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What happens when one woman challenges one of the most powerful universities in the world to reclaim her family’s stolen history? Tamara Lanier shares the powerful story behind her fight with Harvard to honor the humanity and legacy of her ancestors.

In this powerful episode, Tamara reveals the deeply personal journey that began with a family story and led to a historic legal battle with Harvard University over the earliest known photographs of enslaved people—images of her ancestors, Renty and his daughter Delia. What started as a search for truth became a courageous stand for dignity, recognition, and justice.

Tamara speaks about the emotional weight of uncovering her lineage, confronting institutions that have historically controlled and profited from Black bodies and narratives, and the determination it takes to restore humanity to those whose lives were reduced to objects of study. Her story is not just about the past—it is about reclaiming identity, protecting ancestral memory, and ensuring that the voices of our ancestors are finally heard.

This episode is about truth, justice, memory, and the ongoing work of restoring dignity to the stories that history tried to erase.

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Rochell Sanders Prater is the Executive Director of Descendants United, formerly known as the GU272 Descendants Association. Rochell is the great-granddaughter of Jackson Hawkins, who was just three years old when he was forced aboard the Katherine Jackson, one of the ships that carried 272 enslaved people from Maryland to Louisiana in 1838.

These men, women, and children were owned by the Jesuits of the Catholic Church, who sold them from the Georgetown University plantation missions to keep the institution from closing. It’s a story that’s been told in national headlines — but today, we’ll hear it from Rochell’s heart.
Before learning this history, Rochell endured deep personal loss and grief — even thoughts of ending her life. But uncovering her family’s story gave her purpose, faith, and life again.

Today, we hold space for her to share how remembering her ancestors became her redemption.

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This episode explores the intersection of grief, spirituality, and ancestral connection through the lens of psychic mediumship and ministry.

The R.E.A.L. Roots & Resilience podcast welcomes Dr. Lakara Foster — psychic medium, minister, and author of The Mourning After. Together, the hosts and guests examine how spiritual gifts, sacred contracts, and faith help reconstruct life after loss.

Together, we destigmatize intuitive gifts in the Black community, illuminate grief as a sacred teacher, and encourage listeners to embrace surrender, self-care, and spiritual renewal.

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