Littoral

“Every breath for a Black person is a grace in a world hell-bent on stealing our lives whether by actual execution or by the slow burn of dehumanization. But the awesome truth is, none of the villains in that oppression narrative are the givers of that grace. They have no real power over our breath even when trying to rob us of it. We must consciously continue to breathe because it is a demonstration of our defiance. Doing so allows us to birth ourselves over and over again, into every iteration of our people's freedom journey, and that, I suspect, must be terribly frustrating for our oppressors. And yes, be cause they are not the ones who can give us life, they absolutely have no right to steal it. Knowing this is the ultimate resistance. It is what Harriet knew. It's what Nat and Fannie Lou knew.”

— Tracey Michae’l Lewis-Giggetts, Black Joy: Stories of Resistance, Resilience, and Restoration, pp. 12-13