In February 2024, WKKF Community Leadership Network class three fellows came together in Washington, D.C., for their second in-person gathering. Six months into the fellowship, we asked fellows to reflect on their journeys thus far — how the fellowship has impacted their approaches to leadership and what they are looking forward to in the next year.

The impact of personal clarity

Many fellows reported a renewed sense of personal clarity, noting the unique opportunity to not only learn about leadership, but to also learn more about themselves as individuals.

Alexandra Melnik is the communications director

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Fellows are responding to the critical needs of communities, while stepping into the possibilities and leading transformational change toward an equitable society.

As part of a WKKF Community Leadership Network virtual gathering panel, fellows

For many of us, the opportunity to learn more deeply about the experiences of people who are

WKKF Community Leadership

“Every individual deserves respect and dignity. Individually and collectively, people have the capacity, the power, the right and responsibility to effect social change.”

~ Medgar Wiley Evers

For 126 years, the intentional symbol of white supremacy known as the Confederate Battle flag loomed over the people of Mississippi, emblazoned prominently upon the state flag. Generations of activists have fought for its removal. Finally, in July 2020, a perfect storm of global outrage and community strength came together, resulting in the passing of historic legislation calling for the flag to be removed and a new design to be created.

WKKF Community Leadership Network fellows with the Mississippi cohort — Dr. Bryon D’Andra Orey, Patrick Weems, Zakiya Summers and Reena Evers-Everette — remember the work of those who came before and reflect on the strategies that led to this change finally happening.

Recognizing the flag’s traumatic impacts

“Changing the flag has been my life’s work,” shared Dr. Bryon

Reena Evers-Everette, daughter of civil rights leader Medgar Evers, has carried the legacy of the civil rights movement into her work, making

Young leaders inspire the WKKF Community Leadership Network fellows with their stories of activism and mobilization to advance racial justice

“I f you don’t know the Native history of where you are located, think about why that is. Native history is U.S. history. It’s the story of us. It is our collective story.” ~ Carly Bad Heart Bull

Carly Bad Heart Bull, a WKKF Community Leadership Network fellow and executive director of Native Ways Federation, shared reflections and practices for Indigenous land acknowledgements at the November virtual gathering of fellows. Carly is Bdewakantunwan Dakota and Muskogee Creek, and a proud citizen of the Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe in South Dakota.

What are Indigenous land acknowledgements?

First and foremost, it is not just the responsibility of Native people to give land acknowledgments. The non-Native inhabitants of this land should recognize and honor the Indigenous peoples and stories of this place we collectively call home. Indigenous land acknowledgements honor the land we are on, and show respect for the Native people

New Mexico fellows are connecting across cultures to lead transformational change for children, families