Combahee Survival

“The Combahee River Collective was a Black feminist group in Boston whose name came from the guerrilla action conceptualized and led by Harriet Tubman on June 2, 1863, in the Port Royal region of South Carolina.  This action freed more than 750 slaves and is the only military campaign in American history planned and led by a woman.”

What and Why

June 2, 2013 will be the 150th anniversary of Harriet Tubman’s successful uprising where 750 enslaved Africans freed themselves and each other at the Combahee River.  This uprising was also the inspiration for the Combahee River Collective a Black lesbian feminist socialist collective founded in Boston in 1977 who created an analysis of interconnected liberation centered on the lived experiences of Black women and designed to free us all.

In the spirit of the Combahee River Collective, Harriet Tubman and all the people who stood for their freedom that day the Mobile Homecoming Project and Eternal Summer of the Black Feminist Mind will be coordinating a pilgrimage to the Harriet Tubman Bridge on the Combahee River for a weekend of celebration, clarification, community building and ritual.   Special invited guests include Combahee River Collective Statement co-authors Barbara Smith, Beverly Smith and Demita Frazier, and Black Feminist Retreat Attendee and Mobile Homecoming Interviewee Cessie Alfonso.

Who

This journey is for self-identified queer, LGBTQ or queer affirming Black people who are committed to fulfilling our freedom legacies in our daily lives and our communities.

(Allies who share this commitment are welcome to contribute financial or in-kind donations, to spread the word to loved ones in the core constituency, to contribute organizational scholarships and to support their loved ones in being able to attend.  Thank you for your love!)

Why name it after one person? … I think if we had called ourselves the Harriet Tubman Collective, there wouldn’t have been any problems, because she stood for so much.  But why not name it after a liberation, a very specific instance of a liberation struggle and liberating action? That’s how the name came about.

Combahee River Collective co-founder Barbara Smith in an interview with Alexis Pauline Gumbs in 2011

Where:

Mobile Homecoming and Eternal Summer of the Black Feminist Mind will be leaving from Durham, NC on Friday May 31st and caravaning to the Penn Center on St. Helena Island in South Carolina where we will be together until Monday Morning (June 3rd) when we will return to Durham, NC to bring the liberation energy to the Eno River.   Participants are free to fly in to Charleston and meet us at the Penn Center or to attend whatever part of the events speak to your soul and resonate with your schedule.

A rough idea of the daily breakdown is

Friday: arriving by evening and settling in

Saturday: liberation workshops at Penn Center and community connections with Sea Island Black Farmers

Sunday: dance, ritual, music, celebration  at the Combahee River

Monday: travel to NC and celebration at Eno River with Durham community

Location:

Harriet Tubman Bridge is located on Highway 17 over the Combahee River

32.652406, -80.683246‎     +32° 39′ 8.66″, -80° 40′ 59.69″

How:

Online sliding scale registration will open on May 1st.  There is limited housing which will be reserved on a first come first serve registration basis.  Registration options are available that include transportation (from Durham), housing, food and all events OR just housing, food and participation in SC OR just day passes for folks local to SC or who can provide their own housing.

Our funding model is characterized by grassroots partnerships.   Individual registrations will pay for logistics, housing, facilitation, documentation and transportations for our esteemed Combahee River inspired Black feminist lesbian elders.  We encourage participants to fundraise and we will help spread the word about individual or group fundraising campaigns.  We are also working with our favorite Combahee inspired organizations to provide scholarships for participants.

Register Here:
https://www.artful.ly/store/events/1212

email mobilehomecoming@gmail.com for scholarship/subsidy info or to make a payment plan.

Co-sponsors can provide scholarships at 3 levels

$500 for one participant
$375 each for two participants ($750 total)
$300 each for 3 or more participants

Co-sponsors can choose to use their scholarships to send LGBTQ or LGBTQ affirming Black participants in their own organizations or to make participation available for participants seeking support directly from Mobile Homecoming/Eternal Summer of the Black Feminist Mind.

Individuals who are not attending can also provide scholarships named after loved ones who they want to honor by supporting this work.

