Knowledge is not power. Knowledge empowers action and ACTION is power. If we don’t plug it in and turn it on, there IS no power in ‘just’ knowing.

At his final State of the Union address, Mrs. Barack Obama Jr. (First Lady Michelle) has reserved a seat for what they have deemed the “voice of America.” For us, the single most important VOICE -besides the empty chair for the victims of gun violence – is the seat for the lone single voice of a Black woman, Edith Childs, who would not let the Senator quit when he was discouraged and about to call it quits.

We know the names of Sojourner Truth, Harriet Tubman, and Rosa Parks … and we barely eke out the names of Dr. Frances Cress Welsing and Shirley Chisholm, but when it comes to those Black woman who are extraordinary in their own right who never get the accolades due to them, we are at a loss for familiarity.

The main reason we so easily forget them or never hear about them is because they do not do what they do to get attention for themselves. They do not live for being known as “Mrs. Such-a-Much” and “Ms So-n-So” and “Miss Strut Yo Stuff.” They actually care about the causes that they become so very vocal and loud about, even when they think no one is listening.

The one seat that thrills me the most is the seat that the First Lady reserved for Edith S. Childs of Greenwood, SC.

Even as Black women across the nation bowed their knees and invoked the One and Only Protector and Defender of Black Women, whom so many think we need to stop calling on, the small Greenwood County (SC) Council, was moving their feet.

Says the White House “When then-Senator Obama visited a June 2007 campaign stop in Greenwood, South Carolina, a small group of 38 supporters captured the enthusiasm and drive that defined the election. And Edith Childs, a Greenwood County Councilmember, summed up the passion with a simple chant: “Fired up! Ready to go!” When she noticed Senator Obama’s surprise at a fairly small gathering, she sought to energize the crowd calling out, “Fired up!” to which they replied “Fired up!” “Ready to go!” she countered. This call and response captivated larger and larger crowds, and became widely recognized as the unofficial slogan of the 2008 and 2012 campaigns. In December 2009, President Obama invited Edith to the White House for the first holiday celebration hosted by the Obamas in recognition of her ability to distill the enthusiasm that helped carry him to the White House. Edith lives in Greenwood with her husband, Charles. They have three children and six grandchildren.”

Truly, she is the only one that matters in this conversation, because just when President Obama was feeling that he was wasting his time and about to throw in the towel, this one lone voice DEMANDED a response to keep him encouraged and moving forward. That man became the first NON-UNDERCOVER BROTHA whom we now call “Mr. President.”

There were all the Black women who refused to move from their seats on the buses before Rosa Parks, who owned a car and never had to ride a bus, but was “chosen” to front the Movement for the media. There were the Harriet Tubman’s in the Village who watched children for parents and grandparents who couldn’t see everything they were doing. There were the Sojourner Truths who show up at events and conferences all day long to carry the message of Black Empowerment, whether anyone else is listening or not. #sandrabland There are the other Black females doctors, politicians, attorneys, dentists, next door neighbors, officers, soldiers, chief cooks and bottle washers, ministers of the gospel and ALL ELSE known and unknown, “spreading a good word” of excellence in every action they take.

These are the ones who encourage us even no one else cares, some because they are so white-obsessed with “bitches and ho’s and thots and trots” that they aren’t watching the long arm of The LAAAW standing invisible in their faces. Even when no one else is listening, a Black woman’s voice overpowers a room and demands the world turn rightside up again. She is “God’s decision” and she will keep talking and screaming even if she is screaming to nothing but the walls in her small confined room.

I personally thank Mrs. Childs for being the one amongst the 20-38 who walked the talk, rallied the small masses, and showed up and showed out. It’s a shining example of what we are all supposed to do AFTER we pray. “Waiting on God” requires ACTION that precedes The Answer — Period.

***Whensonever thou prayeth, thou shouldest also moveth thy feet.***

Why do you question your mother’s love? She gave you life.