We Shall Not Be Erased

Hello {{ first name | friends}},

For some reason the song We Shall Not Be Moved has been reverberating in my brain. This often recorded Civil Rights protest song started life as a spiritual sung by enslaved and formerly enslaved people. It speaks of defiance, resistance and solidarity.

So it probably makes sense that it's coming to mind as we see rollback on DEI commitments, mealy-mouthed language, performative chickens coming home to roost, and literal attempts to erase Black people's history, culture and lived experience.

This was always on the cards with 47 in the White House enacting Project 2025 with startling rapidity. Whole swathes of important information are being disappeared:

There are people literally wanting to turn the clock back to when marriage was only accepted between a man and a woman and when men spoke on women's behalf - I kid you not.

And then there's the literal erasure - the tearing up of Black Lives Matter Plaza, the removal of murals commemorating Black people killed by the police (and the supporting data to go with it), the executive orders that aim to hide many inconvenient truths.

What about equality is so threatening that it makes this kind of erasure necessary? Is it that the truth doesn't support the fiction the bros want us to believe? You decide.

But anyway, I keep hearing that song in my head because here's what I know.

We - waves wildly at the rest of humanity - can't unknow what we currently know.

All the data erasure and tear downs of buildings and murals don't stop the facts from being the facts.

And we have ways to get information to where it needs to be via decentralised social media, via in person meetups, via protests and via the people who are rapidly making sure that digital disinformation is not allowed to stand.

And it must not - because we as a human people can't afford to let this evil spread beyond the shores of the USA as it is already threatening to do. If you're outside the US, start taking action now. Vote against the far right forces and keep your own data safe. Start looking for ways to safeguard information that aren't subject to the whims of a madman and the cronies that support him.

And keep sharing the truths we know wherever you can.

Our common ancestors - because we all came from the African continent - shared information before writing it down was common. They shared it across and through multiple generations. We, too, have to find ways to pass down our stories. Because we shall not be erased, no matter what the powers that be do.

How are you taking action to safeguard our stories and experiences?

Thanks for reading

Sharon

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I am an anti-racism educator and activist, the author of “I’m Tired of Racism”, and co-host of The Introvert Sisters podcast.

© Sharon Hurley Hall, 2025. All Rights Reserved. This newsletter is published on beehiiv (affiliate link).