Day Three: June 9, 2021
In our current political state, the intergenerational emotional trauma of Black people has fully resurfaced due to cycles of programmed fear and white supremacy. Babalú-Aye has returned to earth to teach us his power and respect his purpose. "I Can't Breathe." Is it Covid-19 or a knee? Fear must not continue to be weaponized. No More. America takes a look within at this tragedy. For the shadow you've cast will no longer hide the truth from the world. Black is Beautiful. We stand unified.
Reflection Question
Rachel’s piece shares a potent and powerful message about internalized fear programmed by white supremacy. She reminds us to release internalized and programmed fear and return to the truth that Black is beautiful. How do you release fear from your body, mind, and spirit? What are ways we can continue the process of releasing fear and returning to our truth both individually and collectively?
Artist Q&A
How did you get introduced to Afro-Brazilian dance and culture and what about it deeply resonated with you?
I was introduced to Afro-Brazilian dance at the source in Salvador, Bahia. I traveled there in early 2006 after a series of undeniable dreams calling me strongly to that place. I believe my studies in Salvador resonated so much with me because it was part of my destiny to journey with Orixa and connect me with ancestral knowledge denied to me due to the trans-Atlantic slave trade.
What thought leaders and artists inform your current works?
The current political climate is what we use to inform our work always. What’s needed now? Where are we now? In addition we try to operate in the vain of past present and future. There are so many ancestors deified and otherwise that have laid the foundation for how we understand our world. It is our job to expand upon their legacies and struggles, create abundance in the present while laying the foundation for the future.
How do you incorporate the Orixas and spiritual practice into your composition?
The Orixa exist within all of us and in every part of nature and life. They help us to understand and make sense of our humanity. When we create work the question always is what am I trying to say, learn, express, and/or feel? Once the message has been identified we work with and feature artists that are vessels of their craft. Therefore no matter what the instrument/body/voice used, the spirit is being invoked to teach us lessons about ourselves that not even we can predict at times. They cast reminders of the beauty, strength, struggle, and joy that exists within the complexity of us. Instead of trying to abstract cultural practices or try to place the aesthetic of Orixa explicitly, we inform our work by delving deeply into mastery and use every ancestral tool available. Each piece feels like a journey, an invitation, and innovation because understanding ritual is freedom as these practices have sustained life itself. The Deity Babalú-Aye was featured in this piece F.E.A.R False Evidence Appearing Real.
How do you and your community honor and uplift the legacy of Juneteenth?
We at Extra Ancestral honor Black people 365 days a year.
Each year we create a work for Juneteenth that speaks to past, present, and future. We strive for
liberation and create opportunities for education.
Artist
Rachel Hernandez
Dance Artist and Choreographer
Extra Ancestral is a cultural movement dedicated to educating and entertaining audiences through the fusion of different cultural manifestations of the African Diaspora. In their performances, audiences are likely to experience genres such as Afrobeat, Reggae, Jazz, Salsa, and many traditional African musical forms of the Diaspora. Narrated through powerful ancestral dancing, Extra Ancestral provides an in-depth education of temporal and geographic borders from Africa to the Americas and back, providing lessons from the past to hone tools for the future. Music and dance are the ensemble’s healing tools, and led by some of LA’s most dynamic artists, their revolutionary performances of black survival invoke while poignantly resisting 500 years of forced transatlantic passages between West Africa and the Americas. Extra Ancestral unifies music, dance, visual arts, and community engagement as forms of empowerment to reduce the trans generational trauma that exists in communities of color. Historically, music and dance have been considered the oldest form of medicine and Extra Ancestral seeks to combine the tradition of healing through their performances to elevate and empower communities of color. Their vision manifests into performance productions, dance classes, workshops and music education with artists from across the African Diaspora. Co-Artistic Director Kahlil Cummings, Rachel Hernandez, and Alberto Lopez.