Daughters of the Dust: Screening & Ancestral Memory Jubilee

This is not simply a movie night.It is a space to remember, feel, and be held.

Co-presented with Black.Bird.Rising and Celestial Beings, this offering centers the sacred, the ancestral, and the communal — inviting us to slow down and reconnect with the wisdom carried through generations of Black women.

Directed by Julie Dash, Daughters of the Dust is a seminal work of Black feminist cinema that portrays Gullah Geechee life at a historical threshold — as a family prepares for migration during the early 20th century Great Migration.

Set in 1902, the film follows the Peazant family, descendants of enslaved Africans living on the Sea Islands of South Carolina and Georgia. The narrative holds the tension between departure and staying, tradition and transformation, memory and modernity. At its center is Nana Peazant, the family matriarch, who carries the ancestral wisdom and refuses to leave the land that holds her lineage.

The film is a meditation on:

• African diasporic memory and migration
• Black matriarchal lineage and storytelling
• Spiritual inheritance and cultural continuity
• The grief and beauty of transition

It is not simply watched — it is entered, felt, and remembered.

• A ceremonial screening of the film
• Opening ritual (begins at 5:45 PM)
• A small healer’s market featuring local practitioners
• Soul food and herbal offerings
• Child-friendly elements, including a coloring space available throughout the evening

We are inviting all guests to bring one item in support of:

Cuban Caravan: Diasporic Care Caravan to Cuba

Centering Afro-Cuban women, mothers, and children.

Menstrual & Feminine Care

Pads, liners, reusable cloth pads, menstrual cups, period underwear, feminine washes, heating pads, pain relief

Postpartum & Maternal Care

Postpartum pads, peri bottles, disposable underwear, witch hazel pads, breast pads, nipple cream, baby wipes

Baby Care

Baby formula, powdered milk, diapers, wipes, baby lotion, soap, bottles, pacifiers

Black Hair Care

Moisturizing shampoos & conditioners, deep conditioners, leave-ins, oils, curl creams, satin bonnets, headwraps, wide-tooth combs, detangling brushes

Body Care & Hygiene

Soap, body wash, lotion, deodorant, toothpaste, toothbrushes, lip balm, nail care items, gentle fragrances

Medical & Comfort Supplies

Pain relievers, antibiotic ointment, steroid cream, gauze, gloves, masks, mosquito repellent, saline

Know what’s Happening Next — before everyone else does.

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Host or Publisher Assata's House