James Lawson, civil rights leader, reflections on the fight for equality. To learn more, join our mailing list (link also in bio): unitedstreettours.com/get-in-touch-with-chakita/#UnitedSt... #WalkUnited

Becoming a voice for Nashville’s black history

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My stomach rumbled.

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Within 5-minutes of arriving at my first group tour, the Impostor voice inside my head was screaming, “What have you gotten us into?”

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Leaving the education profession to start my own Nashville walking tour business seemed like my dumbest idea to date.

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As 3 of my tour guides surrounded me, I wiped my sweaty palms on my pants and waited with them for our group of 90 high school boys to arrive. Weird.

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Rain came out of the blue and they canceled the tour. Impostor reminded me that I could always go back home and start applying for education jobs. She didn’t win.

Over time, I learned to manage imposter syndrome by incorporating simple steps in my life. The first step is the 3-minute decision map. This helps me avoid spending days thinking about what Imposter thinks about the most horrific outcomes.

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The opportunity.

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When I got the call to be the voice for Nashville’s black history, Imposter whispered, “tuh, look at you trying to speak for all black people” and “you’re not even FROM Nashville.” Using my 3-step process, I defeated her and accepted the opportunity.

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The voice.

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I was invited to orally record the historical stories of my ancestors who experienced Nashville differently. I walked into the recording studio at Belmont University, and passionately honored the African American legacy in Nashville through storytelling.

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After the recording was over, I sat in my car filled with emotions. I felt their stories. I acknowledge their pain. I honor their legacy.

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Because I defeated Imposter, I get to tell their stories on tour every day. Although I don’t know EVERYTHING, what I do know, I’m happy to share.

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I am a voice for black history.

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#UnitedStreetTours #blackhistory #changingthenarrative #inclusion #love #antiracism #nashville #nashvillehistory #musiccity #united #walkunited #tours #nashvilleblackhistory #Socialjustice #Racialjustice #Racism #Antiracist #Whitefragility #BlackLeaders #BlackLeadership #WhiteAllies #WhiteAlly #Allyship #Progressive #400Years #DoBetter #blacklivesmatter #feminist #feminism

#Flashback I hesitantly reached out to the group we're touring today to call their attention to the weather in case they weren't aware that it’s going to rain. The group leader said, "we have rain ponchos for all the kids." I shouted.

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Last year, we had no idea who our target audience was so we simply tried to appeal to everyone. Big mistake! People would cancel at the last minute if there was a threat of rain, complain about prices being too high, and I even had people tell me “this should be free.”

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This tour season, we put in double the effort to figure out who are the folks who would value and appreciate the tours. One of the strategies we used to determine this was tripling the price to weed out people. This was by far the best decision we have made in this business to-date.

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Now, I get to work with people who are fired up about black history and racial justice. I’ve been able to form a community from customers who want nothing more than to pursue equity by any means for all people. I get to work with people who buy ponchos for a group of kids instead of canceling or rescheduling at the last minute.

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Today, 30+ people will be touring Fisk University and other HBCUs in Nashville with @UnitedStreetTours. From there we will patronize two black-owned businesses in the Jefferson Street Art Crawl community. We'll be stopping by Jefferson Street Sound and ending and eating at the black-owned restaurant, Kingdom Café & Grill.

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Every blue moon, a person who is not in our target, tours with us and that's okay too. Finding our target audience was not easy but it has helped us better serve the community and grow our small, woman-led, black-owned business. I just want to say thank you to all of our customers who are the backbone of United Street Tours. .

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#UnitedStreetTours #blackhistory #changingthenarrative #inclusion #love #antiracism #nashville #nashvillehistory #musiccity #united #walkunited #tours #nashvilleblackhistory #Socialjustice #Racialjustice #Racism #Antiracist #Whitefragility #BlackLeaders #BlackLeadership #WhiteAllies #WhiteAlly #Allyship

The Register served as a Grand Slam Sponsor of WALK UNITED, an annual family-friendly 5k event that includes a walking path in and around Angel Stadium.

Team Register joined other corporate teams in participating in the morning walk, which includes a stroll on the field itself along the right and left field foul lines.

Rev. C. T. Vivian was born Cordy Tindell Vivian. He moved to Nashville in the 1950s to study religion at the HBCU American Baptist College. While in Nashville, Vivian was a student of James Lawson, nonviolent resistance workshops and participated in civil rights protests throughout the South.

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In Selma, 1965, Vivian arrived at the courthouse where several different groups had made unsuccessful attempts to register to vote. When Vivian arrived, the sheriff refused to let them pass, saying the courthouse was closed. Vivian confronted him saying, “You can turn your back on me, but you cannot turn your back on the idea of justice.”

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The sheriff eventually punched Vivian square in the face with a vicious left jab, sending him sprawling down the courthouse steps. Vivian lay dazed for a moment, his head throbbing and blood streaming down his face. When Vivian got up, he quoted Winston Churchill, “What kind of people do they think we are? What kind of people are you? We are willing to die for democracy!” To learn more, join our mailing list (link also in bio): unitedstreettours.com/get-in-touch-with-chakita/ #UnitedStreetTours #WalkUnited #blackhistorytour

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#blackowned #womanowned #Nashville #Tennessee #downtownNashville #MusicCity #antiracist #visitfranklintn #eastnashville #nashville_tn #eastnasty #do615 #whitefragility #Nashvillehistory #blackeducators #Nashvilleteachers #teachers #Nashvillenative #blackhistory #africanamericanhistory #civilrights #civilrightsmovement #blackhistorymonth #nashvilleblackhistory #antiracism #whiteprivilege #northnashville