Between The World and Me, A Meditation
On April 6th, 2017, I had the honor of being the key note speaker at my high school’s Book Day closing assembly. On Book Day, the entire high school, including students, faculty, and staff attend workshops, panel discussions, and seminars on themes related to the Book Day book. 2017’s book was 'Between the World and Me' by Ta-Nehisi Coates. I was surprised to hear that my high school, Horace Mann, selected 'Between The World and Me' for Book Day and was even more surprised when our head Librarian, Ms. Caroline Bartels asked me to deliver the closing assembly address.
When I was asked to speak, I eagerly said yes because I think 'Between the World and Me' boldly and honestly addresses race and racism, issues that high school students coming of age in this era of “wokeness” as an aesthetic should discuss. My speech touched on a number of themes and I of course included visuals because 'Lemonade' by Beyoncé is forever inspiration. In the end, I received a standing ovation from my entire high school and most touchingly my parents. I dedicate this speech to them and to the village that has supported me on this journey.
I never thought returning to high school would bring me such joy!
"It began as a whisper. BlackLivesMatter. A promise. BlackLivesMatter." - My American Dream
Thank you to the Head Librarian at Horace Mann, Ms. Bartels for inviting me to speak!
The entire experience of delivering this speech was magical bordering on surreal. And the very best part was meeting the students of color who came up to me afterwards and thanked me. They said I made them feel visible by speaking truth to their experience. I thanked them and said that I see them, and that we’re out here, thriving, lifting as we climb. I left the assembly that day grateful that in my own small way, I helped close the gap between the world and them.
Back in April, I promised to provide the transcript and video of my speech and now 9 months later, my ideas and visions for this blog have completed its gestation. It’s ready. I’m ready. And I am excited to share my second post on "Wahala Jr." - my Horace Mann 2017 Book Day Speech titled “My American Dream”.
Shout out to Joanne the Scammer, Rihanna, Drake, Beyoncé, and Solange for providing content that I referenced in the speech. #ForTheCulture (can you spot them?). Thank you to my friends who supported and encouraged me to give this speech. And special thank you to John Stevenson for all his invaluable help with editing and speech delivering.
The link to the full transcript is here: link.
See the video** below!
With love,
Wahala Jr aka Chidiebere Daniels Akusobi Jr.
**The first 18 minutes were recorded by my friend Sunanda Nath (thank you!) before my phone ran out of space. Rookie mistake, I know. I appended the final 4 minutes recorded on another device to the first recording. Because of this, a small part of the speech is missing. The transcript has the words, but I'm working on getting an edited, more complete version of the speech soon. In the mean time, enjoy!
