- 2 days ago
As more Black people seek holistic approaches to health, alkaline eating is gaining momentum as a path to better energy, digestion, and overall wellness. Rooted in the belief that balancing the body's pH levels can reduce inflammation, prevent disease, and promote longevity, this lifestyle emphasizes whole, plant-based foods, natural hydration, and a return to ancestral nutrition.
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LifestyleTranscript
00:00I've been having such a great time. It doesn't look like it, but a little while ago we had some
00:04beignets and powdered sugar everywhere and everybody was having a great time. My guy Keith
00:09Lee stopped by, but life is all about balance when it comes to mixing the sweet and the things that
00:15you guys may not know. We're going to find out a little bit more about some of the common foods
00:19and some of the things that you can do to make sure you live a healthier lifestyle and have that
00:23balance that could be life saving as well. So coming up next, this is about being rooted in
00:30wellness. So we hope you guys are ready with the rise of alkaline eating in the black community.
00:35And a lot of people are going to find out about things that are alkaline that you may not know
00:39that are alkaline. I'm finding out stuff every single day that I have in my fridge and my pantry
00:44and my freezer. I'm going to use those things after these conversations that we're going to be talking
00:48about this afternoon. So get ready to learn, reflect, and maybe rethink what's on your plate
00:53because coming up, we have Legacy Ali and he's going to be joined by our wonderful moderator.
00:58We have Queen Afua. He's going to have an incredible conversation and enlighten you about what you
01:03put into your body and what you put in your overall life to live healthy, live well, and we'll see you
01:10back next year, even healthier and even more well. So let's welcome them to the stage, ladies and gentlemen.
01:16And do I have this right? Is this mother and son? This is mother and son right here. And they're going to
01:21have this potent conversation. That's going to be so enlightening. Can't wait to check it out.
01:29Congratulations, mother and son.
01:31Yes, we did it. We're here.
01:33Really? Let's clap it up for mothers and sons and daughters and fathers and families.
01:39Yeah, because this is about a family healing.
01:42Yes, it is.
01:42And actually, that is the foundation of my work, which is to create a healer in every family, that's you,
01:52and a wellness center in every home. And there's some ways in which we can begin to do that.
01:58Well, you know, could you tell us a little bit about your legacy, Ali?
02:01Well, I'm 43 years old.
02:05Stick up a little bit.
02:06Yeah, and I am a second generation healer, an entrepreneur, and a vegan plant-based chef.
02:15I'm 43 years, your experiment, that have worked.
02:19Okay.
02:20Okay, so that's 43 years of chlorophyll, alkaline living, raw food, juicing, plant-based living.
02:27And I came up with a time, I'm going to look up with a time where vegan lifestyle was not popular culture like it is now.
02:37And you have the whole foods everywhere, you have more alternatives in the supermarkets in this day and time.
02:42But back in the day, in the 80s, that was not the case.
02:46Okay?
02:47So, yeah, today is about just empowering the community, those that are trying to raise their children vegan and plant-based.
02:54It's some of the trials and pitfalls that one goes through.
02:57Yes.
02:58And I would like to provide some solutions on what they can do to overcome so they can live the alkaline lifestyle, plant-based lifestyle, and empower their kitchens and their homes.
03:07Absolutely.
03:08Well, today we're talking about living an alkaline life.
03:12We might look at alkalinity, which is a balanced way of living so you can have optimal well-being.
03:18You might look at that as just food.
03:21But alkaline living is what you think, what you say, who you interact with.
03:28It has one of the highest, most balanced frequency.
03:32And then you're eating the cucumbers that will give you an alkaline, healthy life.
03:37The watercress, the celery, the cabbage, the red healing foods.
03:43And I want you to imagine there's a scale, and the scale is a semicircle like the sun rising.
03:50And on one side, there is the acidic food.
03:53All the acidic foods will aid you quickly, give you diabetes, high blood pressure, stroke, aneurysm.
03:59That is when you're acidic.
04:01So you say, well, I have a sickness.
04:04No, you are acidically endowed with poisons from the junk and the fast and the process and the meat and dairy.
04:11All of that is acidic living.
04:14Now, as you, and that, you'll see a scale will be red.
04:17And as you go up to two or three points, then it goes into orange and yellow.
04:21And then right in the middle, you'll see green.
04:25That is your way out of being acidic.
04:28That is your way out of being diseased.
04:31Now, what can happen is you can get so excited that you just eat on fruits, and you fast and taking water.
04:39Now, you're going to the extreme opposite, and you're becoming over-alkaline.
04:43So the main thing is to stay right in the hub, right in the middle.
04:47And I call that middle ground ma'at, which is balance and harmony.
04:51And that's what you have to work on every day, because you can become healthy one day and get unhealthy after a barbecue.
04:58Get unhealthy after a family reunion, because now you're moving to the old foods, the hamburgers, and the french fries, and the junk, and the processed, all of that.
05:06So being that you were raised on an alkaline lifestyle, Ali, was it easy for you to live this way?
05:15No, it was not easy at all.
05:16What was your challenges?
05:18Well, I had to share.
05:19You saw it.
05:20Me as a child growing up plant-based and vegan and alkaline, my mother was very open to her children.
05:27I'm the youngest of three, and we had different experiences growing up in different schools, from homeschooling to African-centered cultural schools, down to public schools, et cetera.
05:40When we went into the public school system, me specifically, I was the only vegan child in that school, and there was times where I got picked on and made fun of.
05:48And I had to kind of fight my way through school, and they made fun of my sandwiches and what I was eating and sprout sandwiches.
