Africa 500, Wednesday, April 5, 2023: Impact of Mass Incarceration on Women; Changing Herstory

The Wednesday, April 5, 2023 edition of AFRICA 500 finishes off their Pan African Herstory Month series on Women Warriors with the topic: Impact of Mass Incarceration on Women; Changing Herstory. Show hosts Sis. Tomiko and Bro. Ty welcome their Special Guests: Maryam Henderson-Uloho, Founder of SisterHearts Louisiana; and Dr. Renata A. Hedrington-Jones aka Queen Afia Nzinga, National Vice President of the National Association of Black Social Workers.

Maryam Henderson-Uloho
SisterHearts
Louisiana
https://vimeo.com/246308092 – SisterHearts Short Documentary
https://squareup.com/us/en/dreams/sister-hearts
https://maryamuloho.com/

Maryam Henderson-Uloho spent thirteen years in prison in Louisiana, seven in solitary confinement. After her release she struggled to find housing or employment. She began selling secondhand goods out of a suitcase on a street corner in New Orleans. In just three years, she grew her business to a brick-and-mortar thrift store—one that also provides housing and employment for other formerly-incarcerated women. She calls those women—and her store—Sister Hearts.

“When I got out of prison, they wouldn’t allow me to open a bank account. I could not rent an apartment. I could not get a job. So I started just selling stuff out of a suitcase on the street corner. The first day I made $40. And I just kept doing that. Three years later, I have a 15,000 square foot thrift store and transition housing facility for other female ex-offenders.”

Dr. Renata A. Hedrington-Jones aka Queen Afia Nzinga
National Vice President; National Association of Black Social Workers
https://www.nabsw.org/

Dr. Renata Hedrington Jones received her doctorate from Walden University and her MSW in Social Work from Virginia Commonwealth University. Dr. Jones completed her doctoral studies in human services administration. Dr. Hedrington Jones taught at Virginia State University and Virginia Commonwealth University in the schools/department of social work. Her dissertation entitled “Human Services Professionals’ Practice with Families After Parental Incarceration” supports the need for therapeutic services for this population. Dr. Hedrington Jones has over 40 years of experience in the field of social work. She adamantly refuses to accept mediocrity as a solution to the social ills of this society. She believes in family preservation and her ultimate goal is to reconvene the village. She refuses to give up because she believes that African American people and all people deserve the best lives possible. In her own words “All Lives Matter.” She also taught at Longwood University.

Africa 500 broadcasts every Wednesday at 3:00 PM (Eastern Time, United States) on Hand Radio (https://handradio.org). After the broadcast, the show can be listened to on an update of this post as well as on the Audio-Visual Media Pages of KUUMBAReport (https://kuumbareport.com), KUUMBAEvents (https://kuumbaevents.com) and the Sixth Region Diaspora Caucus (https://srdcinternational.org).