WHAT WILL THE AUDIENCE LEARN?
Appreciation! Why the work continues!
EPISODE SUMMARY:
Celebrating 100 episodes of the Dismantle Racism Show. How strange to say those words. What exactly are we celebrating? We shouldn't have to dismantle racism. It shouldn't exist. True. True. True. Sadly, it does exist, and I'm grateful to be a part of the change that I want to see in the world. So... I am celebrating the call that I have to engage in the work of racial justice. I am celebrating and am grateful for each and every guest who has honored me by appearing on the show. I am celebrating and am grateful for every listener and subscriber. And, I am celebrating and am extremely grateful for all of the people who engage in the work of dismantling racism. THAT is worthy of celebration! Please join me for the show. Share your thoughts and comments. Help me celebrate 100 episodes.
KEY WORDS:
#revdrtlc
#dismantleracismwithrevdrtlc
#dismantleracismshow
#healingseparationfromtheinsideout
Tune in for this important conversation at TalkRadio.nyc
Rev. Dr. TLC is celebrating 100 episodes with her guest Michelle Duster. She starts with a meditation to prepare us for today’s discussion. Rev. Dr. TLC introduces her guest Michelle Duster. She shares her accolades and achievements over the years. Michelle Duster is an author who published her latest book IDA B. WELLS, VOICE OF TRUTH: Educator, Feminist, and Anti-Lynching Civil Rights Leader, in January of 2022. She is the great-granddaughter of the late great Ida B. Wells. Michelle Duster has worked on different forms of media like films, books, and articles, and she was even apart of community festivals. Rev. Dr. TLC mentions how she went to school in the same town Ida B. Wells was born, and she never learned anything about her history.
Rev. Dr. TLC shares how Michelle Duster is a public historian who advocates for black women’s stories to be told. Michelle tells us who Ida B Wells was from her perspective as a great-grandmother. She speaks of her accolades and the work Ida B. Wells has done for voting rights and racial equality. She also went into politics and held office. Rev. Dr. TLC asks Michelle what her experience was like being the great-granddaughter of Ida B. Wells. She wonders if Michelle ever felt pressured to do this work and to continue to help dismantle racism.
Rev. Dr. TLC and Michelle discussed Michelle’s trip to the white house and her part in the Emmett Till Anti-Lynching Act. Michelle shared a surreal experience when she was invited to the white house. Michelle tells Rev. Dr. TLC and her listeners a little about her mother, Maxine. She described her mother as very busy and someone who attended many meetings. Maxine recently passed away, so Michelle is still mourning her death. Michelle mentions Maxine’s advocacy in education and how it was instilled in her as a child. Michelle talks about the work she’s been doing around monuments, murals, and historical markers with Rev. Dr. TLC. Rev. Dr. TLC asks Michelle her opinion on the impact these stories on inspirational black women have on individuals trying to dismantle racism and even children.
Rev. Dr. TLC asks Michelle what are some of the efforts that ordinary individuals are making to dismantle racism. Michelle explains that her and her partner decided to edit Impact:
Personal Portraits of Activism as a resource to help people come up with ideas and help make a difference. Rev. Dr. TLC explains that it is the small acts we do day by day that helps to dismantle racism. Michelle leaves us with her final thoughts on dismantling racism. She believes that we all have the power and the voice to do this work. If you are interested in learning more about Michelle Duster then you can visit her website at MLGwrites.com. Lastly, Michelle is working on a really big project that involves a monument to suffragists. Michelle is making an effort to spread the news about women’s history and ensure that they get properly celebrated.
00:00:43.570 --> 00:00:55.580 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: Hello, and welcome to the dismantle racism show. I'm your host of Reverend Dr. Tlc. Today we are celebrating 100 episodes of dismantle racism.
00:00:55.580 --> 00:01:16.280 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: We have done. I cannot believe it. 100 episodes, or at least today, will be 100 episodes, and I think about it. How strange it is to say that we're celebrating because we're talking about such a serious topic like dismantling racism and racial equity. And so what exactly is it that we're celebrating.
00:01:16.280 --> 00:01:27.360 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: because really, we really shouldn't have to dismantle racism if we lived in a world where everyone treated each other with love and respect and with kindness.
00:01:27.360 --> 00:01:53.839 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: but because racism does exist, there's a need to have shows like this and what I am celebrating today, I am celebrating the fact that we are all gathered here, and we are interested in changing the world. We are all engaged in the work of racial justice, or at least I hope you are. If you're tuning into this show that you in some way are very passionate about the work of dismantling racism
00:01:53.940 --> 00:02:16.410 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: I'm celebrating how grateful I am to each of the guests who consider it. I consider an honor and a privilege that my guests would even come on the show that they would take the time out to come, so that they can teach me, and can teach my listeners about things that we can do to continue in this journey of dismantling racism
00:02:16.410 --> 00:02:26.029 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: I'm celebrating. Of course, you, my listeners and subscribers. I so appreciate the fact that you tune into this show.
00:02:26.030 --> 00:02:43.289 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: and I'm celebrating you as you continue the journey of dismantling racism that is worthy of celebration, as you know. If you've been listening to the show, whether you've caught 1, 2, 3 episodes or more. You know that the goal of this show.
00:02:43.380 --> 00:02:50.130 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: to educate, to uncover, to eradicate, to dismantle racism.
00:02:50.250 --> 00:03:07.300 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: and to create a world where racial equity exists for everyone where it is the norm. And so for over 2 years I've brought Guest on this show to really just have conversations with them about how they engage in the work of racial equity.
00:03:07.370 --> 00:03:34.230 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: in hopes of giving you the listeners an idea of how you might do the same thing. I often hear people saying they don't know what to do, how to engage in this work, and you know I always use Arthur as this quote, start where you are, use what you have, and do what you can. And so I believe when I bring the guest on the show, and they tell their personal stories, their journeys, of
00:03:34.430 --> 00:03:59.339 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: how they got to be where they are. It will help the everyday person to figure out what you can do to dismantle racism. We are all call to this work at various levels. And so that's why, on the show, I have people who come from all walks of life to talk about their experiences, and I hope that what my listeners will get from each guess is that
00:03:59.340 --> 00:04:06.350 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: they will at least be encouraged and strengthened and motivated to continue this work, because, listen.
