Parev fam! Sister Sledge said it best: we are fam-ily! Today, we are meditating on the term “elastic kinship”—literally! Episode 6 offers a guided meditation, a potential outlet for listeners to connect with us, chosen kin, and ancestors—during a tear-filled safe space and vulnerable hour. How do we choose our family? And what does the history of photography have to do with this complex question? The answer lies within YOU…and this episode! 

In the words of Saidiya Hartman, “Flexible and elastic kinship were not a ‘plantation holdover,’ but a resource of black survival, a practice that documented the generosity and mutuality of the poor” (91).  Before we give you the TL;DR of Hartman’s book Wayward Lives, Beautiful Experiments: Intimate Histories of Riotous Black Girls, Troublesome Women, and Queer Radicals, we share the story of Papa Renty, an enslaved African man photographed in 1850 by Louis Agassiz at Harvard, nude, violated, and exposed. Today, his descendant Tamara Lanier is fighting for her ancestor’s justice, reparations, and the return of his image. #FreeRenty 

As always, we close out with our half-baked thoughts— the segment where we share ideas that we haven't fully fleshed out but stand fully behind. You'll just have to listen to the episode to hear those. Thanks for listening! Please rate and review the podcast on Spotify and Apple Music, follow us @nameitpod, and share the episode with a friend!