The Power of RE - REconstruction

Reconstruction is a loaded word as it can evoke a variety of emotions. I chose it as part of my book for three reasons. First, it is personal. Reconstruction has been a personal process physically, mentally, and spiritually due to surviving breast cancer and living with the aftermath of treatment. The discussion of treatment and side effects is outside this book's scope. Therefore I will save that conversation for another time. Nonetheless, I have gone through a physical reconstruction that has caused me to reimagine myself. It is a reimagining and rethinking about how I approach and engage life, which is a process that has impacted my psyche and spirit. For the better, to encourage and hopefully inspire others to reimagine living.

The second is historical. Much has been written about the period of reconstruction after the civil war ended in 1865, where approximately 4 million enslaved Black people were given their freedom. It reminds me of three historical amendments to the constitution, the 13th Amendment, which abolished slavery, the 14th Amendment, which gives birthright citizenship to the formerly enslaved, and the 15th Amendment, which grants freed slaves the right to vote. All of which were contested with the black codes of Jim and Jane Crow segregation and voter suppression. Reconstruction was also a period in American history where black communities lived through the terrorism of burning, lynching, and other atrocities, which leads me to current events.

The third is contemporary. With the current pandemic that has been raging for more than a year and the civil unrest reminiscent of the reconstruction era, we, the Black people, continue to face challenges to our humanity. Voter suppression, continued threats of terrorism through policing and the prison industrial complex, economic, and educational injustice broadly outline the contested existence of Black Americans in this country. Reconstruction continues to be a work in progress. Reconstruction is hard work.

Sorry SCW Family. I could not end this on a brighter note. Well, a picture of Bree Newsome taking down the symbol of hate, is my bright side to reflect on. What is yours? Write about it and share it in the forum. https://www.sistercirclewriters.com/forum

REflective Questions:

Think about the meanings and the various contexts for the word REconstruct or REconstruction. Where have you seen REconstruction take place in your life? What phase of REconstruction are you in?

Look at the various forms of the word reconstruct and their meanings.

Reconstruct (Verb), Reconstruction, Reconstructor (Noun), Reconstructible, Reconstructive (adjective)

Definition of RECONSTRUCT as a transitive verb:

· to construct again: such as to build or assemble (something) again.

· medical: to subject (an organ or part) to surgery to REform its structure or correct a defect

· to REcreate or REimagine (something from the past), especially by using information acquired through research.

· to create an accurate REenactment or understanding of (a past occurrence or event, such as an accident) by applying scientific principles and techniques to physical evidence.