Rosemarie Freeney Harding (1930–2004) was an organizer, teacher, social worker, and cofounder of Mennonite House, an early integrated community center in Atlanta. She also cofounded the Veterans of Hope Project at the Iliff School of Theology.
Rachel Elizabeth Harding, daughter of Rosemarie Freeney Harding and Vincent Harding, is Assistant Professor of Indigenous Spiritual Traditions in the Ethnic Studies Department at the University of Colorado, Denver, and author of
Rosemarie Freeney Harding (1930–2004) was an organizer, teacher, social worker, and cofounder of Mennonite House, an early integrated community center in Atlanta. She also cofounded the Veterans of Hope Project at the Iliff School of Theology.
Rachel Elizabeth Harding, daughter of Rosemarie Freeney Harding and Vincent Harding, is Assistant Professor of Indigenous Spiritual Traditions in the Ethnic Studies Department at the University of Colorado, Denver, and author of
The Pachamama Circle
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Published:April 2015
Describes a dream that Rachel had just after her mother was diagnosed with diabetes. In the dream, a number of Pachamamas (Spiritwomen) of all colors/races are standing together, and the white one is protecting Rosemarie from harm. Rosemarie loves the idea that these diverse women are protecting the world and guarding each other’s children because everyone belongs to everyone.
This chapter is a meditation upon the idea of protection, especially within African American culture. Rosemarie recalls her visits to the home of Sue Bailey Thurman, the protective energy Mrs. Thurman offered to Rosemarie, and the way the two women meditated together. The chapter discusses the way in which African American women have, over generations of necessity, developed a perceptiveness about danger and have learned (like Pachamamas) to draw circles of protection around all who need it. Rosemarie’s mother, Mama Freeney, asserted that there were many “Harriet Tubmans” during slavery—women who helped their families and friends escape to freedom.
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