
The First Sins ~ The First Suffragists
Unerased was spurred by the 100th Anniversary of women’s voting rights in 2020. That tumultuous year of unprecedented strife and challenges demonstrated Black women’s continuous demands for our voice and our vote extend far beyond a 100-year observance. Rewind four centuries when the first stolen Africans arrived on these shores, resisting the original cardinal sin of the nation we would inherit. Throughout history, Black women fought for power in governing our bodies, our voices and our choices. Unerased| Black Women Speak is a tribute and celebration to the first warriors on whose path we follow.
Yesterday they carried the torch for all people stripped of the most fundamental forms of liberty. Today we pick up the baton, pledging to tell ourstory as it unfolds today. Through our lens of herstory, this space honors the sacrifices and triumphs of descendants of warriors, daughters of the enslaved and the future caretakers of our legacy.
Gwen McKinney, Unerased Creator and Campaign Director, is founder of McKinney & Associates, the first Black woman-owned communications firm dedicated to race-centered national policy. That acumen is honed into Unerased public engagement, partnerships and storytelling by and about Black women.
Carolyn Malachi is a Grammy-nominated artist, an audio producer and engineer, and a professor in the Cathy Hughes School of Communications at Howard University. In addition to her award-winning creative work, Carolyn mixes records for independent artists and conducts research on the intersection of sound and blockchain technology.
Levi Perrin, SRP Webmaster and Content Coordinator, brings a passion for creative storytelling, progressive causes, grassroots change birthed from experience as a seventh generation South Carolinian. Levi comes to the initiative with experience in creative, digital media, and outreach and research.
Alyssa Davis, Digital Media Coordinator, has a passion for creating meaningful content. She’s enthusiastic about volunteering and community outreach. She has a strong interest in addressing equality and equity related to systemic racism and how that looks in Black and Indigenous communities, especially in healthcare.
Stephanie Renée, Coordinating Producer, is a former on-air host and Program Director for WURD Radio in Philadelphia, as well as an accomplished recording artist and performer. She serves as the VibeMistress for her nonprofit arts education foundation Soul Sanctuary and is passionate about uplifting Black excellence through all forms of creative media.
McKinney & Associates, campaign and team director, is led by Gwen McKinney who established the first Black and woman-owned communications firm that expressly promotes racial justice public policy. For Unerased | Black Women Speak, McKinney continues marrying content and narrative creation into a suite of integrated strategies aimed at social change
NEO Philanthropy is our fiscal agent. Launched in 1983 as Public Interest Projects (PIP), NEO is a 501(c)(3) public charity committed to building strong social justice movements.As an intermediary, it bridges the gap that often exists between funders and organizations doing the work, through collaborative funds, fiscal sponsorships, donor services and capacity building.