Let's Tell Our Children

Today, December 6, 2013, the morning after Nelson Mandela’s passing, I posted the following to Facebook:   “When I heard of Mandela’s transition, I was deeply saddened. Yet I was consoled by a memory of [my] Dad taking us to see him in Boston after his prison release. What an amazing opportunity and blessing! Just…

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The Power of Oral History

For one month between December 2002 and January 2003, I was fortunate to travel to Cape Verde for the first time to do research. Talking to elders who I assumed were strangers, I soon discovered family among them.  In the process, I uncovered layers of my own identity. I visited sites I had only read…

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