Hey Reader,

What a DECADE January has been. 😩 I turned 40 on January 5, and that feels like it happened 2 years ago at this point. The LA wildfires began this month! And now Marmalade Mussolini got the nuclear codes again and we ain’t had not an ounce of a break.

Dis tew much. Let’s just jump in.

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RANT

Folks better not colonize cowrie shells!

At Tang Tyrant’s inauguration, Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson showed up wearing a cowrie shell collar, looking like the ultimate baddie that she is, and folks lost their minds over it. I saw so many white women take to the internet to talk about how beautiful she looked, comparing it to Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s legendary collars and I immediately knew where it was about to go.

Let the record show: white people, cowrie shells are not for you. I BETTER NOT SEE YOU ORDERING IT FROM ETSY!!! TAKE IT OUT YOUR CART.

I said that online too and some folks had their feelings hurt. But it must be said.

Justice Ketanji’s choice to rock that collar was not just to look fierce. Cowrie shells have links to indigenous African and Asian cultures, signifying protection, prosperity and good luck. They can be physical armor for spiritual threats. The good Justice (and my soror) wore it as an act of resistance, not just a fashion statement.

Cowrie shells are ancestral armor, not something to be rocking with your Lululemon sweatsuit. When a Black woman Supreme Court Justice wears them now, she's saying "I carry the strength of those who came before me" without saying a word.

Sooo my hope is that folks do not gentrify and colonize cowrie shells. You can absolutely appreciate it, but its significance must be recognized. Let us have our symbols without turning them into the next fast fashion trend.

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REFLECTION

Do not burnout right now right now. Protect your well-being

This week, on Inauguration day, I woke up with my voice on the fritz. I sounded like I was on the phone driving through lower Wacker Drive, with no service. Except in real life. 😩

I said “Uh uh. The ancestors must be telling me to be quiet and rest myself.” When your literal voice disappears, that's not a whisper from the universe. That's a SHOUT.

So all this week, I’ve been at home, on voice rest. And trying to take naps even though my sleep has been trash (because shoutout to anyone who can sleep right now, even if you’re avoiding the news).

We're only 4 days into this new era of foolishment. FOUR DAYS. And there is fresh ridiculous news almost every hour. And even though we knew what would happen (and TOLD Y’ALL) it is at a dizzying speed. It is pure whiplash. And I cannot keep up nor do I want to.

It’s why I’ve even warned people to leave me out of the loop. People have a habit of tagging me to news or DMing me to see if I’ve seen something. And I’ve asked for folks to stop. I already see folks burning themselves out, trying to keep up with every Executive Order, every breaking news alert, every fresh outrage.

This is a marathon, not a sprint. The overwhelm? It's by design. They want us exhausted. They want us scattered. They want us too tired to think straight, too depleted to strategize effectively. 🗣️

This isn't about disengaging or closing your eyes to what's happening. This is about being STRATEGIC with your energy. You cannot carry every burden. You cannot be in every fight yet. You cannot show up for your people if you're drowning in everyone else's mess.

When I cancelled my meetings this week to rest my voice, it wasn't just about healing my throat. It was about preparing for the long game. Because when the moment comes, (and it WILL come) when I need to speak up, when I need to resist, when I need to fight? I want to be READY. With my full voice, my full energy, my full power. 💪🏾

The resistance ahead of us requires more than just outrage. It requires strategy. Focus. Clarity. And you can't have any of that if you're running on empty, surviving on retweets and rage.

Get clear on what matters most to you. What hills you're willing to die on. What work only YOU can do. And then rest up for THAT.

The ancestors didn't survive all they survived for us to burn out in January. They survived so we could thrive. So we could fight smart. So we could win. 🙏🏾

The revolution needs you rested. Cause we've got a long way to go. ✊🏾
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RECOMMENDATION

Protect your information with DeleteMe.

Legit, protection is my theme for this week. And one of the things you need to protect is your physical safety and privacy. Your address. Your phone number. Your family members' information. And in these times, when folks are being targeted just for speaking up and standing firm in their truth? Protection isn't paranoia. It's necessary.

That's why I'm recommending DeleteMe, an app that removes your personal information from search engines and data broker sites. There are so many websites that are scraping the internet and putting your information on the web, easily accessible. It’s kinda scary.

I signed up for this years ago because there are fewer things more dangerous than being an outspoken and visible Black woman. I don’t play about my protection and this was a starting point.

Here's how DeleteMe works:

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This is about making sure that all your business isn’t so easy to find. And IF you are any type of visible, this is just prudent. What's one step you've taken lately to protect your peace and privacy? Hit reply and let me know!
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Talk soon,
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P.S. This week in my Patreon, I dropped a post on 5 things you need to do for security since Cheeto is now in office. Tap in there for more. And btw, we just launched our BOOKS chat in there, and the recommendations from the community are dope. Come on inside.

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