In Memory of Salsa Soul

I discovered The Salsa Soul Sisters early on in my own personal research into Black Lesbian Herstory. I was curious to know more about who I was what it truly meant not only to be a women of the African Diaspora but also a lesbian. Growing up throughout school my favorite subject was always history. History piqued my interest even after leaving the classroom. In conversations with my elders, I realized the black history we learned in school didn't reflect the more complete histories shared with black lesbian elders who were in the community and sharing their stories. My own understanding of life and personal beliefs were mostly shaped by the stories shared by elders, and being in conversation and community. These experiences molded my own unique understanding of life.

Soon after graduating college I encouraged myself to go out into the world to get a fresh perspective from my own lens. Shortly after I had my first spiritual awakening, that pioneered me into uncovering parts of myself that were yet to be revealed. I remember going online to Youtube and watching ‘The Last Lesbian Bars in America’ and it completely changed my outlook on where I was then coming into myself as a Lesbian. I asked myself if the spaces we go to meet as women in this community are starting to shut down, where are we actually going to see each other and connect with one another? 

At that part of my life I knew the power in the connection of Black lesbians. I wanted to create something where we could get back to that sacred space. Hence the Black Lesbian Archives (BLA) was created in 2017. The BLA’s purpose is to reclaim and shed light to these stories that have been flying below the radar or not accessible to the public, especially in this digital age. Upon creating the Black Lesbian Archives one of the first of many organizations that I was able to come across during my online research was the Salsa Soul Sisters, Inc. Created in 1974, incorporated in 1976, founded by Rev. Delores Jackson, the organization was in practice for over twenty years before transforming into African Ancestral Lesbians United for Societal Change (AALUSC) sometime in the 90s “Formally known as the first black lesbian organization”, I was blown away that such an organization even existed in the 1970s! Not only that, but the fact was, I could see myself in all of these women. This discovery invigorated the fire within my soul! I was awakened to something much greater than myself. A vision. So I began to ask myself new questions. How do I want to engage with and contribute to black lesbian community moving forward? And what will it take to make the shift?

Fast forward a couple years later I was invited by the Lesbian Herstory Archives to participate in the Mellon funded digital exhibition as a Project Manager, alongside co-coordinator Shawn(ta) Smith-Cruz, to record conversations, meet, and form relationships with some of the members of the Salsa Soul Sisters. The Lesbian Herstory Archives Online Exhibition Memory Project required metadata to be applied to photographs, flyers, and ephemeral material from the Salsa Soul Sisters exhibition materials that were previously physically exhibited at the Robert Blackburn Printmaking Gallery, the Brooklyn College Library, and the New York Historical Society, now digitized and continually preserved at the Lesbian Herstory Archives. With this newly attributed metadata, this exhibition materials are now openly accessible to researchers around the world and intend to be a comprehensive resource to lesbian of color herstory. 

My work consisted of contacting and scheduling zoom meetings with members of the Salsa Soul Sisters. Recorded conversations focused on the photographs of previous exhibitions, and tracked identifiable names of women in photographs, places, and any other associated memories. Searchable terms were entered into a spreadsheet for upload into the online Omeka site.

I met with Dr. Cassandra Grant, Loretta Bascombe, Sharon Lucas, Roberta Oloyade Stokes, Julia Bennett and Harriet Alston towards the end of February of 2022. We connected on Zoom usually every Thursday from 6-7PM Eastern time. Which was the Salsa Soul Sisters original day to meet during the week. I don’t know what it is about Thursdays but it seems to be somewhat of a collective time to commune. We had a total of eight sessions. All of the women I met during these sessions were phenomenal! I felt like a kid, so excited to hear from them again as I waited for the next meeting! We all were excited for our Thursday meetings. Our discussions with each other had a little bit of everything in it and there was never a dull moment! Everything flowed so effortlessly as if we were gathering again. We spoke about some of the members' backstories, finding Salsa Soul Sisters and what that meant for them, including their extravagant parties and celebration of Kwanzaa instead of Christmas, the lovers and friends that found each other through the organization, and can’t forget about the brief intermissions for the outfits Imani used to cut a rug in the photos. There was so much, much more! 

These women along with the past and present members have continued to revolutionize this world. During the 1970s, a time when many Black women would not have the courage to be out lesbians in community, the Salsa Soul Sisters was on the same wavelength in terms of local and global change. These sacred spaces beyond the bars allowed women of African-diasporic, Latin, Asian and Indigenous descent to unite and cultivate progressive thriving communities, establishing stronger foundational bonds to our roots and ancestral connections. I will forever hold the memory and legacy of the Salsa Soul Sisters close to home. May we all continue to remember the richness of our past to build on transformational futures!