Mustafa Santiago Ali
Dr. Mustafa Santiago Ali is the Executive Vice President of Conservation & Justice for the National Wildlife Federation (NWF), former Interim Chief of Programs at the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS), and Instructor at American University. He is the Founder and CEO of Revitalization Strategies. He also serves as a commissioner for The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (AAAS). He is an award-winning writer and poet focused on social justice. Dr. Ali is frequently seen on television, including appearances on MSNBC, ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, VICE, FUSE, BET, National Geographic, Full Frontal with Samantha Bee, and Democracy NOW! Mustafa is also a regular guest on Roland Martin Unfiltered, Black News Channel, Tavis Smiley Show, The Dean Obeidallah Show, and many others…
Editor's Note: This poem is the 119th in our Democracy and Hope Series. This series will highlight hopeful aspects about our Democracy using various genres including poems
bring a chair, baby— the folding kind, the holdin’-on kind. somebody’s grillin’ ribs, somebody’s spillin’ truth.
grandma’s smile is an altar, & uncle june’s spades talk still split time like old baptist sermons.
we gather not just to eat but to remember— who we were before the world told us different.
reunion ain’t just tradition— it’s resistance wrapped in tinfoil, seasoned with names we refuse to forget.
we need it now— like collards need fatback, like prayers need breath, like joy needs witnesses.
©️MustafaSantiagoAli
#Poetry #Family #BlackLove #Healing #Culture