The Sankofa Collaborative Weekly Resource

Acts of defiance - even seemingly small ones - are woven into every fight for freedom. The need to challenge injustice continues.

DEFIANCE

By Signing His Name to Massive Jars, This Enslaved Artist Defied Literacy Bans in the South. Now, His Masterpiece Is on View With a Famed Paul Revere Bowl | Smithsonian Magazine, June 2026

Bessie Coleman, First African American Woman to Earn a Pilot's License | National Air and Space Museum, viewed June 2026

Shockoe Institute explores enduring impact of slavery and how to expand freedom today | PBS, June 2026

Upcoming Events

Does your organization have an upcoming event that aligns with the Sankofa Collaborative’s mission? Send the registration page link and the image you would like used to sstephens1622@gmail.com at least 10 days prior to the event and we will include it in our Weekly Resource.

Additional opportunities to engage with history can be found on the New Jersey Historical Commission's New Jersey Black History Events List.

Support the Sankofa Collaborative!

We hope that our workshops and e-newsletter have strengthened and inspired you to learn more about, present, and discuss the complex and difficult issues in the history and current experiences of African American citizens of New Jersey and of the United States.

Please consider making a donation to help the Collaborative continue its work. You can make a gift using the link below or you can mail your contribution to the Sankofa Collaborative, P.O. Box 77234, Trenton, NJ 08628. Thank you for your support!

Click here to support the Sankofa Collaborative today!

For more articles, guides and other materials, visit the Sankofa Collaborative's Program Archives and Resources page.

Join Our Mailing List!

The Sankofa Collaborative helps people learn about, understand, and discuss African American history in schools, museums, libraries, civic groups, and other settings.

The Collaborative is the work of four New Jersey organizations - 1804 Consultants, The New Jersey Historical Society, Stoutsburg Sourland African American Museum, and the William Trent House Museum. Our programs and website are made possible through generous grants from the New Jersey Council for the Humanities, the New Jersey Historical Commission, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, and Patient First.

Sankofa, a word from the Twi language of Ghana, translates to "go back and get it." It is often depicted by a bird with its body facing forward and its head turned back, holding a precious egg. This and other Sankofa symbols remind us of the importance of learning from the past.

Share This Email