"OUR RICH BLACK HERITAGE" : THE FREEDOM QUILTING BEE BLACK CO-OPERATIVE

In some of our Black Communities today, it seems that many Black People either don't know or have forgotten when Black People counted on one another and worked together, in order to make sure that they survived to see a better day! Not only did Black People Cooperate and Work together, they actually shared in owning what was known as "BLACK CO-OPERATIVE BUSINESSES." Through Black Co-operative Businesses, Black People were able to provide jobs for their families as well as create their own economy within their Black Communities. As I continued to research, I discovered that Black Cooperatives went back as far as 1891 when Colored farmers formed "THE COLORED FARMERS NATIONAL ALLIANCE and CO-OPERATIVE," which had "OVER ONE-MILLION COLORED MEMBERS," before it was targeted and forced to disband by disgruntled White People. Later on, Negroes in America established Insurance Co-ops, Housing Co-ops, and Grocery Store Co-ops to take care of the needs of their race. In addition to Co-operative Businesses, Colored People formed what was known as "MUTUAL AID SOCIETIES." Through Mutual Aid Societies, Colored People were able to pool their money to help each other pay for medicine, funerals, and even purchase land! Yes, I feel that it would do Black People in Louisiana good to go back and read up on Black Co-operative Businesses as well as the Mutual Aid Societies, then maybe they will stop saying,"Black People can't work together." Well, on to this week's Black Pioneer! The Freedom Quilting Bee was a Black-Owned Co-operative founded by several Black Women. It was based in the county of Wilcox, in Alabama, and operated from 1966, until 2012. The women started the business to raise money to help take care of their families. When they began in 1966, there were approximately 60 quilters included in the Co-op. Three years after starting their business, construction began on their new building named,"The Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Sewing Center," on March 8, 1969. The building was constructed by the husbands of the quilters and other nonprofessional volunteers. Funding for the building came in part from Philanthropic Foundations and through an interest-free loan provided by the American Friends Service Committee of Atlanta, Georgia. In 2012, after being in operation for nearly half a century, and only a year after the last original board member had died, The Freedom Quilting Bee closed it's doors for good. Of interesting note, the quilts were so popular that some of the Bee's quilts were displayed in the Smithsonian Institute.