We signed the girls up for ROPE last year to help them find community and a space to be themselves. And they have thrived in this organization, discovering new things about themselves and making friends with shared experiences of living here. Then, I was tapped to join as a mentor. My first thought was, I don't have time. My second thought was, I should prioritize and make the time because isn't this what I have also been looking for? OMG, best decision ever.
At our monthly meetings, it sometimes feels like the adults and grownups are having more fun connecting than the students! We all look forward to coming together and get together outside of the meeting too. Getting to know these brilliant Black and Brown women, and getting to know more about myself too, is a strong anchor to this community that I am super thankful for. I honestly don't know that we would still be here, starting year four and committed to seeing the girls finish high school here, if we didn't have this community to pour into and receive from.
Of the many activities and workshops, traveling is one people look forward to. College tours, conferences, new experiences. But the biennial international trip is the one that is revered for its cultural immersion, self-exploration, and community service. The relationships they have built over the years continue to grow and welcome each new cohort into this shared experience. I can't believe we get to be a part of it! Gratitude and appreciation are not strong enough words to convey the deep well of emotions I think we all are experiencing. I can't capture it all, nor would I want to. Below, from my limited perspective and lens, are some thoughts and photos on parts of the trip. We took hundreds of photos and tens of videos. Once we finish sorting through them, I'll come back here and update this post with a link to view those. For now though, here is a very brief post on the experience... (with occasional comments from Matt in italics 😉 ).
On traveling...
So. Much. Paperwork! Traveling with one family has paperwork. Traveling to a country that requires a visa requires more paperwork. Traveling with 30+ people that includes minors is just bananas. Our small portion for just us including notarized docs, yellow fever cards, birth certs, passports, medical printouts, vaccine summaries, and I'm sure other things I cannot remember. One group of mentors got together to help complete forms. Our director traveled with students to help get docs completed. Our travel coordinator dropped all of the paperwork (and visa payments!) off at the embassy in NY. Matt went to NY to pick it all up. Then our director meticulously organized everything for 30+ people in such a way that allowed her to safely transport it with us for review at various check points; from the airport to random bus checks while traveling through the countryside, we had mostly smooth travels. You are probably wondering, why is she going on and on about paperwork? Let's get to the trip already!
It's a privilege that we were able to complete the paperwork necessary.
It's a privilege we were able to fundraise and save to cover a small portion of the overall costs and a gift that the director and communications coordinator secured most of the funding through grants and donors.
Generally, when you hear about groups traveling, you don't hear about this part! It's stressful, it's scary, it's a lot of waiting, a lot of back and forth, and it's an incredible amount of work that goes unrecognized. Heather at the city of Pittsfield, where each notary stamp is only $1, is an unsung hero!
The whole paperwork process was a journey in and of itself that completed the Saturday before we left. Sunday, we gathered at Tyler Street Lab, watched folx hug their loved ones, promised parents and families their kids would be ok, and boarded a bus for JFK.
Our flights and layovers were lengthy, but mostly on time. The airport is where the weight of responsibility settled among the mentors; no student could travel alone anywhere without a chaperone. While an incredible, life-changing trip, this was not a vacation, and we signed up for this responsibility for a lot of reasons. There were a few students under a certain age who were required to have a guardian attend. Savannah was one of them and was not going to be left at home! Matt joined the trip to serve in that role. This group of parents, guardians, grandparents, R.O.P.E. staff, and mentors were a community and village who would collectively shepherd the students (scholars are older, ambassadors are younger) through a transformative experience. That was our clear focus and mission.
At the airport, there was a super brief encounter with a celebrity returning from Ghana where they had built a children's school. A neat chance encounter resulting in a photo shared to social media, picked up and dramatized by a local newspaper.
We made it to Amsterdam, and stayed there for a long layover. Then finally arrived in Accra.
Accra
Accra reminded me of Seattle. Big city on the water brimming with art and creativity. Traffic. Visible disparity between poverty and wealth. Large buildings and skyscrapers. Mansions on hills. Homeless encampments. Restaurants everywhere. The biggest difference: everyone looked like me. Everywhere I looked, the billboards, the commercials, the workers, the children, the families, the officers, the vendors, people on the currency. For the first two days, I swear the only white person I saw was Matt! I have never had that experience. There was not a moment where I felt I did not belong. It's a big city, so of course safety and crime are issues of concern. But not because of the color of my skin.
