Editor’s Note: Khariyyah Shabazz is the author of “Resilient Voices: A Compilation of Inspiring Quotes, Best Practices, and Community Voices.” Shabazz shared these excerpts with Oakland Voices. She’s hosting “We Da Town” at Kinfolks on October 10. The book is available to purchase at Marcus Bookstore in Oakland and Alibi Bookshop in Vallejo.
Find your talent and purpose
“Once you find your talent and purpose, take off running, and don’t look back.”
Once you have identified what you are passionate about and what you excel at, pursue it wholeheartedly without hesitation or doubt. “Taking off running” signifies decisive action and making strides toward your goals, while “not looking back” suggests staying focused on the path ahead and not letting past obstacles or distractions deter you from your journey toward
fulfillment and success. Embrace your potential and commit to your aspirations with unwavering
determination.
“At the beginning of every great revolution or idea lies one thing in common. YOU! One person with the belief of igniting a movement, correcting the unjust, or simply adding to the solution all begins with you!”
Significant revolutions or ideas typically start with the actions or beliefs of one individual. The power of one person to initiate change, whether that’s by sparking a movement, addressing injustices, or contributing to solutions. We must remember the importance of individual agency and conviction in driving positive societal transformations.
Bridging Bonds: The Power of Community Engagement
“Recognizing your power within the communities that you live, work, and thrive awakens a voice
inside that will no longer take what has been given to you…to us!”
The transformative power of recognizing your influence and agency within your communities is
electrifying. When you acknowledge your ability to make a difference in the places where you
live, work, and flourish, you awaken a sense of empowerment and purpose. This newfound
awareness sparks a determination to no longer passively accept the status quo or rely solely on
what others provide. Instead, it ignites a desire to actively advocate for change and to strive for
betterment, both for oneself and for the collective. It is important to realize that individual
empowerment and collective action can drive positive societal transformation.
Seeds of Potential: Nurturing Youth Development
“Our youth are born to lead, allow them to take center stage and use their voices to evoke
change!”
We must share the belief that young people have the potential to be leaders and catalysts for change. We must empower youth to actively participate in shaping their communities and the world by providing them with opportunities to express their opinions, ideas, and concerns. By allowing them to take center stage and use their voices, society can benefit from their energy, creativity, and fresh perspectives to drive positive change.
The Work Is Sacred: Dr. Tanisha Cannon Interview
Khariyyah: Knowing the work that you’ve been doing, knowing your lived experiences, what are your top three solutions to bring equity to marginalize the communities?
Dr. Cannon: Definitely it is political education. I think that a lot of us don’t even know what these positions entail. I could say that at the end of the day, we have a voice, and we can use it, and we can make changes. And when you’re able to politicize people, you’re able to empower them, right? Having agency is a healing form because you know that you’re in full control of your life. So when folks understand policy, and they’re politicized and have political education, then they can know what they want to change and they know how to change it.
I would say number two would be collective healing. We got to do it together. And when I say “together,” and I say “we,” that is all of us, and it encompasses that cross-cultural connection.
Lastly, proximity. Being close to the issues so that we could help support it. But also being in
positions where people that have the power that they’re able to hear the lived experience so that
they could share their resources.
Sustainable Solutions for Prison Reform
“In order to reform an individual you must understand what caused that individual to make the
choices they made. Placing citizens into an environment that feeds off their mistakes will create a community of recidivism.”
It is important to understand the history of the prison system in America. Prisons were created
to detain prisoners awaiting trials or capital punishments like death, banishment, or slavery.
Harmful crime policies of the 1980s and beyond fueled a rapid expansion in the nation’s prison
population. The resulting burden on the public sector led to the modern emergence of for-profit
prisons in many states and the federal system. Prison has become the largest mental health institution in America. In order to reform or abolish prison, we must address the root causes that lead incarcerated individuals to the prison system. Some include racism, environmental influences, lack of ways to support people who suffer from mental health issues, lack of jobs and economic mobility, and free labor.
“Resilient Voices: A Compilation of Inspiring Quotes, Best Practices, and Community Voices“ is available to Purchase at Marcus Bookstore in Oakland, Alibi Bookshop in Vallejo. , and Amazon.
Clarification: Khariyyah Shabazz is not a known relative to Oakland Voices’ Director Rasheed Shabazz.
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