Life on Mars

celebrating the publication of my book with my former students!
photo courtesy of Zozo Ntokazi Mposula 

My book is in the front window of Politiken boghandel in Copenhagen!
photo courtesy Martyn Bone 

When I was a little girl growing up in Brooklyn, my childhood was often disrupted by the toxicity of domestic violence. I knew that my parents loved me, but there was a rage that would come over my father that  rendered all in the household in a deep state of terror. Often, we the children, would fear for our own lives, knowing from experience that even our own mother could not protect us. 

I write these words this Sunday morning because I remember, as clear as ever, one day when I was a child, witnessing my father in one of his rages, I made a pact with the universe that I would dedicate my life, through my writing, to healing not only the trauma that my body still remembers to this day, but that I would speak up about these experiences in an attempt for us to better understand the roots of domestic violence and how best to address them. This pact that I had made with the universe, probably at around the age of 7 included my writing and the solemn awareness that no child should ever have to go through this.  This is why I dedicated my life to reading books that made me better understand the legacies of colonialism, slavery and empire. These were the forces that clamped down on my foreparents and have been passed down, ever since, only to be broken when we insist to resist. 

I write these words this Sunday morning because my book "Decolonial Daughter: Letters from a Black Woman to her European Son" is just this and more. The feedback I have been receiving lets me know that I have truly stepped into my destiny and not only facilitating my own personal healing, but that of the community that is around me. My book is powerful and this is because, dear readers, I have put a lot of thought into it. This is a product of deep contemplation and love. 

my mother, brother and sister (Brooklyn, NY circa 1976). Our lives
were often punctuated by having to flee my father's rages.
(family photo from author's collection) 

Familial violence is a symptom of a larger, overarching violence that our very culture in the west is premised upon. From ripping children and families away in the colonies of white settlers to tearing families away in Europe and North America as we currently witness; from the violence of capitalism which needs its supply of free Black and brown labour. My father was not only reproducing the violence he was subjected to as a Black man, he was also a product of it. 

This is why the next phase of my life will be dedicated to bringing healing to historically neglected communities. Every book that is sold will be supporting this vision. This is why I am joining forces with Kelli Curry from the Electric Smoothie Lab Apothecary and supporting her upcoming "Ketchup is not a Vegetable" tour. You can hear more of her work here: 

I write these words this Sunday morning because I have arrived, ladies and gentlemen. These are salient times. And the world is ready.  

Are you? 

from Copenhagen with love, 

Lesley-Ann 

You can purchase your copy of "Decolonial Daughter: Letters from a Black Woman to her European Son" (Repeater Books) in North America and Europe. Visit your local bookstore or Amazon: US or UK