00:04:06.350 --> 00:04:20.989 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: it is very demanding to do the work of justice, no matter what it is that you are seeking to be an advocate for for justice the work is demanding. It is not for the faint of heart.
00:04:21.029 --> 00:04:27.909 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: And so I want to encourage you to continue in the journey I want to can encourage you to continue to listen
00:04:28.020 --> 00:04:52.929 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: to this show, because over the last couple of years we've had entre new entrepreneurs on the show to talk about their personal growth, as it related to even just expanding their business and being more inclusive in their business or their marketing, or how they recognize racism in their daily lives. We've had activists on the show who marched in Ferguson, Missouri.
00:04:52.930 --> 00:05:00.619 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: Michael Brown was murdered. We've had activists who've marched in Charlottesville, Virginia, during the unite the right rally.
00:05:00.790 --> 00:05:11.870 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: We've had an individual on this show to come on to talk about the training that he does as a clergy and an activist, and he teaches people in a militant.
00:05:11.870 --> 00:05:40.389 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: non-violent, civil disobedience manner, to engage in the work of social justice which is really important. We've heard stories on this show of people who have sat down, the ancestors of enslaved people who sat down with the ancestors of enslaved. We've had politicians on the show, who were advocating for justice for aid, and Ellison, who, you know, was killed out
00:05:40.770 --> 00:06:03.610 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: in Ashland, Oregon, a couple of years ago. We've heard perspectives on how to reconcile a lynch and and how to mobilize masses of white people, to become activists. I could go on and on and on about the shows that we have had, and I want to say that I am grateful again to each and every guest
00:06:03.610 --> 00:06:18.930 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: who thought it not robbery, as as as the old folks would say, to be present and to be on this show to help us continue in this journey. And so I want to thank you again, my listeners, for all of your support
00:06:19.090 --> 00:06:24.600 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: and the work that you are doing in this world. So I wanted to start.
00:06:24.950 --> 00:06:48.130 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: Now be a little bit brief today. But I want to start, as I always do, with just a meditation to get us breathing, to get a center to get us focused on the conversation that we are going to have today with my guest, who I'm honored to be very honored, that she would come and to celebrate my one hundredth episode with me today.
00:06:48.130 --> 00:07:03.040 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: So what I'm going to do is to invite you to close your eyes, as I always do, so that we can just begin to breathe, and then I'm going to read one of my meditations from my book. Dismantling racism, healing separation from the inside out.
00:07:03.680 --> 00:07:10.709 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: Want to encourage you as always, if you've not picked up a copy to please do so, but close your eyes if you would, for a minute.
00:07:11.710 --> 00:07:16.050 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: and just again to breathe in
00:07:17.080 --> 00:07:20.980 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: and out the very slow pace
00:07:22.530 --> 00:07:24.450 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: connected with your breath.
00:07:25.990 --> 00:07:33.509 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: connecting with your divine wisdom. your sacred intelligence
00:07:34.920 --> 00:07:40.850 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: connecting with that part of you that gives you life and power.
00:07:43.180 --> 00:07:46.080 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: just breathe it in and out.
00:07:47.920 --> 00:07:51.289 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: Allow your body to settle into your chair.
00:07:54.100 --> 00:08:04.970 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: If your feet are planted on the floor. just fill the floor supporting you. or if you're outside the earth supporting you.
00:08:06.740 --> 00:08:14.070 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: just breathe in and out, and listen to the sound of my voice as I read these words.
00:08:15.610 --> 00:08:27.620 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: beloved spirits. in gratitude, we say, thank you for all who came before us. and showed us what it means to manifest the sacred within us.
00:08:28.750 --> 00:08:37.020 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: Let us remember their resolve to make the world a better place for us. doing so in small and big ways.
00:08:38.140 --> 00:08:45.030 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: Let us remember how they lived with integrity. holding themselves and those around them accountable.
00:08:46.540 --> 00:08:51.990 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: Let us remember how they walked in truth, and showed us what it means to be ethical.
00:08:53.730 --> 00:09:01.520 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: Let us remember how they worked together and cared for their neighbors. who extended beyond their corners of the world.
00:09:02.930 --> 00:09:11.860 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: Let us remember their tenacity. courage. and determination to advocate for the least of these.
00:09:13.260 --> 00:09:17.120 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: let us remember that they practice discernment.
00:09:17.570 --> 00:09:21.500 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: relished wisdom. and walked by faith.
00:09:22.910 --> 00:09:26.210 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: We're grateful to them, and remember them with love
00:09:26.620 --> 00:09:29.190 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: and hope in our hearts.
00:09:30.370 --> 00:09:42.919 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: So we take a deep breath in recognizing that the power of one contributes to the power of community. and you
00:09:43.080 --> 00:09:46.250 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: have the ability to change the status quo.
00:09:47.760 --> 00:09:49.449 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: take a deep breath in
00:09:50.550 --> 00:09:59.360 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: and blow it out slowly. and we say, and so it is she and
00:10:03.800 --> 00:10:33.239 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: love it today on the show. I am really really delighted to have my guest here. Michelle Duster Michelle has spanned over 30 years her career, has spent over 30 years. Being an author historian, she's focused on and highlighted and celebrated and documented African Americans and women who have made the United States what it is, including
00:10:33.520 --> 00:10:38.060 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: her paternal great grandmother, I to be Wells.
00:10:38.210 --> 00:11:01.179 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: She started as an advertising copywriter, and has worked on articles, books, films, monuments, murals, markers, street names, and festivals which we will get in to some of that. As she tells her story today, she is again an author of so many books, but she recently, in 2,022, published I to be Wells
00:11:01.180 --> 00:11:12.210 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: Voice of Truth, which was released again in January of 2,022, and an adult book, I to be the Queen, the extraordinary life and legacy of I to be Wells.
