It Takes A Village To Raise A Child

It has always been a common tradition amongst African Americans to say “it takes a village to raise a child”, in “Voices of Our Foremothers: Celebrating the Legacy of African-American Women Educators” by Sunny-Marie Birney, her personal life story is a direct correlation of this infamous quote. She explains how at the age of two she was adopted, being the first experience she encountered where the African American community took action to raise a child of the village. As her life progressed, up until high school she only encompassed four African-American female teachers. Although they treated her with care as if their own child, it was not until college she really felt the connection between academic knowledge and the broader world. She understood the dynamics of that ever changing place in the world. This became an impact on her life that would change and shape her forever. She explained how her professors were her “mothers away from home” and the academy her “home away from home”. This phenomenon is known as “other mothering” and is a characteristic of African American female teachers. As the village does, female African American teachers view “mothering” as a communal responsibility as well as an act of service. African American female teachers tend to care more about their students and hold them to the same expectations as they would their very own children. They naturally understand the power of nurture and caring for others, especially those of the same race. African American female teachers understand the importance of the “village raising the child”. They understand the realization that a mother cannot physically be there to raise their child every minute of every hour of the day; therefore it is the job of the “village” or community to pick up where she leaves off. With and through the presence of this concept Sunny-Marie Birney became inspired and followed the sacred calling of becoming a teacher. She believed it was her destiny to follow the legacy of caring, committed, and cultural uplifting that determined her to be where she is now. She now stands on the shoulders of the countless visionaries knowing she follows a path deeply rooted in a rich history of excellence of women who make it possible to envision a dream.
- Brittney L. Echols