08/21/2026
This Black August, we honor the resilience, achievements, and lasting impact of Black leaders, innovators, families, and communities whose contributions continue to shape our world.
This year, several friends have lost someone very close to them: mothers, a child, a beloved sibling. Most recently, my 87-year-old neighbor transitioned. Their losses have catapulted me into deep reflection about the legacies people leave behind.
She was one of the first children to integrate Philadelphia public schools.
Thinking about her parents’ courage to stand for liberation through education—knowing the risks—breaks my heart. Children were yelled at, spit on, threatened, and worse, simply for walking into schools where only White children had been allowed.
Then I gather myself.
My thoughts shift to gratitude.
I am part of the legacy of countless Black freedom fighters who risked everything so I could have opportunities they were denied. For that, I am profoundly grateful.
Liberation from systemic violence has shaped my public life, especially my career.
That’s why I won’t stop fighting for spaces where children are protected and receive the education—and the educators—they deserve.
That’s why I pour into women, especially BIPOC women, who deserve to be liberated from the gendered violence so many of us have internalized.
That’s why I will always make room to serve families living in or near poverty who are carrying the crushing weight of systemic inequity. I want them to see beyond the smog of materialism, racism, and other forms of oppression that have convinced far too many people that their circumstances are somehow their fault.
So many people broke through legal and systemic barriers so that people like me could thrive.
The least I can do—and will do for as long as I have breath—is honor their legacy by standing firm for liberation.
As a Black woman-led organization, Perceptions Unlimited proudly celebrates Black excellence, courage, resilience, leadership, and the enduring pursuit of liberation. We celebrate the people whose sacrifices made our possibilities possible. May this encourage us all to remember, to listen, to learn, and to lead with purpose.
