Blog

Art of the Month

/ Psal121 / Leave a comment

Kamala Devi Harris born October 20, 1964, is an American politician and attorney who was the 49th vice president of the United States, serving under President Joe Biden. Harris was the Democratic Party’s nominee for president in the 2024 election. She is the first female vice president of the United States, making her the highest ranking female official in U.S. history. She is also the first African American, and the first Asian American vice president. From 2017 to 2021, she represented California in the United States Senate. Before that, she was the attorney general of California.

Born in Oakland, California, Harris graduated from Howard University and the University of California, Hastings College of the Law. She began her law career in the office of the district attorney of Alameda County. She was recruited to the San Francisco District Attorney’s Office and later to the office of the city attorney of San Francisco. She was elected district attorney of San Francisco in 2003 and attorney general of California in 2010, and reelected as attorney general in 2014. As the San Francisco district attorney and the attorney general of California, Harris was the first woman, the first African American, and the first Asian American to hold each office. Harris was the junior U.S. senator from California from 2017 to 2021. She won the 2016 Senate election, becoming the second Black woman and first South Asian American U.S. senator. As a senator, Harris advocated for stricter gun control laws, the DREAM Act, federal legalization of cannabis, and reforms to healthcare and taxation.

She is a woman who inspires hope.

Art of Month

/ Psal121 / Leave a comment

Nannie Helen Burroughs meets us at the intersection of gender, race, and profession. She was an educator, civil rights activists, feminist, and businesswoman.

Burroughs was born May 2, 1879, in Orange Virginia.  Her parents were formerly slaves, and her father was a farmer and Baptist preacher.  Her father died when she was young, so Burroughs and her mother moved to Washing DC.

She attended high school in DC where she met Anna Julia Cooper and Mary Church Terrell, who were suffragists and civil rights activists.

After graduation she applied for a job with the District but could not get one because her skin was too dark. This set in her the determination to ensure women of her skin tone could improve their situation.

From 1898 to 1909 Burroughs went to work for the National Baptist Convention in Kentucky. She was one of the founders of the Women’s Convention and served as president for 13 years. She also found the National Training School in 1908 that provided evening classes for women who had no other means of education.

In 1908 she opened the National Training School. Her goal was to uplift the race.  The main themes of the school was the three B’s: the Bible, the bath, and the broom.

In 1920 she wrote two plays, one The Slabtown District Convention and Where is My Wandering Boy Tonight?

In 1928, Burroughs was appointed committee chairwoman by the Hoover Administration  for the White House Conference 1931 Home Building and Ownership. She also spoke at conferences.

She died in May of 1961.

Art of the Month

/ Psal121 / Leave a comment

Nannie Helen Burroughs meets us at the intersection of gender, race, and profession. She was an educator, civil rights activists, feminist, and businesswoman.

Burroughs was born May 2, 1879, in Orange Virginia.  Her parents were formerly slaves, and her father was a farmer and Baptist preacher.  Her father died when she was young, so Burroughs and her mother moved to Washing DC.

She attended high school in DC where she met Anna Julia Cooper and Mary Church Terrell, who were suffragists and civil rights activists.

After graduation she applied for a job with the District but could not get one because her skin was too dark. This set in her the determination to ensure women of her skin tone could improve their situation.

From 1898 to 1909 Burroughs went to work for the National Baptist Convention in Kentucky. She was one of the founders of the Women’s Convention and served as president for 13 years. She also found the National Training School in 1908 that provided evening classes for women who had no other means of education.

In 1908 she opened the National Training School. Her goal was to uplift the race.  The main themes of the school was the three B’s: the Bible, the bath, and the broom.

In 1920 she wrote two plays, one The Slabtown District Convention and Where is My Wandering Boy Tonight?

In 1928, Burroughs was appointed committee chairwoman by the Hoover Administration  for the White House Conference 1931 Home Building and Ownership. She also spoke at conferences.

She died in May of 1961.

Affirmation

/ Psal121 / Leave a comment

Collaboration

I move with others, not alone,
each voice a thread, each gift a stone.
Together we build what one could not,
a garden grown from every plot.

I honor the wisdom that others bring,
their vision, their laughter, their song to sing.
In shared creation, I find my place,
our hands together shaping space.

The more we join, the more we grow,
our light combined, a brighter glow.
Collaboration is my way,
I rise with others every day.

Art of the Month

/ Psal121 / Leave a comment

Nannie Helen Burroughs meets us at the intersection of gender, race, and profession. She was an educator, civil rights activists, feminist, and businesswoman.

Burroughs was born May 2, 1879, in Orange Virginia.  Her parents were formerly slaves, and her father was a farmer and Baptist preacher.  Her father died when she was young, so Burroughs and her mother moved to Washing DC.

She attended high school in DC where she met Anna Julia Cooper and Mary Church Terrell, who were suffragists and civil rights activists.

After graduation she applied for a job with the District but could not get one because her skin was too dark. This set in her the determination to ensure women of her skin tone could improve their situation.

From 1898 to 1909 Burroughs went to work for the National Baptist Convention in Kentucky. She was one of the founders of the Women’s Convention and served as president for 13 years. She also found the National Training School in 1908 that provided evening classes for women who had no other means of education.

In 1908 she opened the National Training School. Her goal was to uplift the race.  The main themes of the school was the three B’s: the Bible, the bath, and the broom.

In 1920 she wrote two plays, one The Slabtown District Convention and Where is My Wandering Boy Tonight?

In 1928, Burroughs was appointed committee chairwoman by the Hoover Administration  for the White House Conference 1931 Home Building and Ownership. She also spoke at conferences.

She died in May of 1961

Affirmation

/ Psal121 / Leave a comment

Collaborate means to work jointly on an activity, especially to produce or create something. It is a good way to get things done. Working together can create an energy to get things done.

Art of the Month

/ Psal121 / Leave a comment

African American women are a force of strength and resilience, leaving an indelible mark on the world throughout history. Despite the many challenges designed to hold us back, we have never been defeated. When laws were created to suppress our hair, we responded with creativity—crafting headscarves that became timeless symbols of style and strength. We turned our hair into art, weaving stories and even maps into our styles.

Trailblazers like fashion designer Zelda Wynn Valdes broke barriers, opening her own fashion house and designing the iconic Playboy Bunny costume—making history with every stitch.

We’ve always known that Black is beautiful. That truth gained widespread recognition during the 1950s and 60s, when a movement arose to celebrate the natural beauty of African American women. It was a time of bold defiance against societal norms. Instead of conforming by straightening their hair, women embraced their roots—literally—with full, glorious afros.

We’ve turned something as simple as a look into a statement, a culture, a way of life.

With chapgpt