We got in late Monday night and were exhausted. We perked right up when we walked into where we would be staying. Wow. When I tell you it was luxurious and safe and clean! The currency is Cedi. The exchange rate was 15.49 Ghanian Cedis to the US Dollar.
Each townhouse had a cute name. We stayed in Jasmine with Rosa and Reina and affectionately called ourselves the House of Jasmine. To save on costs, there was a kitchen and many grocery store trips so we could cook meals, pack lunches, and buy water.
The water was safe for Ghanians to drink. It was not safe for us to drink. Our bodies would have needed months to adapt to their systems, so we used bottled water for drinking, cooking, toothbrushing, etc. Some of us laughed at that scene from the Sex in the City movie when Charlotte was in the shower in Mexico and accidentally drank the water only moments later to run to the nearest toilet. We stopped laughing when Miss E. said, no really, don't do that!
So thankful the next day was an optional day of rest, get your needs met kind of day. A group went to the hair salon for braids and it took a very long time. Beautiful work, and some of the styles chosen were very complicated and time consuming. Understandable that this was an option because we literally can't get this back home. There are no Black salons in Pittsfield. Driving to Albany, NY, Boston, Hartford, or Springfield are your best bets. Cassidy had her hair braided, I had my locs washed and retwisted, Savannah had to wait for a return trip because we ran out of time! We did have a good time. The salon in the US is a place for communnity and it was the same in Accra. Everything was familiar. The smell of products. The chairs you sit in. The counter full of hair baubles. The wall showcasing weaves and wigs. The toe tapping and head nodding to the music. Thousands of miles away and it still felt like home.
We also had some time to exchange money which was a surreal experience. The bus pulled up to the mall, where there was a bank with armed guards keeping watch inside and outside the doors. The mall was just like the malls here. Shopping at the mall was not on the agenda and we were excited about that because shopping at the local markets was on the agenda.
Our first bus and driver were very nice and a little conservative as they traversed the roads and people. There were parts of the city where hundreds of people would swarm the streets at the stoplights, selling everything from food to books to homegoods to car parts. It was so coordinated There were other parts we traveled where there was no paved road, just red clay and construction. No lanes, no rules. A free for all where semis, motorbikes, trucks full of animals, buses full of people would weave in and around each other. If you get motion sickness, this is not the trip for you! Our second bus driver was a fan favorite. his bus was newer and now everyone understands the importance of shock absorbers! His playlists were flavors of Bob Marley on repeat...we all know the words to Get up, Stand Up! And learned the words to Burning Spear's Christopher Columbus, a must listen! Y'all should look that up.
Matt: Jeannette is being diplomatic about the first driver: you have to be *aggressive* to make moves on the roads in Accra! And our second driver whipped that bus through narrow gates and corners on the first try, every time. We all chipped in to tip the driver and his assistant generously for keeping us safe and taking us ALL over the region.
And I can't forget to mention our new friend Prince! A friend to Akilah's for many years, Prince generously gave his time to travel with us through his homeland, help us negotiate at the markets, translate signs and phrases, make recommendations on everything, share history and his experiences, he was full of information and kindness. I think it was a neat trip for him too, recently married, he and his wife were leaving the continent to start their life together with new job adventures. In a way, he got to say goodbye for now to his home.
Black Star Square
Ghana gained its independence in 1957. Black Star Square, or Independence Square, was built in recognition and surrounded by Independence Arch and across the street from a football stadium. Military events, ceremonies, major church services, parades, protests, and more happen here. The ocean is on the other side of it. The name is in reference to Garvey's Black Star Lines.
It was emotional to think about Ghana being the start of 30 other countries on the continent gaining independence through the 1960s. And sad and frustrating to stand in this space representing freedom...surrounded by bleachers filled with unhoused people. This would be one of many contradictions that reminded me of home.
The tour guide was an incredible orator. Dropping knowledge and pride with ease.
Dr. Kwame Nkrumah Presidential Library and National Memorial Park
This president was so influential, when a coup overthrew him, he went on to be president of a completely different country. And the person who led the coup, Kotoka, is remembered with their name on the airport. Fascinating. And there is a debate in their country right now about if they should change the name of the airport!
Nkrumah was Ghana's first president. In an attempt to unite countries across the continent, he married a woman from Cairo. These are small data points that stood out to me as we walked the grounds and learned more history of how Ghana won its independence and the aftermath of a country finding its way. The memorial park grounds are beautiful. There were school kids everywhere; teaching their full history is a point of ride in the education system. The entrance to the grounds are gated and on the other side of the gate were people and kids, strategically begging for food and money from tourists, aggressively selling crafts and handmade souvenirs. Contradictions abound.