00:11:12.320 --> 00:11:38.810 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: She, has also consulted with the Ida B. Wells doll, which we are excited about it. That also came out in January 2,022, which is a Mattel doll, a Barbie doll, so to speak, which which Mattel has an inspiring Women's Barbie Doll series, and I'm so so grateful that I to be Wells, was one of those I I really actually feel a little
00:11:38.920 --> 00:11:47.990 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: funny saying I to be Wells, particularly with having Michelle on on the show because I was raised that you put a handle on your elders name.
00:11:47.990 --> 00:12:10.420 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: but we always refer to her as I to be Wells is so I I'm just offering my apologies right now, Michelle, for not saying Mrs. Wells, but I am really truly excited to bring Michelle on the show. And I'm going to bring her in. I know we'll be. We'll be taking a break in just a few minutes. But I want
00:12:10.420 --> 00:12:15.489 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: to just welcome you to the show, Michelle. I'm so excited that you could be with me today.
00:12:18.010 --> 00:12:30.370 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: So we are going to start, Michelle. you know it's very interesting, because when we talked pre-show and we were talking about your great grandmother.
00:12:30.420 --> 00:12:37.600 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: and really the importance of knowing history, and you said something very interesting that a lot of people
00:12:38.590 --> 00:12:47.189 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: didn't even find out who your mother, your great grandmother, was until they went to college. Now. I didn't say anything to you at that point.
00:12:47.230 --> 00:12:51.439 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: but I was one of those people, and what's even sadder
00:12:51.460 --> 00:12:52.800 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: is that
00:12:53.050 --> 00:13:00.699 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: I went to high school in the same hometown where your great grandmother was born.
00:13:01.290 --> 00:13:08.849 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: and so it's a travesty to me that I could go through 12 years of school. and not be taught
00:13:08.950 --> 00:13:16.759 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: about a woman who was so significant to the history of this country.
00:13:17.270 --> 00:13:27.509 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: and not really know about her until I got to college. And so I want to thank you personally for the work that you are doing
00:13:28.060 --> 00:13:39.830 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: to help the world to know, not just about her, but all the women in history. So I want to again welcome you to the show. We're going to take a quick break, and when we return
00:13:39.950 --> 00:13:54.570 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: I wanna just jump in and and ask you lots of questions about your family history, but as well about the work that you are doing. So I don't know if you want to say hello before we jump to, I want to allow you a chance to do that.
00:13:54.810 --> 00:14:05.060 Michelle Duster she/her: yes. Well, thank you very much for having me on the show. Dr. Avery. I'm excited to share with your audience information about my great grandmother and
00:14:05.100 --> 00:14:11.330 Michelle Duster she/her: different projects that I'm working on, and just what I believe are is the real
00:14:11.470 --> 00:14:14.530 Michelle Duster she/her: need to have
00:14:14.710 --> 00:14:18.629 Michelle Duster she/her: for all of us to to engage in
00:14:18.640 --> 00:14:22.609 Michelle Duster she/her: working on projects. that help
00:14:22.880 --> 00:14:52.110 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: have fair and equal representation and truth in our country's history. Yes, amazing, amazing. So we're going to come back with the dismantled racism show where my guest today is Michelle Duster, and we are going to not only be talking about the legacy of I to be well, but we're going to be talking about why it's important for truth to be told in our history as well. We will be right back with the dismantle racism show
00:15:25.330 --> 00:15:49.090 everybody. It's Tommy Gee, the nonprofit sector connector coming at you from my attic each week here on talk radio and Ny Z. I host the program for lamp of PIN focus nonprofits impact us each and every day, and it's my focus to help them amplify their message and tell their story. Listen each week at 10 A. M. Eastern Standard time until 11 A. M. Is from standing time right here on talk radio and Nyc.
00:16:56.500 --> 00:17:24.460 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: We're back with my guest today. Michelle Duster and Michelle Duster is a public historian who really advocates for truth and really for women and African American stories being brought to life in history, and she does so in a number of ways. And so we're going to be talking about that. But, Michelle, let's get started by telling our audience. Who was I to be? Well? Because I just said it as if
00:17:24.740 --> 00:17:32.159 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: the world knows? And we know that that's not actually true. So what do you want to tell us about who I to be? Wells was?
00:17:34.180 --> 00:17:36.750 Michelle Duster she/her: Well, I to be Wells was
00:17:37.030 --> 00:17:56.529 Michelle Duster she/her: Oh, my great grandmother, who was born into slavery in 1,862, and Holly Springs, Mississippi, which was only 3 years before the Civil War ended, and so she said, bent her infancy enslaved, although the Emancipation Proclamation came out, and when she was about 6 months old
00:17:56.560 --> 00:17:57.660 Michelle Duster she/her: But
00:17:58.290 --> 00:18:26.170 Michelle Duster she/her: she She was able to become formally educated because she grew up during reconstruction, she went on to become a adjourn, or she started as a a teacher. She became a journalist, and within journalism she became a a pioneer in data journalism. When she chronicled the realities regarding lynching she later on got involved in the suffrage movement, which is the fight for the right to vote
00:18:26.430 --> 00:18:34.400 Michelle Duster she/her: and So she was involved in helping women gain the right to vote As a result of the Nineteenth Amendment in 1920.
00:18:34.470 --> 00:18:39.959 Michelle Duster she/her: she in Chicago. She settled on Chicago ultimately, and she
00:18:40.170 --> 00:18:52.130 Michelle Duster she/her: did work that today is considered social work where she helped Southern migrants adjust to life in Chicago, providing housing and job training and job placement for them.
00:18:52.590 --> 00:19:12.759 Michelle Duster she/her: And then she ultimately actually got involved in politics herself. She ran for office. So she did many things. In addition to being a mother of 4 children. Her youngest daughter was my grandmother, my father's grandmother, and
00:19:12.770 --> 00:19:25.889 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: And so that's that was basically what she did. That's like all she did right. Now, I'm just kinda change his. And I was, gonna say, you, you you say it. It is like boom. This is what she did, but it's incredible work
00:19:25.960 --> 00:19:48.900 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: that she did. And you know, Michelle, one of the things that I'm amazed by women like I to be Wells and Harriet Tubman, and and lots of those women, I think about the courage it took for them to do what they did, because from what I have read about your great grandmother and the way that she inspires me.