Location of the Harriet Tubman Bridge on Highway 17 over the Combahee River:

https://www.google.com/maps/ms?msid=216283980164012257864.0004db9d2365d247f474a&msa=0

View Harriet Tubman Bridge in a larger map

Past Events:

Combahee Survival Week!!!!!

In honor of Sakia Gunn and the Combahee River Collective, Combahee Survival Revival Week in Durham, NC will be a week full of trainings on how to live, eat, work and think sustainably and radically! Featuring fieldtrips, farm workdays, experiments, video making, poetic games, political discussions, writing workshops, healing demonstrations, backyard camp-outs, singing, dancing and bonding, this week will be a preview of Black Feminist Heaven…what our community looks like when we share what we know, turn towards each other and nurture and amplify our exciting interconnections!!!! This process is inspired by the brilliance and legacy of Black feminists on the universe, and everyone of every background who is inspired by that legacy is encouraged to participate!

Get ready for the best week ever!!!!!

*Come by the Inspiration Station any time to participate in the Survival Guide Layout Zine Making Process! (Just send Lex a text!)

Tuesday May 25th—

3pm Mamas Gathering @ the Inspiration Station

Come have tea and inspiration at a mama-centric baby-filled gathering about how we can create support for radical mamaz.  Special video-cam visits from radical mamaz and Combahee Survival Guide contributors Mai’a Williams, Noemi Martinez and Cynthia Oka.

6pm Safe in Our Streets Roundtable on Queer Youth and Safety

@ Durham Media Center-110 East Geer Street Durham, NC 27701

Facilitated by Mattias and Mya of the Youth Noise Network this will be a recorded youth-centered conversation about the Safe in Our Streets campaign, Sakia Gunn and the complexity of safety for youth in Durham.

Wednesday May 26th—(Sakia Gunn’s Birthday)

3:30pm (meet @ Inspiration station)  with something that says you live in NC to get into the museum free or meet us there: 433 West Murray Avenue, Durham, NC 27704-3101)

Afterschool Butterfly Ancestors Workshop at the Butterfly House @ the Museum for Life and Science (led by Nia Wilson)

6pm Southerners on New Ground Organizing School Report Back

Honor Sakia Gunn and yourself by gathering for a potluck dinner and interactive exploration of what Durham folks learned at the Southerners on New Ground Organizing School.

Thursday May 27^th

Baking Day at Bread Uprising Bakery!!!!!! (on Arnette Ave)

10 am Folks are welcome to come witness the process and help with baking at the Bread Uprising Bakery, bring a hat!

1pm Lunch and Bakery Workshop at Bread Uprising!!!!

Make your own bread and learn about the magic of community sustained food sources from Noah and Tim.

6pm Interactive Root Chakra Survival Workshop @ Inspiration Station

(facilitated by Audrey Esquivel and Kifu Faruq)

Friday May 28th—

12pm Noontime Oshun Eno River Experience (featuring Kia Carscallen)

(meet at the inspiration station at 11:45am or at the West Point of the Eno.  We will be standing in the river! Dress accordingly!)

5ish (Seneca the teenage philosopher gets to town!!!!!!)

6:30 pm BACKYARD CAMPOUT at the Inspiration Station

(bring s’more materials and survival stories)

Saturday May 29th—

Morning: Potluck Brunch with Parents picking up campers!!!!

3pm Sisters of the Healing Drum Circle (hosted by Salsa Soul Sister starting Black Lesbian Elders Harriet Alston and Carolyn Gray)

9pm until…Pajama Jammy-Jam Featuring your favorite Early 90′s Music at the Summit Spot!

Monday May 31—Work Day at JRuth Farm 9am-3pm. Transportation available.

Inspired?

