create a thriving safe haven for
black families in the midst of racial trauma in a global
pandemic and economic instability.
(16:33):
Their vision is developed is to develop a vast resource rich 502
acres of land. They're just outside of
Toomsboro, Georgia, and they want to establish an innovative
community, environmentally sustainable living, health and
Wellness, agriculture and economic development, arts and
cultures. And this matters because right
(16:53):
now, Morgan, there's a woman who's out there and potentially
she didn't have kids and potentially she's maybe she's
just a whirling dervish. Maybe she's just trying to
figure out, you know, where is the community that is going to
hold me in a community that I can hold.
And these type of communities are really drawing individuals
in so that they can be a part ofa village or they can be a part
(17:14):
of a tribe. Another community that I just
learned about is called the parable of the sower intentional
community Cooperative. Of course, shout out to the
parable of the sower book. But the parable of the Sower
community is a Co-op and their mission is to develop is to
develop their Co-op as a housingmodel for Black women organizers
and worker owned intentional communities.
(17:37):
And they're trying to build holistic services that include
housing and health. And simultaneously they are
trying to alleviate the social stigma of living alone, Morgan
for women by creating this powerful community together.
And then the last thing that I want to talk about as it relates
(17:59):
to Co living, Morgan and Co housing is just to acknowledge
that there are genuinely some communities and places this an
unsafe world for women in many, many ways.
And there are some intentional communities that have popped up.
And there's one particularly in Kenya and it's called a Moshe.
And this is a village where because of high rates of sexual
(18:22):
violence and sexual crime against against women, these
women actually came together andcreated a village where men can
visit, but they cannot stay. Y'all men can visit, but they
cannot stay. It's in the Rift Valley of Kenya
and they're building a safe community.
It's for women who have experienced sexual violence and
(18:44):
it's for women who just want to keep themselves safe.
And so those type of communitiesare also popping up in
Baltimore, Morgan in particular,there is Black women build.
They are buying up housing out there, renovating the housing
and selling it back to black women and black families at very
affordable price at a very affordable prices.
The Guild in Atlanta is another grouping community that's doing
(19:08):
it. And then I wanted to do a
solidarity spotlight. I personally it's two years ago
now went visited in Durham, NC farm that was so beautiful and
it's called Earth seed land collective and Earth seed land
collective. It's a black woman LED
community. They are reclaiming what is
stolen. They have 48 acres of sovereign
(19:31):
land. They farm together.
They teach farming there. They teach healing practices.
It's a space. You can do community events
there if you reach out to them. They're really thoughtful about
who they bring into the community.
And one thing that really struckme, Morgan, when I visited is
that they don't share the address unless they really know
you. Yeah, that was incredible.
(19:52):
And I think there's a growing, there's also a growing number of
people who are repatriating to the continent.
And so I just want to give a shout out to all of those
people. Before we transition into the
second skill, second skill, which is imagining the life that
we want and the type of housing that we want for ourselves.
I actually want to play a clip and give a shout out to maybe
(20:13):
what is the best example ever inpop culture or in history of
black women Co living together in a beautiful experience.
Shout out to the women of LivingSingle.
Let's just play this clip. It's just fun.
It just brings a smile to my face and they I think, are one
of the original blueprints of what it looks like for women to
(20:34):
come together and live together.Remember, this used to be the
gym. Hola.
When it's cold out, the high high.
(20:55):
I got the month of Maine. Great, breaking out good, I
guess you say. What can make me feel this way?
My girl. My girl.
Which girl? My girl.
(21:16):
My girl. Much money you're.
Envy me, I've got the sweetest song, baby.
(21:54):
I was cracking up. I was like, OK, we getting into
it, but I was so glad it played until Maxine Clark came.
Because Maxine Clark was the prototype for every
revolutionary black girl and of our generation.
I loved her so much. So when she came in with the
bass in her voice, I was like, come on through, Maxine.
Literally, they're such a blueprint.
Maxine herself is such a blueprint.
(22:16):
And actually, God has been so good to me.
And I have had the opportunity to spend some time recently with
the actress Erica Alexander, whoplays Maxine.
She was at the gathering that I went to in Puerto Rico and she's
been in a couple of other placesI've been.
And one, she's a huge fan of Girl Trick and she's just like,
however, y'all need me, put me in coach.
(22:37):
And two, you know how sometimes we come across people and it's
just like they have an internal grounding that is so just like
warm and real and authentic. Like Erica Alexander is that
person. Like I watched her from afar and
I was just like, wow, this womanis.
So I told her this actually. I was like, you're so abundant.