00:19:49.030 --> 00:20:16.500 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: I I my understanding, was that first of all, she was in her twenties when she developed this newspaper and began to start writing. And I think when I think about what 26 year old people are doing now, I mean, that's incredible. And I think it's important for people to know. Also her newspaper was burned down, wasn't it? Her? Her press was burned and it was destroyed. Yes, yes.
00:20:16.510 --> 00:20:20.509 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: and and the reason why I want to highlight, that
00:20:21.180 --> 00:20:37.740 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: is because often many of the people that I work with when we're talking about doing this work of dismantling racism, we must know that it comes with a cost. Now it may not come with them burning down our house or or or something of that nature. But
00:20:38.110 --> 00:20:45.510 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: there are sacrifices that we have to make, and I think it's important when you're talking about the women in history
00:20:45.600 --> 00:20:58.630 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: that we really need to think about the the women and the African Americans that they they sacrifice so much for us to be where we are. And so I'm wondering for you.
00:20:59.850 --> 00:21:12.470 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: How does that sit with you to kind of think about the courage of your great grandmother and others in your family when you, when you. when you know the experience that they went to through.
00:21:14.110 --> 00:21:36.990 Michelle Duster she/her: Well, one of the things that I've tried to do in my work. Specifically, the books that I've written about. I to be wells is to humanize her because what I find many times I mean I I meet a lot of people who are are familiar with her story and are in all of her. They revere her, that she's their spiritual God, mother, she's their hero. They're.
00:21:37.010 --> 00:21:47.209 Michelle Duster she/her: you know, all kinds of ways that people sort of, I think, sort of put around a pedestal which is wonderful, that people are inspired by her, but I also think that
00:21:47.270 --> 00:21:55.310 Michelle Duster she/her: When people are put too high on a on a pedestal, then they become
00:21:55.380 --> 00:22:22.290 Michelle Duster she/her: they they become in not human, you know. They're sort of become sort of God like, or something, and intangible. And so what I've tried to do in the work that I've that I've been doing writing books and working on these different projects, but also even when I do a lot of speaking engagements. I want people to understand that she was actually human. She was a real woman who had the same emotions that all of us have.
00:22:22.290 --> 00:22:28.730 Michelle Duster she/her: She went through different emotional challenges. one of the things that I
00:22:29.130 --> 00:22:49.520 Michelle Duster she/her: really kind of. I I guess I could say enjoy it Or I found in lightning when I was doing the research for my books was reading her diary that she wrote in Memphis. It is published. It's called the Memphis Diary, and that really helped me. sort of
00:22:49.760 --> 00:23:05.650 Michelle Duster she/her: understand that she had a lot of the same insecurities and disappointments and frustrations, and all kinds of the same emotions. We all have. The difference, maybe, between her and some of the rest of us is that
00:23:05.830 --> 00:23:20.690 Michelle Duster she/her: she kind of pushed through them, and she drew on strength. and she was very focused and very determined. She had a mission, and I think sometimes when you have a mission, then you can overcome
00:23:20.690 --> 00:23:41.000 Michelle Duster she/her: and push through. Maybe some of some of the things that might stop you otherwise, because you just get to the point where you don't really care what other people might think about you. You might not care about the challenges that are thrown in your way, or the barriers that are thrown in your way because you're so focused and determined
00:23:41.000 --> 00:23:57.469 Michelle Duster she/her: on what your goal is. And I think a lot of us might get into that situation where you just you just become laser beam focused. and you kind of can ignore the naysayers and and even your own, you know, sort of inner chatter, and just
00:23:57.500 --> 00:24:24.949 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: move on with what you want to get done
00:24:25.180 --> 00:24:45.620 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: being the great granddaughter. Have you felt like there's this sense of pressure to to do this work, or would have been those kind of stories that are in the house. You know, we all have our family stories about things that have happened. So what's that been. What's that journey been like for you?
00:24:48.070 --> 00:24:59.690 Michelle Duster she/her: Well, as I mentioned, I to be Wells had 4 children, and her youngest daughter was my grandmother. Her name is Alfreda Duster. She's the one who edited and got her mother's
00:24:59.790 --> 00:25:06.160 Michelle Duster she/her: autobiography published, and so I grew up, knowing my great, my grandmother very well.
00:25:06.200 --> 00:25:09.940 I spent a lot of time with her as a child. We used to
00:25:09.970 --> 00:25:17.679 Michelle Duster she/her: go swimming every Saturday, my father and my brothers and my grandmother and me And so I spent a lot of time with her.
00:25:18.170 --> 00:25:24.319 Michelle Duster she/her: Just every Saturday I used to spend the night in her apartment, along with her sister
00:25:24.330 --> 00:25:36.240 Michelle Duster she/her: lived with her my whole life. So I actually knew both of the daughters of of Ida. My grandmother was just the more active person when it came to
00:25:36.520 --> 00:25:44.929 Michelle Duster she/her: doing the work to help people remember her mother? So that's how you know people know her a little bit more than my aunt, but
00:25:45.210 --> 00:25:59.210 Michelle Duster she/her: for me. it's kind of hard to not think of whatever your experience is as normal, because that's all I knew was, you know, that I was part of this family that had an ancestor who was
00:25:59.230 --> 00:26:03.459 Michelle Duster she/her: famous during her time. But I also
00:26:03.570 --> 00:26:30.450 Michelle Duster she/her: like I said I mentioned. I'm related to I to be well on my father's side of the family? But my mother was the person that I who raised me. I knew my mother. I grew up in the same house as my mother, and so my mother obviously had a huge influence on me, and my mother also made sure that we recognize that we? She had a family, too. And so my mom was very in very adamant about.
00:26:30.510 --> 00:26:41.649 Michelle Duster she/her: you know, making sure that it wasn't like, okay, you only have one relative, Ida, and everybody else is invisible and and irrelevant. That's just not even realistic. And so for me.
