Women of Concern Professionals Strategic Consciousness Networking VOL 1 ISSUE 4 | Page 6

In the Spotlight
Page 6
DANITA ROUNTREE GREEN
I am going to caution each of you but especially those of you who are networkers and connectors be on the look-out for greatness in quiet unassuming folks. I had the opportunity to meet and spend some time with Danita Rountree Green, aka R. Satiafa aka the Broom Lady but I didn’ t know the greatness that within this quiet unassuming vessel. We spoke, laughed and even shared a wee bit about ourselves during this working weekend back in March during a Real Women Empowerment Project PJ party. By the way a RWEP PJ party will be something you will want to put on your to-do-list really soon— a word- EMPOWERING. Let me enlighten you a tad about greatness in a quiet unassuming vessel. Danita though a prolific and gifted writer read a poem from another prolific and gifted writer who was unable to attend. As Danita read a poem from Petals of Peace( Inspirational Poetry) by L. M. Young she never once did a drive-by— by the way or did you know I too am published author. She carefully and eloquently read a very inspiring poem written by a woman she never met face to face, in order to allowing L. M. Young’ s presence and gift to be captured. Yeah, that’ s kind sister she is.
DANITA( R. SATIAFA) GREEN, AUTHOR / ACTIVIST
I really did not have the opportunity to explore and research Danita background as much as I customarily do for my interview subjects. So as I conducted our Oovoo interview which will air in part on WOCP TV later this year beginning in July, Danita dropped some amazing details about her life, work, and family. I found out that this quiet unassuming vessel has be on a divinely ordered mission for two-decades now and she is a gifted scribe by call not chance but happenstance changed life and made her a voice for millions of men, women and youth in America that are castaway-the incarcerated. It is safe to call Danita a scribe as opposed to writer because she captures on paper the social-cultural folklore of the African American people in most valuable fashions. She is internationally known as the Broom Lady a term generated from another published work entitled,“ Broom Jumping: A Celebration of Love( TBL Publications 1992) a tradition of African American marital union.
Today, Danita’ s focus is on restoring families especially in fractured communities. Mainly working with families of the incarcerated and the chronically ill. Her fictional book“ Love Locked Down” mirrors the actuality of loving one who is imprisoned. During our interview, I asked a question that Danita’ s says she gets often,“ Why the incarcerated population and their families?” While she herself never had a boyfriend or husband imprisoned, she says, it was a reality for a few of her friends and family members.
It hit close to home when one of her three sons got arrested during one of their telephone conversations. The experience changed both of them.
Danita is an educator, writer and researcher; armed and dangerous to say the least as mother of yet another Black manchild locked up picked up the mantle and learned of economic, political, social and cultural effects on communities. The apparent disproportionate and systematic imprisoning of African Americans especially males concerns her.
Though she had been vicariously affect through her distant relationships her son’ s incarceration brought out a voice that millions of the outcast and e stranged m e m b e rs housed in prisons across the United of States of America needed to have activated.
We have not fully comprehended the detrimental affect that ripples through the families of the incarcerated. Danita, is further concern about children who rather say their parent is dead than in jail. It is also reported that children
Of the incarcerated are more prone to behavior issues including violence. Re-entry for the formerly incarcerated individual is often extremely difficult because of the fracture in family and communities. Danita says there is simple not enough support for them or their family to help ease the transition.
When I think of stories with telling and reading, Danita R. Green’ s story comes mind as well as her published works that help preserve our culture so richly. Great Steward Unassuming Quiet Danita...