STEPHANIE BOUTTE: I was born absent of the shackles of slavery and bondage, yet in the shadows of Jim Crow; and I was nurtured and protected by my grandparents who allowed me to build a sense of confidence and tackle aspirations which were not within their immediate grasp.
Freedom to me means the underground rail road, freedom rides, sit-ins, the Montgomery Bus Boycott, and President Obama. To come from a time where we were forced to drink from separate water faucets to becoming the first Black President, that is Freedom. When I think of what my ancestors had to endure, I become more in love with my Freedoms. Freedom to be me, whatever that is!