Skip to main content

The Intersections of Who I Am

I am a human being born and living on the planet earth. That is the most general description of who I am and in this moment it applies to more than six billion others. However, there are so many descriptors, terms and experiences that shape how I perceive the world around me, and how others perceive me. 

My family has lived on land referred to as Turtle Island by the First Nations for 400 years. Where I live was once the land of the Muscogee Creek. My first African ancestors arrived against their will as cargo on what is now known as the United States of America. I am also the descendent of people from the European continent, specifically England and Germany. Because of the sacrifice and struggles of others, I live as a citizen of the United States.

I am the descendent of people primarily from the African continent with no ancestral memory of the tribes or nations. Somehow, they managed to survive the Middle Passage, chattel slavery, and Jim Crow.  My grandparents were Lessie and Quincy, and Flora and Thomas. Each lived their own path that impacts me. 

To whom, where, and when I was born provide a context to my life. In 1958, I was born the daughter of Alma and Thomas with a female body and named Leslye Alise long before knowing that I was heterosexual and cisgendered. My state-sanctioned birth certificate identifies me and each of my parents as "Colored". In time, I was joined by a brother, Thomas, and a sister, Angela Denise.

Born into a Protestant Christian family who converted to Catholicism, I recognize the unspoken privilege of living in a nation where the largest percent of the populace self-identifies as Christian. I also acknowledge the violence throughout history perpetuated by those who share my faith tradition. This violence contradicts the Gospel of Christ that teaches love of God and neighbor.

Exploring each of these threads is the result of a natural curiosity encouraged by my parents. Spending time with questions as they arise leads me to a deeper understanding of myself as a person. Pondering the role of history, family, and faith in my life provides a broader understanding of the context in which my life unfolds. It helps me see what is true and the movement of the Divine across time and space.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

New Site

  To read the latest on Leslye's Labyrinth, visit http://bit.ly/leslyeslabyrinth

Rising Above the Cacophony

In my research on Thomas Merton, I have come across a number of references to jazz music. While I appreciate the genre, I am quite far from being an aficionado. A longtime fan of Mary Lou Williams, I was pleased to learn that Merton also shared an appreciation of her musical genius. Then, there was a reference to John Coltrane's Ascension. The Catholic me was quite intrigued by both the title and Merton's fascination with the piece. I promptly went online and ordered the CD. The first time, I listened for less than five minutes as the cacophony of musical instruments reminded me of being in a club in my younger years. Remember when the music was so loud that it was like noise making it difficult to have a conversation? With my second attempt, I was pulled into the experience of hearing the sounds of individual instruments ascend amidst the perceived chaos. It was quite fascinating. As I type, I am listening to this work of Coltrane for the third time. It is having a diffe...

When You Say, "I'm Not Racist"

When you say,  "I'm not racist," you deny the complexity of a system built on the racist ideas born of white supremacy. When you say,  "I don't see color," you do not understand that making judgements based on color is the problem, not seeing color.  When you say,  "I was taught to treat everyone the same," you deny the limitations of your being kind when the system denies my dignity. When you say,  "But, I'm a Christian," you deny the whitening of Jesus' body and the distortion of his Gospel for economic gain through the genocide of indigenous people, the enslavement of Africans, and other atrocities against people of color. When you say,  "My child is Black," you conflate your love for one person with a love for all. When you say,  "My family never enslaved people" you deny how the injustices of slavery were transformed to perpetuate your illusion of white supremacy. Wh...