How the Gullah Geechee connect to nature and respect our environment is often overlooked. The fact is that our West African roots and the skills that our ancestors used to live off of the land and sea were not only time proven, but they were passed down through the generations as a matter of survival. Returning to natural remedies and living off the land was always how it was done and it's exactly what we were meant to do.

The question of where Gullah islands are is a common one. The quick answer is that there are several. The issue is, how long will they be around? There's nothing more valuable than land, especially land that is the only legacy that you have. Gullah land is priceless and as such, what are we going to do to protect it?

When your family is facing a crisis, sometimes it's hard to think past your own situation. Heirs' property issues and the potential loss of family land is like that. I feels like "just a me problem". Land loss is very personal; especially when it's your family's heritage. Unfortunately, heirs' property is far too common and the toll that it is taking on Black family structures is in a word, devastating. By now, you might have seen or heard about the documentary, Silver Dollar Road. If you haven't, watch it. In this episode, here's the personal and painful side of the heirs' property story, from one of the family members whose family has been dealing with for years.

In the DNA and ancestry.com world, just the thought of searching for your ancestors can be an exciting journey of discovery, as well as daunting, especially if your a Black American. Frustration and hitting the 1870s Slave Wall might be what happens, but it is very possible that you can build a tree well into the early 1800s. Finding documents are fabulous, but the importance of discovering the stories that bridge the paper trail can be just as powerful. So, how do you start and grow your family's branches into a blooming tree? Join in on a fascinating conversation with the Barbara Cantaloni, Executive Director of the Heritage Library with step by step guidance on how to get started.

The religious practices that our ancestors were able to keep is something that we often talk about. But, the use of praise houses, their meaning, their structure, the music that came out of them and their very existence was not only a source of resistence, but also where they found joy.

The word culture is something that covers a lot of things, but when you really get down into it, it is the core of who and what we're made of.

The Gullah are descended from West Africans who were deeply connected to the soil and to the land that they lived on. Listen in on an in-depth and powerful two part conversation on who we are and why the soil is such a significant part of our DNA.

The ancestors held on to their memories of Africa because they wanted to make sure that our homeland wasn't forgotten.

Now, it's time for us to make sure that the next generations not only know, but they are able to experience the culture in the traditional and emotional ways that the ancestors intended.

The ancestors knew exactly what they were doing.

They saw the wealth that came out of the soil that they toiled and the sense of place that came from the land.

Purchasing property provided than with independence, a place to live and grow their food, but more importantly, it established generational wealth.

If you've every thought about going back home to Africa or have been inspired by the countless celebrity pilgrimages that the 2019 Year of Return to Ghana spawned, well, then you have been moved by the work and influences of Professor James Smalls. For over 40 years, he's been the principle bridge between the Diaspora and returning home for countless Black / African Americans.

His efforts, in concert with the Ghanaian Government, has created an incredible movement to bring us back to our African homeland and to better understand our history and who we are as a people.

So, what is the diaspora and where did it start?

It's often talked about, but do you really know?

And what about all of the affects that its had and the lasting traumas that we're still experiencing today?