Vice-President, Conference Chair Welcome Letter

“God of our weary years, god of our silent tears, though who has brought us thus far on the way. Thou who has by thy might led us into the light keep us forever in the path we pray. Lest our feet, stray from the places our God where we met thee, Lest our hearts, drunk with the wine of the world we forget the. Shadowed beneath thy hand, may we forever stand TRUE TO OUR GOD AND TRUE TO OUR NATIVE LAND.”

Greetings NCBS Family, Have you ever stopped and wondered “How did we end up here?” Who would have ever thought that we would actually one day have to gather so distantly but maintain our closeness through a virtual realm? Life as we know it has been altered for a moment in some aspects and permanently in others. But, regardless of the uncertainty we’ve all faced over the past year, nevertheless, we are here and with an unfettered reality of the future as we march on into 2022! So often it seems that life is only made up of things to stress and worry about. But life has delivered for us many joyous things too. We are coming together yet again in our “togetherness” to celebrate and rejoice in the midst of this most spectacular virtual conference! I don’t know about you, but this year’s conference has been the current that has brought me in to dry ground amidst floating out in what felt like some real deep and dark uncharted waters. Some of us are floating in on broken pieces but through the efforts of NCBS and the conference planning committee, we are all making it in to dry ground for the next few days and I believe that is worth celebration and rejoicing over! I know that our time here together in this virtual space is going to afford us the opportunity to grow mentally, emotionally, epistemologically and yes, even spiritually. Even though we aren’t walking and talking side-by-side, we will all still have multiple opportunities to expand and grow because of the positive energies that we have put into this conference. Family, I believe that having us to meet in this format is God's way of fine-tuning us just a little more so that we could become more compassionate, more caring, more humble, more loving, and better aware of each other’s life stories, dreams, and aspirations. After all, our conference theme this year not only highlights the voices of our sisters, but it centers their humanity and their experiences as strong, courageous, resilient Black women – which is something so regularly overlooked and taken for granted in the world around us. As Vice-President and Conference Chair, it is my desire, that each of you carry from this virtual conference experience, a very profound message spoken best from our sister/poet laureate Gwendolyn Brooks who said very movingly that “Black is our ultimate reality” And, regardless of the nomenclatures of the discipline we all ascribe to, (Africana Studies, Black Studies, Pan-African Studies) we have to stand on the original idea that the primary focus of what it is that we do is our people. Moreover, in the words of our dear brother Dr. Maulana Karenga “if we lose that primary reference, we in fact undermine the whole idea of the origins of the discipline of black studies which began in struggle.” James Weldon Johnson “Lift Ev’ry Voice and Sing”

So, with that principle in mind, let us not forget to remember that today is a good day! This season is a good season! This year, as pivotal as it may be for numerous reasons is a good year! The fact that you are reading this today signals that your journey into your best days has already begun! Continue to press toward the mark for the prize of your higher calling, and please ENJOY THE 2022 NCBS CONFERENCE.

Asante Sana for all that you do to make NCBS better! In struggle and in progress, Alphonso Simpson, Jr., Ph.D. Vice-President, NCBS 2022 Conference Chair