About our guest author: Melody Starya Mobley’s experiences as the first black woman serving as a forester for the USDA are remarkable: both for the firsts she embodies and for the years of abuse and oppression she experienced within that system.
Now, Melody shares her personal stories to create positive change for groups historically excluded from accessing American natural spaces.
With the few federal protections that exist currently being stripped away, it’s more important than ever for stories like these to be told. To read more of Melody’s writing, visit her website.
Image credit: Kirth Bobb
Giving real thanks vs. the Thanksgiving myth
During this time when people in the United States are giving thanks, thinking about family, and reflecting on the year behind us, George Sawyers (my mother’s father) has been constantly on my mind. Since I was a very young girl, I’ve known that he was of Native American heritage, which means the holidays looked a little different for my family.
Although George was Indigenous, he and his family celebrated a time of thanksgiving. Not the elementary school story of pilgrims sharing a meal with Native Americans that the rest of the world probably sees as lunacy. Given the way Indigenous Americans were treated (broken treaties, stolen land and resources, confinement to reservations far from their ancestral lands, and countless other atrocities large and small), who would believe that White myth of Thanksgiving?
I agree with my grandfather: I don’t believe in the American myth of the pilgrims, but I do think it’s important to reflect on all my reasons to be thankful.
Thankful for a new mentor
This year, I’m most thankful for my friendship with Chris Gibbons. He’s my newest mentor and the President and CEO of American Green Consulting Group, LLC.
Initially, Chris hired me to help develop a toolkit for groups building diversity into their workforce. As a White man, his devotion—his passion, but also the material resources—immediately impressed me. And I grew to respect him because of his willingness to listen and learn from those who have been discriminated against.
Over the last few years, I’ve grown from being impressed with Chris to being inspired by him. His empathy shows in his consideration for those of us with mobility challenges: he once researched and arranged a scooter for me and paid for it out of his own pocket. We were at a meeting that required a lot of walking, and I needed a rollator (at least) or a scooter (at most)—not everyone would be so kind and accommodating to take the kind of initiative Chris did so I could be comfortable.
Chris Gibbons is my hero, and I am his greatest fan. He created this blog space to support my stories so we can share them with the world of forestry and continue to change our workplaces for the better.
Thank you, Chris. I can’t imagine a better partner for this project.
Read more of Melody’s writings
on the American Green blog.