Push the button to sign up to be a monthly sustainer (the big blue number is how much you’ll be donating each month automatically)!

www.combaheesurvival.wordpress.com

LOVED ONES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Welcome to the future. As we get ready for the best week ever…orient your bliss with a BEAUTIFUL weekend featuring Durham diaspora all-stars Ebony Noelle Golden and Zachari Curtis, Greensboro commuter Laila A. and YOU!!!!!!!
*Email me at brokenbeautifulpress@gmail.com if you want help support parents, donate art supplies, food, toilet paper etc, or if you want to take pictures or shoot video of the events!!!!!

***Note…all events this weekend start at the Inspiration Station email brokenbeautifulpress@gmail.com for street address)

Set-it off on Saturday! 5/22

10 am Continental Breakfast at the Inspiration Station (Guess which continent?)

11 am Herban Foraging with Zachari Curtis

Farmer, dancer, capoerista, singer, visionary sista-comrade Zachari Curtis returns to Durham to share with us her knowledge of local, informal food sources. On this leisurely walk through the neighborhood adjacent to the Inspiration Station we will share knowledge and benefit from Zachari’s generations-thick knowledge of plants in and from this region. YUM!

2pm Combahee: We Invented the Remix (Guerilla Altar Making) with Ebony Noelle Golden)

Bring scrap-exchange esque items ready for transformation as we re-create/re-affirm West Durham (the neighbrorhood of the Inspiration Station) as a sacred space for the Combahee Survival Revival and the duration. We will be reading, performing and remixing passages from the sacred text (The Combahee River Collective Statement-download here: https://combaheesurvival.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/10/combahee.pdf) while we leave markers for passersby to come, witness, and transform.

5pm Potluck Dinner and Zine-Making @ the Inspiration Station

We’ve got veggie burgers and hot dogs and a borrowed grill. Bring your sides and your smiles for outdoor or indoor fellowship and an art station where you can layout/collage a page of the Combahee Survival Guide!

And then…dancing?

Salvation Sunday (5/23)

11am Potluck Brunch at the Inspiration Station

Bring goodies, drink fancy herbal teas (thanks to Erin Bree for the Whole Foods hook up!) Come meet the beautiful out of town guests and recruit them to move to Durham! Do more Zine Making if you feel like it!

1pm Sakia Gunn Sunday School
What does it mean to honor a queer black ancestor who became an ancestor far too early, at the age of 15? What does it mean to honor the life of someone who is best known as the victim of a brutal death. This Sunday School right before what would be Sakia Gunn’s 24th birthday we seek and praise what it means to honor queer youth of color as spiritual leaders in our communities.

5pm Black Girls Rock II: Porch Concert featuring Laila A.!!!!

If you missed the first Black Girls Rock event…you can wake your heart up and rejoice. This Sunday you get a second chance to hear the self-taught beautiful creations of queer Black brilliant Greensboro singer-song-writer-guitarist Laila A. What’s that? You rock too? Let us know at this intimate supportive concert on the side porch of the Inspiration Station.

AND 7pm …Sunday Dinner Survival Potluck
You know how we do!

Sneak preview of the events for the rest of the week!

*Come by the Inspiration Station any time to participate in the Survival Guide Layout Zine Making Process! (Just send Lex a text!)

Monday May 24th—

10am-2pm (meet @ Inspiration Station at 9:30)

Daytrip to Tierra Negra Farm

Rain or shine we will be heading down to Mebane with clothes that can get dirty and a dish to share for a tour, some time in the dirt and a picnic lunch conversation about food justice in NC with Christina and Tahz…founders of Tierra Negra Farm!

Tuesday May 25th—

3pm Mamas Gathering @ the Inspiration Station

Come have tea and inspiration at a mama-centric baby-filled gathering about how we can create support for radical mamaz.  Special video-cam visits from radical mamaz and Combahee Survival Guide contributors Mai’a Williams, Noemi Martinez and Cynthia Oka.

6pm Safe in Our Streets Roundtable on Queer Youth and Safety

@ Durham Media Center-110 East Geer Street Durham, NC 27701

Facilitated by Mattias of the Youth Noise Network this will be a recorded youth-centered conversation about the Safe in Our Streets campaign, Sakia Gunn and the complexity of safety for youth in Durham.