Matt: I wanted to read every plaque and interpretive display! Photos weren't allowed inside the museum, so we tried to soak up as much as we could about Nkrumah's life and legacy. They've preserved the original statue of Nkrumah that was vandalized and damaged during the coup, which is on display near his final resting place. This was such a stark reminder of how dramatically political fortunes can change, and how the people respond to living history.
Oak Tree Academy and Good Shepherd Orphanage
The service part of the trip was building on an existing relationship with the community of Oak Tree Academy. The school educates children from all over the community. It is fee based and scholarships are available. Behind the school is an orphanage. The kids from the orphanage attend the school at no cost. I think our students enjoyed the days at the orphanage more than anything else on the trip. Seeing their classrooms, experiencing their way of learning, playing football....
Touring the grounds presented a minimal way of living not experienced by many on the trip. And our students were trying to understand how their students could be so joyful and content in what they saw as very little material things. Lots of conversations and processing continued throughout the trip as we talked about what does it mean to be happy with what you have? In what ways do we take education for granted? How could we collaborate and help assist the school in meeting its goals and providing the basics, and more?
Our students were inspired before the trip as those who went a couple of years ago came prepared with school supply donations, feminine hygiene products, socks, and shoes. More students felt called to give what they could with their time and care, and a presentation of talents on the last day.
Matt: I spent some time in the sixth grade classroom where a young (just 18!), engaging teacher named Christopher led the lessons on life science (and invited me to participate). Afterwards we talked for a bit, and he shared that he plans to become a police officer. When he learned I was from outside Detroit he said, "Detroit has the greatest police department in the world!" You can see my reaction in the picture below 😬
I asked, "What makes you say that?"
Christopher: "I've seen them in many movies".
I hope we'll stay in touch, and that he'll be able to travel to the U.S. sometime soon.
WEB DuBois Center
The house DuBois lived in while in Ghana is a museum and events space. The tour guide, a volunteer, was greeted with deep silence, then thunderous praise when he told us to not "just walk on the land, but to let the land walk through us and inspire us to return home transformed" and motivated to see our world become a more just place. It was a whole word! Then, he was funny when he highlighted the walk in closet. By the next room, he was back to inspiring as he talked about the 'web' that connects us all and serves as a symbol of relationships. He was engaging and informative and though the tour was short, it was impactful.
Matt: To paraphrase our guide, 'when the Europeans came, they had the Bible and we had the land, and by the time we looked up, we had the Bible and *they* had the land'. Given DuBois' explicitly Pan-African worldview, it made sense that the tour guide spoke accordingly. DuBois was an extraordinary scholar, and also my Fraternity brother, and grew up in the Berkshires near where we live today: visiting his home and final resting place felt like a pilgrimage, and inspired me to dive more deeply into his prolific writings.
University of Ghana, Leon Campus
I sure do wish we had more time here! Y'all know I love me a university!! We did not make it to the bookstore or do a campus tour, so clearly, I need to return. We did have a wonderful session with Oh!nii and his faculty and students.
First, we sang. Then we danced! Then we sang. And we drummed. And we danced some more. It was one of my favorite parts of the trip. One of the songs we learned, Welcome Home, we continued to hear at other places we visited. Also, I have never participated in a trust fall that was also a dance. I was terrified, and I did it, and loved it. The teambuilding and relationship building was right on time. Traveling with a large group of teens and tweens can present some conflict! This session brought us together, re-centered us, and was pivotal in helping us build community with each other.
The Art Center
This is where we got to practice the art of negotiating! No generic, corporate shopping malls for us! In the heart of Accra, on the water, the markets were calling. And we answered that call two times! Listennnnnn I got all my Christmas shopping done. We do family time and activities for Kwanzaa, so no need to buy anything for that holiday.
The colors and fabrics and prints and textiles and wood working and painting and mixed media and stone carving! Whew! Your senses are just on overload, walking through aisles packed with moving people and vendors all vying for your attention.
My favorite purchase was from JJ (zhuh zhuh). I was looking for a specific combo of prints on a throw and lo and behold he had it. I told him what it was, he said, 'please wait here' and when he returned, with exactly what I was looking for, I didn't even bargain! Exquisite craftsmanship and then I had to get the scarf too. He offered a discount freely on that one!
