THE BURDEN OF CONTEXT

By Latavia Young

With the help of her grandmother, Latavia identifies the milieu of her ancestry; inadvertently revealing the living legacy of slavery, segregation, and gentrification in Miami and its influence on her family narrative. Poetically intermingling her and her grandmother’s voice, family images, and historic archival of Miami in the 1920’s through the 1960’s, Latavia guides us through and contextualizes the salient beats of her ancestral story. The emotional journey through the decades culminates in an emotional revelation that leaves Latavia feeling both helpless and indomitable.