Greetings Good People! This year's Kwanzaa Table will feature "tales of the day", e.g. stories and lessons out of the days headlines that help us to remember that the principles of Kwanzaa do not simply honor the past or prepare for the future, but also define the core of how we can embrace and exist today.

In today's episode we delve into the principal of KUJICHAGULIA - self-determination - with pop culture. Many of us have tuned in to the new Netflix movie The Six Triple Eight and on this second day of Kwanzaa we peel back the layers of cinematic storytelling and explore a seminal story of self-determination. The story of Major Charity Adams Early and the all female African American battalion that she led is definitely an untold legend that we should all know. The principal of Kujichagilia is not simply deciding who you will be and what you will do; it is making that decision and committing to powering through the naysayers, "ism's" and opposition even when you are the first, the only, or the "odd."

Beyond the movie, check out these two ways to delve into more:

An article from the National Museum of the Army, that pulls few punches: https://www.thenmusa.org/articles/a-different-kind-of-victory-the-6888th-central-postal-directory-battalion/

A quick review from the National Park Service, that is a good prompter for family conversation and includes individual mini bios of several members of the battalion: https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/6888th.htm

(And yes, I do also recommend popcorn, a couple of glasses of wine, and good company for a viewing of the movie!)

(p.s. Major Early wrote a book about here experiences... look it up! How about that for your March book club read?)