Matt: The artists and vendors sure know their audience - there was so much Black Greek paraphernalia I thought I was at a Fraternity convention! Also, I was the least skilled negotiator in our family.
Cape Coast- Assin Manso
I can't even use the word tour guide for who Kofi was. He was an educator through and through. So much more than a tour guide, Kofi was a keeper of history waiting to be shared, again and again and again. At home, I personally scoff at the word "woke" because it is overused and co-opted and abused. But on this trip? In the presence of Kofi? We were enlightened and awakened with ancestral and sacred stories of truth that deeply resonated and washed over us in waves of affirmation. I am not doing this justice. There are no words that can fully capture this particular day, when we immersed ourselves on the path to no return. From the last bath at Assin Manso to the final door to sea at the slave castle, I don't know that I could emotionally do this again.
All I can say is, the atlantic slave trade, middle passage, chattel slavery was so much worse and nightmarish than anyone in the US believes or is taught. And we should be ashamed and enraged at the lack of recognition, lack of awareness, and intentional hiding and whitewashing of the full story. At this point, you can't tell me that going to Cape Coast should not be a required activity for every high school student to graduate. There is absolutely no modern day horror movie that comes close to the nightmare and cruelty of this part of the history of the world. Period. I don't ever want to hear another person say, "but those African tribes sold their own people." The lies we tell ourselves to soften and reshape the true depths of depravity will be our undoing if we don't push through the fear of reconciling with the truth.
Cape Coast- Cape Coast Castle
Leaving the river of the last bath, my anxiety began to build in anticipation of the next stop. The bus ambled along uneven roads that eventually gave way to pavement and about an hour or less we were there. More contradictions...the castle is a stunning work of art and incredibly advanced architecture that our ancestors were forced to build to hold their families imprisoned. They were tortured, killed, raped, starved, mutilated, packed like animals in a windowless confinement of hell on earth. For months, for years. And if they survived that, they were put on a ship for the Americas and the Caribbean. And maybe they died at sea, or drowned at sea, or jumped at sea to avoid the next fresh hell that awaited them.
I was speechless. And weak with grief. And then I looked over, as the tour guide was explaining why our names were taken away and replaced and how women were raped to intentionally create light skinned babies as a means to create classes of people who were superior to their own kin, and my own child was sobbing. So y'all know I had to pull myself together and push my response down to help her hold and move through everything she was feeling. The wetness of her grief on my shoulder almost did me in. But we kept walking, through each cell, past the church built directly on top of the dungeons, through the master's light filled bed chambers, past the walls fortified by canons, and eventually we ended our tour in the auction room.
Matt: It's one thing to read about the trans-Atlantic slave trade, and quite another to enter a dungeon built to hold enslaved people, touch the walls, and be shut into the darkness, even briefly. Considering, in the dungeons and the auction house, that my ancestors may have been enslavers (or at least benefited from chattel slavery) was wrenching, and reminded me that the fight for racial justice is more urgent than ever.
Cape Coast- Coconut Grove
Well. As you can imagine, we were emotionally drained and just spent by the time we made it to Coconut Grove Beach. Cape Coast was about a 4 or 5 hour drive from Accra I think, and this was the first year that instead of driving all the way back, we stayed the night nearby. Coconut Grove was beautiful. Right on the beach. A complete 180 from where we had been hours before. The whiplash of trauma and joy caught me off guard and I had a good nap! The water still soothes me and the ocean is still my favorite place, so being on the ocean this time felt rejuvenating. Still a little off balance. But, by this time, we had some space between the slave castle and last bath and in that space were conversations about how we really descend from resilient and brilliant people who fought and survived so we could exist.
This shift to gratitude and awe was complete when the dance troupe arrived at the resort. So much talent! And joy! Dancing this time was a release and an invitation to revel in being our ancestors prayers and hopes and dreams....
Kakum National Park and Canopy
There are many national parks and y'all know we LOVE a hike and a national park! This short canopy adventure was something we all had been looking forward too. Savannah had been talking about it ever since we started planning to go on this trip. Some folx slept in at coconut grove while a group of us went high up a mountain and walked the canopy in the trees. We didn't see animals, but we could hear them way down below.
