A hyphen is a small mark, almost invisible, yet it carries whole worlds. In the phrase African–American, that slight line holds memory, rupture, improvisation, and the unbroken thread of a people who remade life out of what tried to undo them. I have returned to this hyphen for years, asking what was forced onto it, what was carried across it, and what might be waiting to be reclaimed beneath it.
Read MoreOriginally published in 2019, this reflection marks the beginning of our collective journey. We return to it now with gratitude for how far we’ve come—and for the healing still unfolding. In this piece, our founder, Rev. Diane Ford Dessables, opens the conversation that became Gemstones in the Sun. Her words invite us to pause, breathe, and remember that the path to freedom begins with truth and ends in community.
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