Seattle’s Roots Family Picnic Is Commemorating 50 Years Of Black Seattle Heritage – The Seattle Medium

By Aaron Allen, The Seattle Medium

Kin of Outdated Timers Seattle (ROOTS) will have a good time 50 years of Black heritage, relevance and household values as they’ll host their annual Roots Household Picnic this Sunday, September 4 at Jimi Hendrix Park in Seattle Central’s District.

The Occasion will probably be crammed with meals, leisure, youngsters’s occasions, there will probably be ceremony honoring our native Black management like our new Washington State Sheriff’s Division chief Patti Cole-Tindall, who in flip will current the Neighborhood Service Award to retired Deputy Chief Fabienne Brooks for her tireless work in legislation enforcement. 

The start of the Roots Household Picnic stems from 1972 when Arline and Letcher Yarbrough invited pals, neighbors and household over for a BBQ to have a good time household and Black household roots and historical past as descendants of among the first Black households in Seattle. A practice that continues to be celebrated at the moment.

In response to William Lowe, a Seattle native and member of the Breakfast Membership, the ROOTS Household Picnic is a Seattle custom of Black households and their descendants coming collectively to interrupt bread, rekindle friendships, and construct upon a real sense of group.

“Within the early 1970’s, a dinner invitation went out from Arline and Letcher Yarbrough to eight {couples} who had been shut pals thirty and forty years earlier than, seeing one another often and sharing many pursuits,” says Lowe. “The more moderen years discovered them scattered and out of contact, however the response to the invitation was glorious.  All who have been nonetheless dwelling within the Seattle space accepted; wanting to see outdated pals once more.  The results of that gathering was the inspiration for the ROOTS Household Picnic. “

Holding on to household custom is one thing most cultures adhere to however to the African American group household it’s relished because of the systemic affect slavery had on Black households, as African households have been constantly separated after their arrival in America.

“Being part of this group all my life we’ve seen it go from Black to what exists at the moment,” says Seattle native Paul Mitchell, retired Macy’s purchaser, who can also be a member of the Breakfast Group. “Whereas the CD was once upwards to 90 % Black now it’s what? 20 %, 10 %, if that. It’s important that we preserve this stepping into that we are able to all get collectively and reminisce and change and get the younger individuals concerned.”

After many years of celebrations placed on by ROOTS, older generations started passing and new generations started taking over the mantle. 20 years in the past, the Breakfast Membership was requested to tackle the management position and since then have held the helm of this distinguished occasion.

“We work with younger children, significantly younger Black males, and we work laborious to get them concerned in group,” continued Mitchell. “We’d like extra constructive occasions that our younger Black individuals can see, particularly from our elders and we attempt to set examples and so we work to reveal them to among the higher issues in life like this occasion.”

Lowe agrees and says that organizers should start the method of passing on the torch in order that the custom of the Roots Household Picnic will probably be round for future generations to cherish.

“Sadly, in spite of everything these years nearly all the authentic members of the ROOTS have left this earth,” says Lowe. “So, we’re 50 years later they’d somewhat little bit of age on them at the moment and so we’re second and third generations, and the place we discover ourselves nonetheless carrying this on.”

Because the elder inhabitants inside Seattle continues to maintain custom and household values alive each Lowe and Mitchell look to increase the picnics affect to incorporate all of Africa’s diaspora and wish to embrace the African group to change into part of this celebration as they too are part of the larger image inside the group.

“We have to embrace all of the Africans from Africa on this,” says Mitchell. “The generally tend to remain aside from our occasions so we are attempting to allow them to know that they’re part of our Black group and heritage We wish them to know that we’re all the identical and we welcome them, that something we do we wish them to be part of it.”

        Custom, household values, cultural satisfaction and achievement, togetherness is what this celebration is about. The ROOTS Household Picnic occasion

“We wish our younger women and men to have success,” says Mitchell. We wish our youthful generations to change into extra concerned within the planning and custom of this occasion. This occasion is for them to be taught from us and to commune and take in this historical past.”