Like I just haven't met someone who's abundant in the way that
(22:59):
she is when she's around people.So I love that living single
clip. I love all of those voices and
those examples, Morgan and I wanted to play that right now
because I, I want to ask a few reflection questions of everyone
out there. Let's consider this a recess
while you're walking, and I justwant you to soften.
Your just one. Can I just add one thing in
(23:20):
here? When you started to queue up the
clip, I was it was interesting because you were like this clip
was such a prototype for Co housing or Co living and I was
like, is she going to play 227? Is she going to play women's?
Oh yes, and. Mostly what I was thinking is
that most of our stuff, whether it was living single or whether
(23:41):
it was, what was the other one with with.
Tracee Ellis Ross Girlfriends. Girlfriends, I mean, like we
have been communal and even all of our stories are communal.
And so I, I, I didn't know you were going to play Living single
and it was such a great clip, but I just wanted to shout out
that black women have been doingthis.
I'll be a broken record here because I want us to feel like
(24:03):
we are in the asset and that we are leaning in and leaders of
culture and not that we are following behind other
prototypes. Yeah.
Yes, and I love that you broughtin women of booster place.
I love women of booster place and it is a good and 227.
Those are so such good examples of different types of ways that
we've Co lived together. So, so for just a moment, let's
soften our gaze and let's just get into our bodies with some
(24:27):
breath. Because whether you imagine
yourself sitting on the stoop with your girls in a busy
bustling city and y'all are talking.
Or whether you imagine yourself in a home like 227 where there's
a partner and some neighbors whoyou really love.
Or whether it's something like living single where you are Co
living together. I want folks to feel that you
(24:48):
have abundant opportunities and abundant choices when thinking
about your housing. So I want to ask a few questions
for you and the answers are justfor yourself, just to get your
mind thinking. The first is how do you want to
feel when you get home? Maybe you're already
(25:09):
experiencing it, but how do you want to feel when you get home?
The second question is who do you want to share your space
with? Like in an ideal world, do you
close your eyes and do you see ahouse full of all your kids
because really, they ain't left at 3234, You really want them
(25:30):
around? Do you want some girlfriends?
Do you want grandparents in the house?
Do you want a diverse community of folks who you can kick it
with and connect with? Who do you want around you?
Who do you want to share your space with?
The next question is to think about and ask yourself, could I
(25:53):
live in a duplex or Co own a house with friends or family?
Just imagine for yourself. Could you do it?
And I want you to imagine it because some of us because of
financial situations, some of usbecause of health situations,
potentially might have to have this choice regardless.
So I want us to imagine living in a space or living on land or
(26:19):
sharing it and who you're sharing it with.
Do you got a courtyard? Do you got your own space?
But then there's other people around you as their connecting
door. What could become possible
emotionally if you were living in this space financially,
(26:40):
spiritually, if you stopped thinking about housing is just
for you or your immediate family, but for community.
Those are the questions that I have.
I hope they brought up somethingfor folks.
So I hope y'all, whoever is listening, that this has
inspired you to think about what's possible.
(27:02):
I want to share some affirmations, Morgan, as we get
ready to close. And I'm just going to say them.
And if you could just repeat them in for so that the women
who are walking can repeat them to themselves.
I just really appreciate it. I just want to call this in for
us. And the first affirmation is I
am worthy of home. I am worthy of home.
(27:22):
The second affirmation is I am capable of building.
I am capable of building. The third affirmation is I do
not have to do it alone. I do not have to do it alone.
That's right, the last affirmation is I am part of a
(27:44):
legacy of visionaries. I am part of a legacy of
visionaries. Yes, I am part of a legacy of
visionaries. So y'all, you can say those
affirmations to yourself over and over again.
I am worthy of home. I am capable of building.
I do not have to do it alone. I am part of a legacy of
visionaries. I trust and believe that
(28:05):
whatever you want for yourself, you can call it in.
And I'm so grateful that you arepart of this sisterhood and this
community as we are building together.
Thank you, y'all. Thank you for joining us.
And Caleb, thank you for closingus out with this beautiful poem
about sisterhood. We be out here on our Nettie and
(28:26):
Sealy, nothing but death keep usfrom it.
I thank God for the squad I can summon.
If I'm calling, they coming. That's why when I'm balling is
nothing because when I'm fallingthey ground me.
And if I don't say it enough today, I want to say it loudly.
I'm grateful for each of you. Even though you're all proud of
(28:48):
me, you better know I'm nothing more than a reflection of the
women I keep around me. Ain't nothing like sisterhood.
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