RAINBOW IN THE CLOUDS - STATE OF THE UNION OF BLACK WOMEN IN AMERICA

by Minista Jazz

"When it looks like the sun won't shine, remember God put a Rainbow in the clouds."

My Rainbow is gone.

For those who don't know, I lost my best friend, Rainbow, last week. Not just any friend, but my service pup – my shadow, my constant companion. The kind of soul who could sense my pain before I could name it.

The kind who stayed by my side through every trial, every triumph. The kind whose eyes held unconditional love that somehow connected me to a strength beyond myself.

I've been sitting with this grief, letting it wash over me like baptismal waters. Not drowning in it, but being cleansed by it.

Because as Dr. Maya Angelou told us, "Every storm runs out of rain." And she reminded us that even in the hardest times,

Little did I know how prophetic those words would be. As I emerged from my period of mourning, I opened my eyes to see what's happening in this country, and child, let me tell you – we need to be ROOTED and READY with rainbows of hope to guide the way to the other side of... THIS.

WHAT WOULD OUR ANCESTORS SAY?

I just read about our new president's speech to Congress. I call on my ancestors who lived through their own times of despair and change. And as plainly as someone who marched in Selma, who sat at lunch counters, who watched Malcolm and Martin fall this is what is to be said:

This man is telling us exactly who he is.

When he speaks of "accomplishing more in 43 days than most administrations accomplish in four years," I hear echoes of men who bulldozed Black businesses to build highways. Men who "accomplished" the destruction of thriving Black communities like Black Wall Street, Rosewood, and Soul City.

When he speaks of tariffs and trade wars, my grandmother's wisdom echoes in my ears: "When the elephants fight, it's the grass that suffers." These economic games will crush our communities first and hardest.

When he praises billionaires for "overhauling government" with "sweeping cuts," I remember how we built mutual aid societies, our own banks, our own schools – because every time they "overhaul" something, they overhaul US right out of existence.

WE'VE SEEN THIS SCENE BEFORE

In the 1960s they told my Nana's generation, they were making progress. But in the 1970s when they dismantled what we built. Reagan's "morning in America" was more like 'mourning in America' because that brought nothing but midnight to our neighborhoods.

And now here we stand again, watching as they work to:

• Roll back our history in schools

• Dismantle DEI initiatives

• Erase us from technological spaces

• "Overhaul" the systems we depend on

  
  

But this time is different. Why?

Because Black women are organizing like never before.

ROOTED 2025: THE REVOLUTION BEGINS

This is why ROOTED 2025 is the beginning of a revolution.

For 10 days this April (10-19), Black women across this country will demonstrate what economic power truly means. When 100,000+ of us gather in a Digital Sit-In while simultaneously directing $21.25 MILLION to Black women-owned businesses across 22 cities. We are not sitting back, we are sitting IN.

Let me tell you why this approach matters:

1. WE'RE BUILDING, NOT JUST PROTESTING

In 1963, folks stood outside stores with signs. In 2025, we're building our own stores. The Freedom Routes across 22 cities are economic pipelines directed exactly where we need them.

2. WE'RE USING THIER TOOLS TO BUILD OUR OWN TABLES

They thought technology would leave us behind? Watch 100,000 Black women show the world how to transform digital presence into economic power. We're not asking for a seat at their table. We're building our own kitchen.

3. WE ARE CREATING THE HISTORY THEY ARE TRYING TO ERASE

While they try to whitewash our contributions from textbooks, we're establishing April as Black Women's History Month – not because they granted it, but because WE SAY SO.

4. WE'RE ORGANIZING ACROSS GENERATIONS

From my NANA'S generation who sat in at lunch counters to young women who will lead the Digital Sit-In, we're creating an unbreakable chain of resistance and resilience.

WHY BLACK WOMEN WILL LEAD THE REVOLUTION - THIS IS OUR STATE OF UNION

When I read about the "contentious night" in Congress, with representatives holding up signs and being removed from chambers, I see sparks. But we need a wildfire.

Black women have always been the backbone of resistance movements, from Harriet Tubman to Fannie Lou Hamer to the Black women who organized Freedom Summer to the founders of Black Lives Matter.

But now we're stepping fully into our power – not behind the scenes, but at the forefront:

• We're the fastest-growing group of entrepreneurs in America

• We're the most educated demographic in America

• We have the highest voting participation of any demographic

• We're the most reliable defenders of democracy

And now, we're creating a new model for economic resistance through ROOTED 2025.

WHAT WOULD RAINBOW SAY

As I sit here feeling the absence of Rainbow by my side, I remember what our grandmothers always taught us about companions who leave us too soon:

"They come to teach us something we needed to learn. And when that lesson is complete, the Creator calls them back home. But the strength they helped you find? That stays with you forever."

The president says he's "made more progress in 43 days" than others make in years? Well, we've been making progress for centuries – not through bulldozing, but through building. Not through cutting, but through creating. Not through division, but through connection.

GET ROOTED & READY

So I'm calling on you – yes, YOU reading this – to join us:

1. Join the Digital Sit-In (April 10-19)

2. Get on the bus for a Freedom Route in your city

3. Support Black women-owned businesses

4. Spread the word about ROOTED 2025

   
   

As Maya Angelou said after seeing what Rainbow means: "Still, I rise."

They think they can rewrite our history? We'll write our future. They think they can erase our contributions? We'll make them impossible to ignore. They think they can divide us? We'll show them what solidarity truly means.

Because when 100,000 sisters log in, economies level up. When we show up, systems shift. When we stand together, we cannot be moved.

We are ROOTED—in our power, in our purpose, in each other.

And that, my loves, is how revolutions begin. This is our State of UNION.

~ Minista Jazz

Join the ROOTED 2025 movement: WWW.ROOTED2025.COM