Black Girl's Guide to Surviving Menopause

It's my birthday y'all! 

So grateful for another rotation around the sun. So grateful for this 54 year old body that continues to carry me and teach me about how to love, heal and take risk to be more of who I am meant to be. I can't think of a better way to celebrate my birthday with our podcast listeners than to share this delicious bonus episode! My dear brilliant and super talented sister of the heart, Lana Garland*, is a filmmaker, producer and the curator/director of the Hayti Heritage Film Festival (see website below). She invited me to moderate a conversation between the Black Girl's Guide to Surviving Menopause and show writer Shannon Houston and award-winning actress Aunjanue Ellis of HBO's Lovecraft Country for this years festival. We talked about rage, shrinking, shame, power, control, love, healing and choices. What an honor! Lana also gifted me with the audio from this conversation that I want to gift to you to say "thank you" for your support of this podcast platform that unapologetically centers Black voices and stories as we navigate menopause and aging. You are so appreciated!

Lovecraft Country, the tv show, is based on a book of the same name written by Matt Ruff and book is considered dark fantasy. The name Lovecraft is derived from an early 20th century horror writer H.P. Lovecraft, who was also a self professed white supremacist. It’s set in 1955 Chicago and begins with inviting us to join a quest. This quest is being led by the male lead character, Atticus played by Jonathan Majors  (also known as Tic), who has recently returned home from the Korean war. He is searching for his father and seeking to learn and reclaim his birthright...access to and dominion over the magic that exists in his bloodline--his ancestral legacy. The entire show is stunning and it is the storyline of Hippolyta Freeman performed so impeccably by Aunjanue, Tic’s aunt and episode “I Am” that took my and the breath of some many others away. 

Learn more about HBO's Lovecraft Country Here: https://www.hbo.com/lovecraft-country

"The “I AM" episode of Lovecraft Country gave viewers quite a shock. Never in the history of TV had they seen a liberatory presentation of mature Black womanhood quite like this. Audiences took a journey with the character Hippolyta, played masterfully by Aunjanue Ellis, and we got to experience the glorious revelation of a full 360 degree woman. In this session Omisade Burney-Scott, creator of the Black Girl's Guide to Surviving Menopause, talks with LoveCraft writer Shannon Houston and the award-winning actress Aunjanue Ellis about why this became one of the most popular episodes of the series." --2021 Hayti Heritage Film Festival  https://haytifilmfest.org/

*Check out Lana's interview with BGG2SM during our first season here: https://open.spotify.com/episode/1qtixwI1pAOOSt4lv9UM4I?si=ceha3VqER9y_PsHVwpQ-ZA

Aries Season Birthday Love Offerings Are Welcome! 

Cashapp: $omitutu

Venmo: @omisade5 

To learn more about the Black Girl's Guide to Surviving Menopause, check out our website! We've got merch and our zine "Messages from the Menopausal Multiverse" available too! https://blackgirlsguidetosurvivingmenopause.com/