Celebrating 50 Years of Combahee with Demita Frazier in New York City
Panelists of the roundtable, “50 Years of Combahee & Radical Black Lesbian Feminist Politics” at the Lesbian Lives Conference at City University of New York. L-R: Olivia R. Polk, emerald faith rutlege, Dr. Jaimee A. Swift, and Demita Frazier.
Black Women Radicals hosted two events in New York City celebrating the 50th anniversary since the founding of the Combahee River Collective with founding member, Demita Frazier.
On Saturday, October 25, 2025, Black Women Radicals hosted two events celebrating the Combahee River Collective with Demita Frazier, an unrepentant feminist-activist, writer, founding member of Combahee, and co-author of the 1977 Combahee River Collective Statement! The events are a culmination of our Special Blog Issue on Voices in Movement honoring “50 Years of Combahee” edited by emerald faith rutledge, Karla Méndez, and Jaimee A. Swift.
🔗For more information about the Special Blog Issue, please visit: https://www.blackwomenradicals.com/blog-feed/50-years-of-combahee-special-blog-issue
Lesbian Lives Conference
The first event we hosted was a roundtable discussion at the “Lesbian Lives Conference” titled “50 Years of Combahee and Radical Black Lesbian Politics.” The conference was hosted by the Journal of Lesbian Studies, Sinister Wisdom, and CLAGS: the Center for LGBT Studies at the City University of New York.
During the roundtable, Demita reflected on the work of Combahee fifty years later and emphasized the importance of refuting romanticizing Combahee and political organizing, as it offers a utopia of the radical labor it takes to continue to show up & do the work of getting free.
Olivia R. Polk discussed their essay for the Special Blog Issue titled, “The Boston Chapter: Learning from Combahee’s Emergence”, where they reflect on Combahee’s emergent strategic practices for building relationships which can complexify our imagination in the face of multiscalar legacies of violence.
emerald faith rutledge, co-editor of the Special Blog Issue, offered remarks on the importance of understanding & archiving the correct information on the formation of Combahee, given that there is so much incorrect documentation about the beginnings of the Collective.
Jaimee A. Swift connected Black Brazilian theorist Maria Beatriz Nascimento’s conceptualization of the quilombo to the work of Combahee, reflecting on Combahee as maroon methodology.
Maroon Salon: A Black Feminist Gathering with Demita Frazier at Gladys Book Store
Later on that evening, we continued the celebration of Combahee with a “Maroon Salon” at Gladys Books and Wine, Black queer-owned bookstore, café, and wine bar in Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn founded and owned by Tiffany Dockery. An intergenerational audience gathered to hear wisdom from Demita and her thoughts on Combahee fifty years until infinity.