Meet the Collective

[What identities are central to you?] black, queer, non-binary, venusian, artist

[Describe home to you] i’ve always lived in a Full house. Full of mouth-watering aromas from holiday feasts, and faint traces of bleach from communal cleaning every week. Full of song and dance, laughter and joy. Full of babies playing with [sometimes obnoxious] toys. Full of life and spice, like cayenne, curry, cinnamon—or heated debates at a Full table on family game night. Full of reveries, Full of grief, Full of people with similar faces yet varying identities. my home has always been Full of people who love and were made for me.

[Relationship to public housing, and why NPHM?] my family & i have lived experience in public housing from before i was born up until the present day. i’m involved with the NPHM OH programs because i admire the art of storytelling. being apart of creating and preserving memories is so important and necessary, it feels rewarding that i’m able to do something in this lifetime that will live beyond me!

[What identities are central to you?] Black, Trans-agender, Lesbian, Autistic, Sibling to 7

When I need to reconnect to my heart, I dance like wild around my apartment and sing so everyone in the neighborhood can hear me and tell me to shut up or go head on and then I write and pray and take a bath and talk to or cry with my ancestors. After that, I go be with my loved ones.

[Relationship to public housing?] Former Resident

[What identities are central to you?] Black, human, nature lover, lowkey chill, like books and art alot, Auntie

[Share a dream of yours, literal or figurative] Recently I had a dream about my grandmother, my Big Mama, my mom’s mother. Not sure if I was a child or an adult but she was coming to live with us. For me to get home had to climb up the road which was a huge mud hill. The people standing at the top were standing there like everything was normal. Climbing included a full body event, dragging myself up the wall. When I arrived at the top, dusted off and kept walking to hurry home and help prepare for her arrival. The first dream of her in a while, her coming to live with us was always my dream. She died 2013.

[Relationship to public housing?] Family lived in public housing

[What identities are central to you?] Black, feminist writer. Dendrophile & seed saver.

[Describe home for you.] Home for me is always the place where I can take off my shoes and listen to the hum of the house: the people I love who can be loud, radically honest and accepting. We tell stories to each other about each other and for each other. This is our quilt that keeps us grounded and strong from one generation to the next.

[Relationship to public housing, and why NPHM?] My paternal grandparents moved into public housing in Newark, New Jersey as one of the first families of the Baxter Terrace Housing Project which first opened in 1941. Becoming involved with NPHM and oral history has given me an opportunity to become the best version of myself and to help generate some good in this world. I believe that “we are the ones we’ve been waiting for.” – Alice Walker.

[What identities are central to you?] All of the above.

I dream about writing stories that are not told often.

[Relationship to public housing?] Former Resident of the Robert Taylor Homes.

[What identities are central to you?] Black woman, granddaughter of Ammie and Kay

[Share one of your dreams, literal or figurative.] My dream is for Black women and girls to feel celebrated in their families and communities and have their healing centered in community, national and global conversations regarding mental and physical health [What do you do to reconnect to your heart?] When I am feeling disconnected from self or my heart, a practice I always like to implement is washing and detangling my hair. The process itself is long and meditative, allowing me to stop and truly think through what I am feeling, but I also love the imagery of detangling through my anxieties.

[Relationship to public housing, and why NPHM?] Provided therapy to youth and families living in public housing in the past. I am involved in NPHM Oral History Programs because I recognize that our narratives are a valuable part of how we heal ourselves and protect the next generation.

[What identities are central to you?] Black, poor, bastard, father, artist, intellectual, community member

[Share one of your dreams, literal or figurative.] My dream is to create a space program in Brazil.

[Relationship to public housing?] Former resident, I’m from the hood

[What identities are central to you?] I am a white, 1st gen, queer abolitionist, who is a trained circus clown, and aspiring public historian and healer.

[What do you do when you need to reconnect to your heart?] I feel most connected to my heart whenever I am building collective care and community.

[Relationship to public housing?] I have various family members who currently/formerly have lived in public housing in both the United States and Italy.