00:26:42.090 --> 00:26:53.000 Michelle Duster she/her: I to be walls was one of my family members, not the only and so I knew who she was. I knew that she was famous, you know, during her time.
00:26:53.070 --> 00:26:56.240 Michelle Duster she/her: But I also knew that
00:26:56.430 --> 00:27:15.060 Michelle Duster she/her: Mini I come from not a not as big a family as some people, but for compared to some of my friends. I mean, I'm one of 30 cousins on both sides of my family, and I have tons of I mean I a lot of aunts and uncles, and and
00:27:15.150 --> 00:27:23.019 Michelle Duster she/her: there's just a lot of people. And so I there was one of the many of my ancestors.
00:27:23.330 --> 00:27:27.879 Michelle Duster she/her: and the way that we grew up when I say we, because I have 2 brothers.
00:27:28.310 --> 00:27:29.450 Michelle Duster she/her: was
00:27:29.540 --> 00:27:40.189 Michelle Duster she/her: my my grandmother very much focused on making sure that we all knew who we were as individual people. I had our own sense of identity.
00:27:40.200 --> 00:27:49.829 Michelle Duster she/her: our own sense of accomplishments, my grandmother constantly told us, like you cannot live off of somebody else's accomplishments. You have to have your own
00:27:49.870 --> 00:28:07.120 Michelle Duster she/her: And so I really appreciate that, because I never felt pressure to live up to somebody else's you know legacy, or their accomplishments, or any expectations that I would follow in their footsteps, or anything like that it was like. Do you
00:28:07.120 --> 00:28:35.330 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: be the best you you can be not try to be another. Ida. Yeah. You know we we have to take a quick break and when we come back from our break, though I want to hear about your mom, because I know that your mother has done or or did some incredible work. I I want to offer my condolences, because I know it's in recent months that your mother passed through passed away. But I do want to hear a little bit more about her, and I'd like you if you
00:28:35.330 --> 00:28:37.250 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: could, when we return
00:28:37.650 --> 00:28:41.740 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: to talk about what it was like to
00:28:41.800 --> 00:28:43.580 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: go to the White House
00:28:44.070 --> 00:28:50.050 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: and be a part of the signing of the Immaterial Anti Lynching
00:28:50.090 --> 00:29:16.370 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: Act, because that was something that that I had to work so hard for in terms of just exposing the Lynch that we're going on in this country. But so many people have worked towards the anti luncheon loss. So when we return, I'd like to to start that conversation there and then. Here, a little bit about your mother. We'll be right back with the Dismantle racism show. I'm your host, the Reverend Dr. Tlc.
00:30:20.770 --> 00:30:44.540 everybody. It's Tommy Gee, the non-profit sector Connector coming at you from my attic each week here on talk radio and Nyc. I hosted program for a lab of in focus nonprofits in cocktails each and every day, and it's my focus to help them amplify their message and tell their story. Listen. Each week at 10 A. M. Eastern standard time until 11 A. M. Is from standing time right here on talk radio dot. Nyc.
00:31:18.130 --> 00:31:37.160 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: We're back with my guest today, Michelle Dust, or Michelle before the break. I was asking you about You know. What was it like for you to go to the White House and be a part of this momentous occasion of the Emmett till anti and lynching at? Can you talk a little bit about that.
00:31:38.300 --> 00:31:59.399 Michelle Duster she/her: the signing of it. It was an amazing experience. I I still have to remind myself that it really happened because it seemed like a dream, like a yeah, it was. It was very. It was a whirlwind. And so I that was part of the reason why? I you know, after it was over, was like, Was I really there?
00:31:59.410 --> 00:32:17.100 Michelle Duster she/her: yeah. And just the whole experience with surreal, even when I, you know. Got the call to, you know I got a call, saying, this is somebody from the White House, and we are wondering if you want to come to. We love to have you come to the White House and this and I'm like, seriously, really you know, you almost think it's a prank
00:32:17.100 --> 00:32:32.300 Michelle Duster she/her: call. But yeah, it was very short notice, and so I had to scramble and get myself to Washington, DC. I live in Chicago. So There was some logistics to get myself there and
00:32:32.300 --> 00:32:43.600 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: and then trying to figure out what to say. And honestly, the biggest thing was what to wear, because I'm like, Oh, my God, we're going to be a dash on on TV. What am I gonna wear? Exactly. Exactly
00:32:43.870 --> 00:32:59.229 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: so. But you couldn't say no to that right? If the White House calls you, you're going to try to make your way to the oh, yeah, yeah, I mean absolutely But I mean. And and I just have to like make people laugh, you know, like when it this on. But it's not actually like
00:32:59.320 --> 00:33:20.119 Michelle Duster she/her: untrue that one of the biggest concerns that I have was when I I mean they had me walk out of the oval office into the rose garden, and I was just myself. President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, and I was like the only thing that was going through my my mind was, please don't trick
00:33:20.120 --> 00:33:44.179 Michelle Duster she/her: because I just had this like nightmare, like idea, like if I strip and fall, and then I, you know, knock over the President, I'm like, Oh, my God, I just put one foot in front of the other. so those are. Those are the things I was more concerned about than what I was gonna say, or even thinking about the fact that I was in the same space where my great grandmother had been over 130 years ago. I was just like, just don't
00:33:44.180 --> 00:34:07.410 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: like, embarrass yourself. Yeah. Well, you know what we were all rooting for you that day, and so I hope you could feel the energy and how excited everyone was that this act had really been passed, and I'm sure that Ida, along with all the other ancestors and great cloud of witnesses we're looking, and we're super excited
00:34:07.410 --> 00:34:14.460 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: about what was happening. So so thank you for going on behalf of all of us and not tricking it.