Wednesday May 26th—(Sakia Gunn’s Birthday)

3:30pm Afterschool Butterfly Ancestors Workshop at the Butterfly House @ the Museum for Life and Science (led by Nia Wilson)(meet @ Inspiration station  with something that says you live in NC to get into the museum free or meet us there: 433 West Murray Avenue, Durham, NC 27704-3101)

6pm Southerners on New Ground Organizing School Report Back

Honor Sakia Gunn and yourself by gathering for a potluck dinner and interactive exploration of what Durham folks learned at the Southerners on New Ground Organizing School.

Thursday May 27^th

Baking Day at Bread Uprising Bakery!!!!!! (on Arnette Ave)

10 am Folks are welcome to come witness the process and help with baking at the Bread Uprising Bakery, bring a hat!

1pm Lunch and Bakery Workshop at Bread Uprising!!!!

Make your own bread and learn about the magic of community sustained food sources from Noah and Tim.

6pm Interactive Root Chakra Survival Workshop @ Inspiration Station

(facilitated by Audrey Esquivel and Kifu Faruq)

Friday May 28th—

12pm Noontime Oshun Eno River Experience (featuring Kia Carscallen)

(meet at the inspiration station at 11:45am or at the West Point of the Eno.  We will be standing in the river! Dress accordingly!)

5ish (Seneca the teenage philosopher gets to town!!!!!!)

6:30 pm BACKYARD CAMPOUT at the Inspiration Station

(bring s’more materials and survival stories)

Saturday May 29th—

Morning: Potluck Brunch with Parents picking up campers!!!!

3pm Sisters of the Healing Drum Circle hosted by Salsa Soul Sister starting Black Lesbian Elders Harriet Alston and Carolyn Gray)

10pm until…Pajama Jammy-Jam Featuring your favorite Early 90′s Music at the Summit Spot!

Monday May 31—Work Day at JRuth Farm 9am-3pm. Transportation available.

Super inspired? Donate or become a monthly sustainer of the Eternal Summer of the Black Feminist Mind!!!!
http://blackfeministmind.wordpress.com/donation-station/

SAVE THE DATE! COMBAHEE SURVIVAL REVIVAL WEEK IN DURHAM, NC MAY 22-29th

In honor of Sakia Gunn and the Combahee River Collective, Combahee Survival Revival Week in Durham, NC will be a week full of trainings on how to live, eat, work and think sustainably and radically! Featuring fieldtrips, farm workdays, experiments, video making, poetic games, political discussions, writing workshops, healing demonstrations, backyard camp-outs, singing, dancing and bonding, this week will be a preview of Black Feminist Heaven…what our community looks like when we share what we know, turn towards each other and nurture and amplify our exciting interconnections!!!! This process is inspired by the brilliance and legacy of Black feminists on the universe, and everyone of every background who is inspired by that legacy is encouraged to participate!

Get ready for the best week ever!!!!!

www.combaheesurvival.wordpress.com

LOVED ONES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Welcome to the future. As we get ready for the best week ever…orient your bliss with a BEAUTIFUL weekend featuring Durham diaspora all-stars Ebony Noelle Golden and Zachari Curtis, Greensboro commuter Laila A. and YOU!!!!!!!
*Email me at brokenbeautifulpress@gmail.com if you want help support parents, donate art supplies, food, toilet paper etc, or if you want to take pictures or shoot video of the events!!!!!

***Note…all events this weekend start at the Inspiration Station email brokenbeautifulpress@gmail.com for street address)

Set-it off on Saturday! 5/22

10 am Continental Breakfast at the Inspiration Station (Guess which continent?)

11 am Herban Foraging with Zachari Curtis

Farmer, dancer, capoerista, singer, visionary sista-comrade Zachari Curtis returns to Durham to share with us her knowledge of local, informal food sources. On this leisurely walk through the neighborhood adjacent to the Inspiration Station we will share knowledge and benefit from Zachari’s generations-thick knowledge of plants in and from this region. YUM!

