Acknowledgements

Our work is done in collective effort. It is never accomplished alone. We stand on the shoulders of many, and we begin by honoring our ancestors. Their resilience and survival from antiblackness light the path that guides us to work in the service of Black liberation. Their legacies are both our foundation and our fuel.

We also appreciate all of the wrap-around hug efforts of Hope Kelham, who took our vision and made it a reality. What you see here is her work: from capturing our spirit in each of the photoshoots we have shared, to designing the SoCo logo, to styling our merch, to creating this website. She also added photographs (see the color photographs) to the interactive map to help support our project. We have had some pretty out there ideas, and Hope has made everything into the concrete and accessible sources that you have seen in front of you. We cannot thank her enough.

Thank you to the Department of African American Studies chair, Dr. Christy Clark-Pujara, for believing in SoCo when it was just a flickering idea. Her trust in us to make this research and lab a reality means so much.

Thank you to Veneta Kovacs for all of her behind-the-scenes help. The Department of African American Studies at UW-Madison has predominantly been a humanist-focused department, and we appreciate how Veneta has tirelessly worked to ensure we have all of the elements we need to do social science work. We appreciate that Veneta pushed so hard so we could have a smooth summer.

Thank you to Dean Wilcots, who stepped in to help us financially finish our oral history project at a time when we needed support the most. As many grants and funding sources are shying away from supporting Black-affirming work in this political climate, we appreciate his leadership in recognizing the importance of this work.

Thank you to all our loved ones and strangers who have made donations to the department to help us get this work on our ground. We hope that the work we produce make you proud. The day we are able to adequately express our gratitude, is a day the English language will not soon forget.