Liberation and the Cosmos

Book excerpt: The rich legacy of black critical thought, creative expression, and religious reflection come together in these creatively imagined conversations between the elders about the shape and conditions of Black liberation. Barbara A. Holmes has defined key issues of freedom and identity, hypothesizing a meeting of the ancestors assembled "on the other side" to discuss them. Imagine a conversation between Barbara Jordan and Thurgood Marshall on what freedom looks like in relation to law and politics. Or, between Tupac Shakur, Nina Simone, and James Baldwin on art, culture, and liberation. Malcolm X and Harriet Tubman discuss freedom and wholeness, while Audre Lorde, Fannie Lou Hamer, and George Washington Carver talk about liberated bodies. These imagined dialogues open up rich reflection and insight and offer a unique vantage point for understanding the luminaries of liberation down through the generations. An important resource for the contemporary task of Black liberation.