Here in the US, March is a month that reminds us of spring’s upcoming arrival. It is also a month where we celebrate women’s contributions to our global community, with Women’s History Month and International Women’s Day (March 8).
March 2025 also marks the start of a new movement, National Day of Rest for Black Women (March 10), to elevate the broader discussion about the important role of rest and restoration for Black women specifically, and what that means for our communities. At its crux, this movement calls attention to the importance and necessity for learning how to give ourselves permission to carve out time to pause—literally—through rest, in order to refocus, restore and regenerate. In fact, political advisor Jalina Porter recently said, rest is “our responsibility; it is our birthright and is necessary for our ability to thrive.”
In the face of political, social and economic turmoil the US is experiencing (e.g., with the immediate dismantling of federal agencies/departments/programs that protect civil rights and ensure race, health, education and environmental equity for all; impending economic tariffs and instability in the stock market; and threat of another war), we must remain focused in order to persist and thrive. Yet, of course, the question remains: how do we push forward in this exhausting, historical moment that has become increasingly hostile and threatens to unravel decades of slow progress previously made?
Undergirding our efforts will require a re-vision of Black life: re/build, re/invest, and uplift African descendant communities, and aided by moments of rest and restoration to allow for a regeneration of strategies and tactics to be developed and deployed. Unfortunately, a “re-vision” of Black life is nothing new; African descendant communities have faced adversity before and have overcome (even with loss of life). This contemporary moment is no different.
We all have a responsibility and role to play in this re-vision of Black life.
For this month’s podcast episode, guest and Pulitzer Prize winning author Mitchell Jackson discusses re-visioning Black life through the stories he chooses to tell in his books and features in New York Times Magazine, Time Magazine, GQ, and Esquire—to name a few.
Episode 55 with Mitchell Jackson debuts Tuesday, March 18 2025 and will be available on https://yndialorickwilmot.com/talking-journeysb2b-a-podcast-episodes/talking-journeysb2b-a-podcast-episodes/ and across all podcast platforms.
Enjoy while Black women rest.
Peace and blessings,
Dr. Yndia & the Belonging to Blackness, LLC team