Matt: Our helper/guide/fixer Prince really showed up for us at the entrance to Kakum. They were trying to overcharge us to enter the park, and wanted everyone to get off the bus to be counted (even though they didn't make anyone ahead of us do this). Let me tell you: I don't speak Tri, but I definitely understood what Prince was emphatically saying! We got a discount on the entry fees, and no one had to get off the bus :)
Kumasi- Bonwire
Kumasi was about a 6 or 7 hour drive from Accra. I really liked Kumasi. It's the second largest city and more countryside. Less traffic. It is farther away from the ocean, but it is beautiful. The village of Bonwire is where kente originated. We visited a place where we watched people weaving kente cloth and it was mesmerizing. While I did enjoy seeing where kente originated, I learned so much more about the process when we went to the Culture Center the next day.
We stayed at another beautiful and safe place. Hotel Veronique! And we got to meet Veronique. She is a social worker and also built this hotel. She was incredibly nice and I hope in future, we stay two nights!
Kumasi - Cultural Center and Market
This cultural center and market were my favorite. The art of kente weaving is intense. One of the master weavers was showing us how the process takes a lot of planning and math. He sees the design, then plots it on graph paper. Then assigns each thread and color to a lever on the machine to make the pattern. Then he writes this equation down and pins it to the top of the machine. Then he has to set up the machine, using a very fine needle to string each needle and eye individually. This can take two weeks. Finally, he can start! And making one bolt of fabric can take months. It was incredible. I felt like the first place in Bonwire was focused on selling us things, but this place was focused on educating and the art of kente. So, it was my favorite.
Then, we all got to get creative! Some people worked with fabric, some people worked with clay, we got to paint. These techniques are so much older than we know them to be. And still work today.
The historical talk and walk was only an hour maybe and I could have listened all day. It as not enough time. We learned a lot about the Asante kingdom and seeing so many artifacts and hearing the story behind them was a definite highlight for me. I love a museum situation! We were not allowed to take pictures inside.
Matt: We could have spent many hours at the Asante Kingdom museum. The guide first corrected our pronunciation: the British added the 'h' to intentionally mispronounce "Ashanti" as a way of disrespecting the people. More importantly, the royal lineage is traced through matriarchs, and we learned about many women who led (and continue to lead) the people. Though the museum was small, every object had a rich history and link to the traditions that are still carried on by the Asante today.
Food!
Y'all know I wasn't going to end this post without some food highlights! We ate. A lot. And well. lol. Sometimes, the spice level is off the charts. I tried the green sauce and was in pain for an hour hahahaha. Lots of rice, lots of jollof, lots of chicken, lots of fish. A couple touristy places for burgers and pizza. My favorite spot was happened upon because of a stove mishap. I had offered to cook breakfast for those who got up early one day and the kids and Matt helped me put together two large french toast casseroles. I went to bake them in the morning and our oven did not work. At all. So, I searched the google for "boougie Ghana breakfast" and scored! Ths coffee shop was a 15 minute walk and had excellent baked goods. So breakfast was saved! The owner, Benjamin, gave us cookies to eat while we waited. We were fortunate to have an opportunity to return for brunch/lunch and it was a fantastic last meal in Accra. Cass and Savvy did a great job- they know they can't travel if they don't eat the foods. We did make a lot of PB&Js, and tuna sandwiches and made sure we had lots of snacks for the long bus rides or if we were at a restaurant where the spice was too much for their tastebuds. Overall, they enjoyed the food too. Though, we all were very excited for tacos when we got home.
Matt: This was my first time trying curry goat, jollof rice, redred, and groundnut soup: all were delicious - and - I needed to pace myself through all that spicy goodness! I think we might start grilling whole fish at home after this trip. I also hadn't expected to find Middle Eastern cuisine in Accra, and had some of the best chicken shawarma of my life, which is a high bar having grown up near Dearborn.
And that was the trip of a lifetime! Team Smith is still exhausted and confused about what time zone we are in and what day it is. We got home at 2am on Sunday morning. I went back to work on Monday. That was a mistake. hahaha. I should have taken more time off, but being out of the office for two weeks felt like a really long time. Savannah was in soccer camp last week and theater camp next week. Matt is starting to slowly have work meetings too. Cass is the only one who currently has some real downtime! Which is good - the kid needed it after that trip. I think it hit her hard because she is in that age of starting to really understand the world around her and grapple with her place in it. And part of that grappling comes with questions about who she is and where she comes from. And no amount of reading can prepare you to come face to face with what we experienced at Cape Coast. She got to see one slice of her history and it was powerful in unexpected ways. I'm glad she is not signed up for anything or working right now; she can just be.
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