00:34:14.469 --> 00:34:38.559 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: it went out there. But look, tell us a little bit about Maxine. You mentioned how you know she was really careful to say, you have other family as well, and I know that she was phenomenal, and she is helped, according to her obituary, that I read in the paper to save hundreds of lives. So tell us a little bit about her
00:34:40.080 --> 00:34:53.379 Michelle Duster she/her: right? Well, my mother, Maxine duster She did recently pass away. So I'm still processing that loss. And you know, I mean, I knew when I was growing up. but even more so as an adult
00:34:53.429 --> 00:34:55.650 Michelle Duster she/her: just how
00:34:55.770 --> 00:35:03.219 Michelle Duster she/her: my mother, my mother, was very, very busy. to me it was the norm to to have a mother who was
00:35:03.340 --> 00:35:12.570 Michelle Duster she/her: constantly going to meetings and doing a lot of work. at home, you know, like
00:35:13.160 --> 00:35:16.390 Michelle Duster she/her: this was pre computers. So I mean, she was
00:35:16.400 --> 00:35:35.649 Michelle Duster she/her: like assembling things, you know mailings and deal, going over list and going over notes and asking me to type things for her on the typewriter. And so it was just the norm. She was always on the phone and so to me. That was just what you do.
00:35:35.650 --> 00:35:52.599 Michelle Duster she/her: I I never felt neglected as a child or anything I mean, my mom sort of incorporated me into what she was doing. So I felt helpful, you know, helping her stuff envelopes and that kind of thing. But she was very involved in different organizations that were focused on education.
00:35:52.610 --> 00:36:10.469 Michelle Duster she/her: specifically, education because she she was an educator. But then she got involved in, or other types of employment. That was a that was sort of advocacy in education. And so I mean, I grew up in in an environment
00:36:10.530 --> 00:36:15.399 Michelle Duster she/her: where education was very much a focus
00:36:15.790 --> 00:36:19.720 Michelle Duster she/her: a way to make sure that you
00:36:19.940 --> 00:36:20.980 Michelle Duster she/her: become.
00:36:21.160 --> 00:36:48.589 Michelle Duster she/her: you know, obviously knowledgeable about certain topics, but also qualify to engage in whatever kind of profession that you want to engage in, and and we were always taught that, you know you're just as smart as anybody else. And so my mom knew that up everybody didn't have the same environment. to that, you know, that had that kind of focus. And so she wanted to give
00:36:48.590 --> 00:37:14.909 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: other kids opportunities to grow to their full potential. And I know that What your mother would often do would be to pair young black kids with doctors, black doctors, and that once they repair together, some of those people grew up to be doctors, and and so when I made the reference to saving lives. That's actually what one of them said. She saved lives
00:37:14.910 --> 00:37:20.140 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: because she encouraged us to become doctors, and that's what we do.
00:37:20.140 --> 00:37:32.869 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: and I know she was also You know, you were talking about the number of things that she was involved in. She was instrumental in making sure that certain organizations hired
00:37:32.870 --> 00:37:57.729 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: black people. So that's the kind of advocacy work that she was doing as well along with with other members in the group that that she belong to. I'm forgetting the name of the organization right at this moment. But she really was a part of changing what was happening in Chicago at the time, and so it seems like then, between having a grandmother
00:37:57.730 --> 00:38:11.949 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: then having a mother, and then, as you say, other people in your family doing this work. It's almost like you were born to do this work, because or born, or nurtured or encouraged to do it. Let's talk a little bit
00:38:12.210 --> 00:38:32.350 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: about the work that you're doing, because, in addition to you, being an author of all of the books that you've written, not only on I to be Wells. You've written other books as well. Talk a little bit about the work that you do, particularly around monuments and murals and markers. Can you share a little bit about that?
00:38:34.260 --> 00:39:01.950 Michelle Duster she/her: Well, yes, I mean. And and I I have to say that I never may had a plan on You know people have their 5 year plan, I mean I I I went to an Ivy League School, and I was surrounded by people who had their plan. and I now have to laugh about that, because there are certain things that I didn't even know existed, you know, when I was in college. And so things have just kind of developed over time. And I've decided to be flexible.
00:39:01.950 --> 00:39:19.139 Michelle Duster she/her: and just kind of go with what makes sense at the time. And so what I've been doing in the past 15 years or so has been working on. I didn't even know there was a term called public history. But now I know that it. That's what I've been doing, which is basically creating work.
00:39:19.140 --> 00:39:38.440 Michelle Duster she/her: that educates people about history in public spaces. So any, basically anywhere that's outside of a classroom, if you, you know, see any kind of history. So that includes museums, films, and other things that I've been working on, you know, historical markers and monuments.
00:39:38.610 --> 00:39:40.370 Michelle Duster she/her: street signs.
00:39:40.380 --> 00:40:07.810 Michelle Duster she/her: films, festivals like any way that you can learn about history that's outside of a school. And so I've been working in various mediums because I feel very strongly that people learn different ways. some people are visual, some people, you know or read text. They some people like films, some people can you know, see things and cartoons, or whatever I mean, like I and I. So I've been trying to work on in different
00:40:07.920 --> 00:40:13.499 Michelle Duster she/her: mediums for different age groups, and so people can be exposed to different
00:40:13.550 --> 00:40:15.160 Michelle Duster she/her: points in their lives
00:40:15.210 --> 00:40:17.790 in different reading levels.
00:40:17.960 --> 00:40:19.380 Michelle Duster she/her: because
00:40:19.690 --> 00:40:45.949 Michelle Duster she/her: to me it's all important and and they complement each other. And so I've I worked as started on the monument with about my great grandmother on the land where the Ib. Wells homes were. There was a public housing community, a very substantial public housing community in Chicago, named after her. That was very well known on the south side of Chicago, but it started to be dismantled in 2,002,
00:40:54.340 --> 00:41:01.239 Michelle Duster she/her: not a good way to for her to fade away. I mean she was a woman and not a building, and so
00:41:01.480 --> 00:41:10.769 Michelle Duster she/her: I advocate it to have something created that would help people remember her as the woman, even when the buildings are gone.