2pm Combahee: We Invented the Remix (Guerilla Altar Making) with Ebony Noelle Golden)

Bring scrap-exchange esque items ready for transformation as we re-create/re-affirm West Durham (the neighbrorhood of the Inspiration Station) as a sacred space for the Combahee Survival Revival and the duration. We will be reading, performing and remixing passages from the sacred text (The Combahee River Collective Statement-download here: https://combaheesurvival.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/10/combahee.pdf) while we leave markers for passersby to come, witness, and transform.

5pm Potluck Dinner and Zine-Making @ the Inspiration Station

We’ve got veggie burgers and hot dogs and a borrowed grill. Bring your sides and your smiles for outdoor or indoor fellowship and an art station where you can layout/collage a page of the Combahee Survival Guide!

****updated**** 7pm SeeSaw Teen Design Show

Celebrate the SeeSaw Studio’s 3rd Annual BLAMO Teen Design Show at 410 West Geer Street from 7-8:30pm!  This show will feature a runway of t-shirts, skirts, bags and skateboard decks from our Youth Designers.  Admission is free – please tell EVERYONE to come out and support the positive achievements of youth in Durham!

And then…dancing?

Salvation Sunday (5/23)

11am Potluck Brunch at the Inspiration Station

Bring goodies, drink fancy herbal teas (thanks to Erin Bree for the Whole Foods hook up!) Come meet the beautiful out of town guests and recruit them to move to Durham! Do more Zine Making if you feel like it!

1pm Sakia Gunn Sunday School
What does it mean to honor a queer black ancestor who became an ancestor far too early, at the age of 15? What does it mean to honor the life of someone who is best known as the victim of a brutal death. This Sunday School right before what would be Sakia Gunn’s 24th birthday we seek and praise what it means to honor queer youth of color as spiritual leaders in our communities.

5pm Black Girls Rock II: Porch Concert featuring Laila A.!!!!

If you missed the first Black Girls Rock event…you can wake your heart up and rejoice. This Sunday you get a second chance to hear the self-taught beautiful creations of queer Black brilliant Greensboro singer-song-writer-guitarist Laila A. What’s that? You rock too? Let us know at this intimate supportive concert on the side porch of the Inspiration Station.

If you’d like to support the Combahee Survival Process and you live in or near Durham here are some ways you can be part of the village! Email brokenbeautifulpress@gmail.com and let me know how you want to participate!!!

*COME! Participate in the activities, fieldtrips, discussions, backyard camp-out and EVERYDAY shared meals. Bring the whole family!

*FOOD!!!! This is the most crucial way that most people can participate…cook a dish, donate food, donate a gift card to the grocery store or hook us up with goodies/leftovers from the restauraunt that you work for!

*Parental Support-all activities are designed for all ages to participate, but in order to model a parent supportive community we’d like to have non-parent volunteers to help support and look out for the youngest among us so that parents can fully participate in the sessions they attend.
*Rides to fieldtrips..we’ll be going to the Eno River, to Tierra Negra Farm, to the Museum of Life and Science and more. If you can help drive when we carpool that would be awesome. And you’ll get a copy of Lex’s reading Audre Lorde poems on CD to listen to in the car!
*Documentation-THIS is going to be the Best Week Ever!!!! Help us document by taking pictures or video.
*Photocopies-if you can make photocopies at your job as an official or unofficial inkind donation…let me know!

***Much needed supplies:

For out of town guests, sleepovers and the backyard campout we’ll need to borrow

air mattresses

sleeping bags

tents

*This event is designed for Durham residents and with Durham at heart, but some members of the Durham diaspora and potential Durham recruits will be in town for the festivities.   Let me know if you’d like to host someone from out of town.

We’ll also be using a lot of

*t-shirts and other clothing ready to be transformed

*printer ink

*acrylic t-shirt transfers from office depot (get the ones for t-shirts of color)

*DV tape (digital video tape)

*Medium trash bags
*Toilet paper
*misc. art supplies
*big post-it paper
*pens and pencils
Email brokenbeautifulpress@gmail.com to volunteer or to find out more!!!!!