As john a. powell encourages us, we have to stop othering across color and other lines such as religion, gender, and class that are all man-made constructs and recognize that we can be and do much more organically. As humans, as natural beings, we can co-create a future that acknowledges our “interconnectedness.” There, I would venture, is where we will all find belonging, peace, and strength working collectively towards a future we want to live in as we just did with the renaming of Great Barrington’s middle school.

This weekend we uplift Du Bois and recognize him for his courage and brilliance. I personally want to celebrate his spirit of inquiry. As an activist, this is something Du Bois modeled for future generations to come. Du Bois was a discerning thinker who asked such important questions in his lifetime.

Du Bois is important to me for so many reasons, but I especially love how he was not afraid of complexity, the nuances of identity, or contradictory ideas as the world and his relationship with several nations of the globe evolved. He held many perspectives and truths, and he shared them readily.