00:41:11.140 --> 00:41:25.200 Michelle Duster she/her: And so working on that project. in order for me to that we had to raise a lot of money for the project. And so in order to basically create a a case
00:41:25.240 --> 00:41:29.599 Michelle Duster she/her: to get people to support the project. I did a lot of research
00:41:29.970 --> 00:41:45.519 Michelle Duster she/her: to find out how many other monuments there were to black women, how many they were to black people, how many they were to all women. what kind of other public artwork was you know, represented women, and the more that I learned.
00:41:45.520 --> 00:42:02.979 Michelle Duster she/her: the more I felt like, well, there's a lot of work to be done because we're it's incredibly underrepresented. Only about less than 5% of the monuments in this country are represent African American women specifically, but women in general.
00:42:03.040 --> 00:42:10.780 Michelle Duster she/her: Then, when you get to statues and other kinds of public artwork on murals and markers, and all these other things I mean
00:42:11.040 --> 00:42:20.610 Michelle Duster she/her: the story of our country through public artwork is very skewed. It's very skewed towards white men.
00:42:20.990 --> 00:42:26.780 Michelle Duster she/her: and it's very skewed towards a war And so
00:42:28.050 --> 00:42:56.669 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: I just started feeling more encouraged and interested in working in this space to help tell the narrative of our country in a more truthful way. What do you think that that does for the individual, whether it's someone who's advocating for racism or just for for the average child to hear these stories about these women and African Americans. How? How is it helpful?
00:42:58.460 --> 00:43:09.629 Michelle Duster she/her: I think it's helpful for African-american children to see people represent it in public spaces that look like them, and that they can relate to it, or it looks like
00:43:09.860 --> 00:43:34.509 Michelle Duster she/her: you know, somebody in their family. And and one of the things that I really enjoy is watching children interact with some of the pieces that I've done. They don't know that I was involved in it. And so I'm just like, Oh, my God! Just to see their face, you know, light up, and they're pointing at the pieces, and they're looking at, and they're talking about it, and their parents are talking to them about it. I mean
00:43:34.510 --> 00:43:42.559 Michelle Duster she/her: it. They are very engaged and and so, and I think it's important for people who are not African American to see
00:43:42.560 --> 00:43:54.849 Michelle Duster she/her: African Americans and women in these spaces, so that they they are aware, and Lauren, that everybody who did something in this country is not a white man, so you know.
00:43:55.040 --> 00:44:01.500 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: So they learned that there, this, this is a multi-racial multi gender
00:44:01.510 --> 00:44:29.299 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: country, and we all contributed to it, and I think it helps us to know what we can become right. And and it'd help us to helps us to appreciate one another a little bit more. Michelle, we're gonna have to take a quick break. And when we come back, you know, one of the books that you wrote was called Impact Personal Portraits of Activism. I'd love to talk a little bit about that book, because.
00:44:29.300 --> 00:44:56.429 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: you know, there might. Some of my listeners might be saying, Well, I'm not going to go out here and do a monument, or mural, or or or anything that grant, or even a marker. And so I want the listeners to be able to know. How. How can you just get involved on a personal level, on, you know, to do the work of dismantling racism. You have done so much in your life, and we only skim just a little bit of it in our time together.
00:44:56.740 --> 00:45:16.140 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: and not. Everyone is going to be a Michelle, but we want people to do what they can. So when we come back, I'd love to hear you talk a little bit about your will, your work with that, and gathering the stories from the individuals who are in the book. So we'll be right back with the dismantle racism show.
00:47:31.600 --> 00:47:47.750 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: Michelle, you are one of those guests. I feel like I had to have back again, because there's so much work that you're doing. I mean, you offer workshops, you you you know you do the writing you're out there and advocating for
00:47:48.140 --> 00:48:14.279 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: our, you know, stories to be told, and so I think there's just so much that people can learn from you and what you are doing. I think it's incredible strength that you're out here, and you're traveling all over the place, doing the work that you're doing. You're writing articles as well as books, you know, responding to the things that are going on. And so I just think that you are an incredible, incredible woman
00:48:14.400 --> 00:48:25.129 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: in your own right, who's doing this work? And so I just again want to just thank you for the work that you do and the ways that you keep showing up. so
00:48:25.140 --> 00:48:31.209 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: not everyone is Michelle. Talk to me a little bit about
00:48:31.220 --> 00:48:49.409 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: the stories that were in your Personal Impact Book. You know, what are some of the things that I would encourage people to go out and pick up the book but what some of the people, the things that everyday folks are doing to dismantle racism into into advocates for others.
00:48:50.950 --> 00:48:59.569 Michelle Duster she/her: you know one of the things that I mean the reason why. my partner, Trina. So Tierra and I decided to edit this book.
00:48:59.650 --> 00:49:18.529 Michelle Duster she/her: we were just interested in helping people come up with ideas and to feel that they can make a difference, because, you know the idea. There was only one I to be Wells? There will only be one of her, and there's only going to be one Martin Luther King, and you know some of the the household names that people hear about
00:49:18.530 --> 00:49:33.210 Michelle Duster she/her: And so I you know, I just felt very strongly that people need to understand that everybody can make a difference if everybody does a little bit, then, you know, we can all change the world. And so we did a call for submissions. asking people.
00:49:33.550 --> 00:49:49.280 Michelle Duster she/her: what kind of ways. Have you? made it to me? Any kind of change in your in personal environment? And And so it was interesting for us to see the kind of things that people you know, submitted
00:49:49.400 --> 00:50:10.399 Michelle Duster she/her: quite a few were in the education field. And so they were doing things with students. I mean creating programs and their schools, creating activities for kids to be exposed to different things. in in helping kids learn that they have a voice. there were people who talked about
00:50:10.570 --> 00:50:20.949 Michelle Duster she/her: it's it's these are kind of the micro type of act activism type thing. So somebody talking about how
00:50:21.040 --> 00:50:37.400 Michelle Duster she/her: she created a program for kids to learn about different hair textures and to recognize that everybody has different kind of hair. And it's all beautiful. This one woman wrote about how she advocated to have
00:50:37.410 --> 00:50:52.640 Michelle Duster she/her: of of the visitation room in a prison painted a different color, because you know, the color does affect your mood, I mean, so these are the type of you know, just if you say like, it's activism to paint a room
00:50:52.720 --> 00:50:58.060 Michelle Duster she/her: but it does affect the experience in this kind of.
