Ancestral Veneration: An Offering by Adéọlá Naomi Adérè̩mí

We are honored to introduce Adéọlá Naomi Adérè̩mí as our next spiritual curator and contributor. Adéọlá Naomi Adérè̩mí is a multilingual, multilocal, AfroGreek, and multi-format artist, scholar, curator, filmmaker, and healer. She is the founder and editor-in-chief of Distinguished Diva, a platform where she explores the intersection of spirituality with the daily lives of African people, and where Black storytellers can find community. Distinguished Diva can be found on Youtube here. 

Adéọlá integrates holistic healing practices in policy spaces and culture, and uses diverse modalities of care for issues related to Black women’s liberation, gender justice, women's health, and equal representation for voices of women of African descent in global media. Adéọlá’s work in various mediums has been featured in various publications such as Women Under Siege, the New York Times, Ms. Magazine, New Museum New York, Forbes, E-flux, Elle, and Vogue. In 2022, she premiered her debut documentary film on the lives and lived experiences of Greeks of Black African and Diasporic descent, “I am Afro Greek: Black Portraiture in Greece. More on her groundbreaking film can be found in a Contemporary And interview here, and in an online discussion here.  Adeola herself can be found on social media, on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok. 

For Queer Joy, she shares an audio talk about ancestors and ancestral veneration for complete beginners to the concept, shared especially for African LGBTQIA+ people, and Africans in general, who may have had difficult relationships with their blood families, explaining how to connect with their lineage, how to build a relationship of safety and clarity with them and so much more. Adéọlá also shared this other conversation she recorded with Timil Jones of the Overflo Podcast on ancestral veneration as birthright: catch it here.

Many thanks to Ray Wamoto for the final audio edit! Listen to Adéọlá’s audio recording here.

(transcript coming soon!)

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NB. After you listen to this podcast, there are a few others of Adéọlá speaking on linked matters on other platforms, which you might like to get into as well:

- A discussion with BBC’s Radio 4 Podcast, Beyond Belief, on African spirituality. Catch it here. 
- A discussion with Timil Jones of the Overflo Podcast on ancestral veneration as birthright: catch it here.
- A discussion with the Busy Being Black podcast on ancestral healing and softness as birthright: catch it here.