We Speak Events
Happy Kwanzaa
Kwanzaa paves the way for a brighter future! It’s up to all of us to do our part to brighten the way for black organizations to grow and thrive!
So, as we celebrate Kwanzaa and focus on the seven principles, let’s remember to patronize black businesses – seven days a week!
Day 1
Umoja (Unity)
Let’s strive for and maintain unity in the family, community, nation and race, by encouraging all of our friends and loved ones to support black businesses.
Day 2
Kujichagulia (Self-Determination)
Let’s define ourselves, name ourselves, create for ourselves and speak up for ourselves to ensure that everyone we know is familiar with the power of black business.
Day 3
Ujima (Collective Work and Responsibility)
Let’s build and maintain our community together and make our brother’s and sister’s problems our problems and work to solve them together.
Day 4
Ujamaa (Cooperative Economics)
Let’s build and maintain our own stores, shops and other businesses, using them as a medium to promote growth, and to profit/benefit from them together.
Day 5
Nia (Purpose)
Let’s make our collective vocation the building and developing of our community in order to restore our people to traditional greatness.
Day 6
Kuumba (Creativity)
Let’s always do as much as we can to encourage our fellow brothers and sisters to support black business, in the way we can, in order to leave our community more beautiful and beneficial than we inherited it.
Day 7
Imani (Faith)
Let’s believe with all our heart in our people, our parents, our teachers, our leaders and the righteousness and victory of our struggle to keep black businesses in the black!
Kwanzaa is a celebration of family, community and culture. During this holiday season, let’s take time to support black businesses and celebrate all that we mean to each other. We will then have a brighter future for us and generations to come!
We Speak Events
Atlanta Screening of The Alabama Solution Brings Together Panel of Advocates, Leaders, and Community Voices
ATLANTA, GA — Community leaders, advocates, and residents gathered in Atlanta for a special screening of the Oscar-nominated HBO documentary The Alabama Solution, an evening centered on film, dialogue, and community engagement around issues of justice and incarceration.
Hosted at 2345 Cheshire Bridge Road NE, the event brought together organizations and community members for a formal evening of reflection and conversation following the powerful documentary. The film, co-directed by Andrew Jarecki and Charlotte Kaufman and co-produced by Alex Duran, offers an intimate and unfiltered look into Alabama’s prison system.
At the heart of the documentary are the voices of justice-impacted individuals Melvin “Bennu” Ray and Robert “Kinetik” Council, whose experiences shed light on the realities inside the prison system while challenging viewers to consider deeper questions about accountability, dignity, and reform.
Following the screening, a panel discussion brought together leaders and advocates working in justice reform and community outreach. The conversation was moderated by Bridgette Simpson of Barred Business, who guided the dialogue with panelists representing several organizations committed to addressing issues within the justice system.
Panelists included Gerald Griggs of the NAACP, Kimberly Jones of Fork the System, Octavious Holiday of the Positive Outreach Development Society, Kevin Marshall of The Marshall Law Group, LLC, Kathryn Hamoudah of the Southern Center for Human Rights, and Christopher Willars of The Life Unit Inc.
Each panelist offered insight shaped by their work in advocacy, legal reform, and community engagement. Their perspectives highlighted the far-reaching effects incarceration can have on families and communities, while also emphasizing the importance of awareness, accountability, and continued dialogue around the issues presented in the film.
The screening was supported by several organizations dedicated to justice and civic engagement, including One for Justice, Dream.org, Barred Business, the Southern Center for Human Rights, The Life Unit, the Center for Civic Innovation, the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), and the Free Atlanta Abolition Movement.
The evening also served as a moment of connection for those in attendance, including family members and advocates whose lives have been impacted by the justice system. Through film and conversation, the gathering created space for reflection and for communities to engage with the realities highlighted in the documentary.
As conversations continued after the screening, the event underscored the power of storytelling to bring people together, raise awareness, and encourage deeper consideration of issues that often remain unseen by the public.
As momentum continues to grow around conversations sparked by the documentary, organizers are encouraging community members to take an additional step by supporting efforts aimed at protecting justice-impacted individuals from discrimination.
Advocates are currently inviting the public to sign a virtual petition card supporting the establishment of a statewide Protected Class Ordinance in Georgia, which would help ensure justice-impacted individuals are protected from discrimination in employment, housing, and opportunity.
You may find and share the virtual petition here:
Statewide Protected Class
https://www.theprotectedclassnetwork.org/sign-our-petition
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