00:50:58.410 --> 00:50:59.389 Michelle Duster she/her: you know.
00:50:59.500 --> 00:51:21.860 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: Sad kind of in a situation where somebody is visiting their parents who is imprisoned. So that's just some examples of, you know, just something that somebody to to change, make a change in, in, in, in, the, in the sphere that they have influence. See, and I love that I love that that that
00:51:22.220 --> 00:51:49.489 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: in a way we may not think of it as grand. But if you think about changing that room, for instance, in a prison that impacts the mood of the prisoner that impacts the mood of the person that's visiting, and it may have an influence on how those people are going to act the rest of the day like. It's a difference between, you know, if a room is bright and cherry, it's going to make you feel a little bit more upbeat. And so I really want my listeners to understand that
00:51:49.490 --> 00:52:02.009 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: it. It's the small, steady act that we do day by day. That helps us to dismantle racism. And so my hope is that by listening to the show that people will be able to pull out
00:52:02.030 --> 00:52:31.029 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: something that they can do from hearing. You know your your story and the stories of others, because I'm sure, like you said about your grandmother, you get tired some 5 of doing this work, and maybe there are times. You wonder am I making a difference? But it's really about continuing down the road, and at continuing down the road with with just persistent and steady speed. Michelle, as we, we get ready to close
00:52:32.020 --> 00:52:42.540 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: what would be some final thoughts that you might have something that maybe we haven't shared or covered in our time together, that you'd like to leave our audience with.
00:52:44.440 --> 00:53:01.580 Michelle Duster she/her: Well, one of the things that I think is very important. Dr. Tlc. For people to recognize is that they do have power. they do have a voice, and I think too many times people feel like, well, you know I'm not. Whatever X, you know, fill in the blank
00:53:01.580 --> 00:53:25.240 Michelle Duster she/her: that they feel intimidated by. But you know, I think it's important for people to recognize that small acts do make a difference, and everybody has a voice, and everybody needs to speak up for what they think is right and what they think can make a difference. And so, you know, just get engaged. you know be. Know that
00:53:25.470 --> 00:53:49.820 Michelle Duster she/her: who you are, what you think, what you can do is important and and use your voice in whatever way you feel comfortable with, you know. Some people are out here in the streets, you know, with bull horns and signs, and in marching, and that's not comfortable for some people. But you can write a letter to your elected official. You can do voter registration. you can.
00:53:49.820 --> 00:54:15.199 Michelle Duster she/her: you know, advocate for something like, just say a a rap for for to make something wheelchair accessible, anything, you know that that can just kind of make an impact on yourself. Your community in order to make the world a better place, for you know, so that we all have, you know, access to, to, to everything, to, you know everything is sort of open
00:54:15.310 --> 00:54:21.249 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: for for things to be equitable, you know.
00:54:21.500 --> 00:54:50.079 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: And one thing that we didn't even get a chance to talk about it, but it is something that folks could do in their community. You all started a bronze Bill festival so that people could get to know that community a little bit more. And so folks can start festivals and their communities, they could. Even if they don't want to do the whole community, they could start with something small or like their block. but but I just love all the different things that you're doing
00:54:50.120 --> 00:55:14.689 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: and showing people that you can get involved. Now, how can people see some of the? If you could really quickly? What are some of the murals that people can either go online and look for, because I've seen a couple of them. But I'd like you to. You could just kind of list a couple of them, or where people can go to see some of the work that you've been engaged in with the murals, and all of that
00:55:15.900 --> 00:55:20.220 Michelle Duster she/her: right? Well, people can visit my website, which is Ml, G,
00:55:20.630 --> 00:55:22.889 Michelle Duster she/her: right.com.
00:55:23.120 --> 00:55:29.419 Michelle Duster she/her: writes W, our, it s, actually, even if you Google, my name, my website comes up, I think, on the first page.
00:55:29.530 --> 00:55:41.970 Michelle Duster she/her: but one thing I actually want to mention before we end is that I'm working on a really big project which is a mirror, a a monument to suffragist.
00:55:42.060 --> 00:55:45.770 Michelle Duster she/her: that will go on the Mall in Washington, DC. And
00:55:46.010 --> 00:55:58.019 Michelle Duster she/her: here we are in 2,023, and there is not one monument to women on the entire Mall in Washington, DC. There are more. There are more monuments and statues to mermaids
00:55:58.330 --> 00:56:03.260 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: in this country. Then there are 2
00:56:03.890 --> 00:56:14.160 Michelle Duster she/her: you know, to to some real women. And so we really need to get real women represented, and not these fictional mermaids and goddesses. And
00:56:14.200 --> 00:56:35.710 Michelle Duster she/her: you know it. people like bewitched from from I mean Samantha from bewitched. That's the kind of stuff that's the kind of things that are represented of women. So this monument will be the first to suffrages. And it's I. I feel very strongly that it's needed, because
00:56:35.810 --> 00:56:55.210 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: we half of the population became enfranchised to vote as a result of the Nineteenth Amendment. And so all of the women who made that happen need to be recognized. Well, Michelle Duster, I want to thank you. Thank you. Thank you for being on the show to help me celebrate my 100
00:56:55.210 --> 00:57:20.980 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: episodes. I want to just thank the listening audience as well for all the ways that you show up and support me and do the weight, the work of racial equity. Please go to my website. Sacred intelligence.com. If you want to know more about me and the things that I have done as well, and please stay tuned for the conscious consultant hour with Sam, where he helps you to walk through like with the greatest of ease and joy.
00:57:20.980 --> 00:57:29.640 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: may today you tap into that sacred part of you that allows you to make choices that will manifest your greatness while manifesting the greatness of others.
00:57:30.100 --> 00:57:39.839 Rev. Dr. Terrlyn Curry Avery: make it a priority to share love, hope, compassion, and peace. Today do well be safe. Be encouraged until next time bye, for now
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