DiasporaDNA Program Constellation

DiasporaDNA’s program season runs from May through October, offering a dynamic blend of live and digital events designed to engage and inspire the community.

Our program constellation works to unify the connection between global majority diasporas and our shared humanity; fortifying our stories, across a spectrum of cultural forms and creative formats. Book your program today by emailing us: info@diasporadna.org.

Signature Programs:

1. Edify (Montgomery Collection)

2. Storify (Exhibits × Performances)

3. Amplify (Creative Support × Advocacy)

4. Identify (Ancestry × Kinkeeping)

5. Beautify (Art Therapy × Mindfulness

6. Testify (Education, Presentation, × Media Justice)

During this six-month period, participants can experience a variety of workshops, performances, and educational initiatives, both in person and online. The season reifies opportunities for connection, inclusion and access across the city.

Our active season affords intentional rest, reset, research, international travel and reflection among our team, which emboldens us to push the work forward.

Whether attending in person or virtually, audiences can expect a rich array of programming tailored to diverse interests, piqued curiosities and community needs.

Edify Programs:

1. Archives & Vibes: Lit Lounge (Pop-Up Event Activity)

Dive into our rare book collection at our mobile humanities reading room! Spark creativity through crafting events, guided prompts, live book club convos and interesting discussions. Bringing literature to life in a cozy lounge setting, open to all.

2. Junior Senior Archivist Camp (Intergenerational Workshops)

Unite teens and seniors in a dynamic camp to research archival treasures and home histories. Celebrate the power of intergenerational memory work, fostering connections and preserving stories that shape our past and future.

3. DiasporaDNA: Collecting & Sharing African American History Book (Keynotes & Book Talk)

Commemorate the 25th anniversary rerelease of Collecting African American History by Dr. Elvin Montgomery Jr., Ph.D. This iconic scholarly coffee table book celebrates the richness of African American heritage with stunning visuals and insights charting the journey of DiasporaDNA.

Edify (Montgomery Collection)

Explore the art, history, and lives of the global majority through curated selections of rare archival collectibles in the Montgomery Collection, which serves as a valuable teaching tool for conscious-raising education.

[Edify - Instruction encouraging intellectual, moral, or spiritual improvement; Deep Dive into Archives!]

Storify (Exhibits × Performances)

Experience storytelling and performance that shares testimonies and triumphs from diverse diasporas, near and far. Visualize universal human themes through the lens of the 'first voice', from our archive. Our vibrant live shows, displays and experiences invite participants and interactivity from all backgrounds.

[Storify - Engaging with peoples lived experiences, recounted through a lens of multimedia and creativity; Passing the torch of story!]

Storify Programs:

1. Delicacy Global Soul: Flavors, Spices, Rices of Our Diasporas 🍚

Embark on a vibrant culinary journey celebrating the rich flavors, spices, and rices of our global diasporas. Share stories, swap recipes, and savor the soulful connections that unite our diverse cultures through food.

2. Procession: Movements of the People

Global Liberation Timeline (Interactive)

Trace the resilient journey of people of color all over the world fighting oppressive colonization and championing revolution and hard won independence. From Juneteenth to Africa Day to Cinco De Mayo, this immersive timeline celebrates the unyielding spirit of communities worldwide in their fight for freedom and self-determination

Amplify (Creative Support × Advocacy)

We provide tools, techniques, and training for the makers and minds in this generation to be inspired by the continuum of time. We invite cultural producers, fans and audiences to take a deep dive into the archives, and share their inspirational stories with us to be documented, recorded, and podcasted as advocacy points everyone can learn from. We offer a culturally conscious space to build connections, receive professional development and make history together.

[Amplify - Making something larger, louder, or stronger. Adding articulation and urgency to concepts. Inviting cultural producers, talent, fans and audiences to share inspirational stories and advocate, cross pollinate to; Make history together!

Identify (Ancestry × Kinkeeping)

Delve into genealogy, kin-keeping resources, along with creative writing focused on self, society, and identity. Connect with echoes of the past and uplift the voices of future generations.

[Identify - Establishing who someone is, assigning characteristics and associating them through strong links to a place, space or culture; Explore Roots & Wings!]

*Broadcast Storytelling: Kinkeeping Summit

*Creative Writing: Family Tree & Memoirs

*Creative Writing: Lifelines & Obituary

*Genealogy Assistance: Ancestry Tracing

*Ancestor Tribute Altar Building: Promise. Witness. Remembrance.

Identify Programs:

1. Kinkeeping Homecoming

Ignite the spirit of kinkeeping with a vibrant homecoming! Pass down traditions through a prayer breakfast, delicacy recipe swap, and cookoff. Share family photos, trace genealogies, and plan a legacy-building reunion that empowers community storytellers.

Kinkeeping: A Love Letter For Us By Us (Interactive)

Craft a sonic installation and scrapbook reflecting on legacy and intangible inheritance futures. Share voicemails to ancestors, cherished memories, and beloved traditions. Celebrate kinkeepers and chosen and biological families weaving a heartfelt tapestry of community care.

2. Ancestry & Ambiance Retreats & Escape Rooms

Uncover hidden histories in archives and literary challenges! Create personal narratives, poetry, and memoir timelines, build altars for oral histories, and join Genealogy Dinner Dialogues.

Genealogy Dinner Dialogues (Interactive)

Celebrating diverse diaspora traditions in an immersive, soul-stirring retreat.

Beautify (Art Therapy × Mindfulness)

Participate in creative art therapy (CAT) art making and mindful activities, in a trauma-informed environment intended for adults. This program aims to promote healing and address issues plaguing urban communities, offering psychological safety utilizing creative wellness and evidence based mental health approaches.

[Beautify - Improving the appearance, reality and feeling of ourselves and space; ART'ventures!]

Testify Programs:

1. Patterns of Our Diaspora Podcast

Listen, Learn and witness vibrant conversations amplifying diaspora stories, cultural commentary through the lens of our 6 strands of program constellation. Hear hot takes and thoughtful reflections from urban thinkers, public intellectuals and creatives we admire.

2. DiasporaDNA Day Festival

Celebrate History, Nature and Culture of the global majority at our annual festival! Explore travel, heritage, creativity and culinary delights, via storytelling, art making, performance and multicultural mindfulness. Launch the Global Liberation Timeline tracing the stories of Liberation. Veneration and Expression.

Diaspora Travelogues (Interactive)

Join a captivating gathering of griots sharing diaspora travelogues through powerful talks, mesmerizing performances, and inspiring film screenings. Celebrate the stories and journeys that connect our global communities with passion and pride.

3. Museum Remedy: Community Engagement Consulting & Keynotes

Transform communities with Monica O. Montgomery’s electrifying keynote presentations and expert consulting. Museum Remedy ignites meaningful engagement, weaving cultural narratives and innovative strategies to inspire lasting impact.

Testify (Education, Presentation, × Media Justice)

Exploring ecologies of promise for community to elevate people, their stories, and experiences as the core of everything we do. Our work is driven by cultural elevation, an understanding that audiences seek spaces where they can feel heard, seen, and affirmed, and that these connections are essential to a deeper sense of belonging.

[Testify - Bearing witness; Teaching, based on knowledge, belief or regard; Affirm & Enrich!]

Email info@diasporadna.org today to book your program!