05:54What were you eating?
05:55Oh, sprout sandwiches?
05:56Oh, they said, sprout sandwiches and carrots.
05:59But my mother made some good vegan burgers, and she hooked my lunchbox up.
06:04So it wasn't nasty, but it was foreign and different to the other children.
06:08So I was picked on and isolated as a result.
06:09And so my generation growing up in the 80s, it was definitely a war field, and it was very intense.
06:18As I got older and I got stronger, and I survived that era, as I became a teenager, I was more empowered.
06:26And I claimed leadership in my circle, and I was living an alkaline lifestyle, plant-based lifestyle, and I started to inspire others in my circle that was around me.
06:37And I was liking how I was maneuvering in my circles.
06:41And this generation is more acceptable and more received.
06:48And so we're seeing the rise of alkaline products on the marketplace and vegan restaurants.
06:54And matter of fact, I saw a few vegan plant-based chefs in the food court today.
06:58So it's very good to see going from back in the day to modern day.
07:03Well, that's amazing.
07:05So in the process, you went through a lot.
07:07I remember you was about 14 years old.
07:11And I told you, I said, you know what?
07:13I put a board on the stove, and I said, I'm no longer cooking any food.
07:19I'm going raw.
07:21All praises to my brother, Iris, the Tom.
07:24He's Dr. Iris, master of live foods.
07:27And you still wanted to eat.
07:30It was plant-based, but you wanted to have some cooked food.
07:34Well, I'm glad you said that.
07:35Because you became a chef, and you studied with Iris as one of the chefs.
07:38And I'm going to touch that.
07:40I'm glad you said that, because when we were children and babies, my mother was more focused
07:44on the juice therapy, raw foods, and every so often she would cook foods.
07:50But as we got older, and we went to visit family and friends, it was the family that
07:54was against the lifestyle.
07:56And it was against my mother's lifestyle.
07:58They called her a quack.
07:59They thought she was crazy.
08:01So she wanted to equip us with food alternatives.
08:05So she'll pack our bag with vegan chip options from your regular potato chips, or she'll get
08:12us vegan cookies or vegan snacks so that we can feel connected.
08:16So you were very aware to give us certain options, not to make it too extreme.
08:23And what happens is, as we got older, and you went back fully to raw.
08:28So for those that don't know, you have the different tiers and levels to the plant-based
08:33lifestyle.
08:34You've got alkaline lifestyle.
08:35You've got non-GMO.
08:36You've got vegetarian.
08:37You've got vegan.
08:39Chlorophyllian.
08:39There's so many different tiers.
08:41Pescatarian, vegetarian.
08:42And he's evolved over the past 30, 40 years.
08:45And so my mother decided as a teenager, she's going to go fully into raw and live foods.
08:50So then that transitions into, I was inspired through her cooking and others in our community.
08:58I started to naturally prepare the vegan foods.
09:01And I was home-based, home-taught.
09:04I started to learn how to become a home-based, plant-based chef.
09:07But Aris, who was supposed to be here today, we salute him because as I turned 17, he was
09:13one of my raw food teachers.
09:15And I also learned through EarthCook Wahida, vegan, soul, plant-based food.
09:20So I was very balanced in my cuisine.
09:23And so as a result, when you went off of your plant, well, you never went off of plant-based.
09:29No, it was plant-based.
09:30Although I remember there was a chicken bone in our families.
09:35My mother was there.
09:36My father was there.
09:37Our family was in the kitchen.
09:39And they were all eating.
09:40And they were trying to convince our family, my children, basically, don't eat all that.
09:45Your mother's too extreme.
09:47So they would be giving you some things without my approval.
09:51Yes.
09:52But I went out in the end.
09:54So I got poisoned.
09:55I got poisoned.
09:56You got poisoned.
09:57But you know what?
09:59I got the cider vinegar.
10:01I did a healing bath.
10:03I put them on more juices.
10:04It was a workout.
10:06You have to really master food as medicine.
10:09That's my very foundational platform.
10:12Everything you eat has an impact.
10:14I will teach my children.
10:16I mean, from cucumbers, it's good for the kidneys.
10:18So we don't have to have kidney failure.
10:20Turnips is good for the bones.
10:22So you may not need that knee and hip replacement.
10:25Blueberries, raspberries, blackberries are good for the womb healing.
10:28So you may soften that fiber.
10:31It may begin to drain out.
10:32So really, whatever you eat creates your relationships, your health, your vitality.
10:38You can actually eat yourself into wellness.
10:41I remember one time you were stressing.
10:44I made a bath for you.
10:46While you was in a bath, I made a chamomile and hops tea.
10:49When you came out of the bath, I had a vegetable juice and a fruit.
10:51And you was very young.
10:53So it was always, no matter if you went right or left, you knew that there was a way out.
10:58I don't know how you picked that up because I was like, remember the time that I had three drinks on the counter in the morning?
11:05I would give them their whole grain cereal and their fruit cup and then I'd make a green juice, right?
11:12And I remember there was one juice that was still left and they were on their way to school.
11:16So I said, wait a minute, two drinks are gone, three children, but one is still there.
11:23I jumped into my sneakers, put the juice in a mason jar, ran down the block on park place, and I said, stop in the name of healing.
11:32The cab job, I was nuts.
11:34Black Pearl back then in Brooklyn.
11:36And I said, which one, you know, mother girl, colored girl, mother, which one of you did not take your juice?
11:43And I don't think it was me.
11:44It could have been my brother.
11:44It could have been so long with Sharice.
11:46You listen to me.
11:47Between the two of them, they start showing.
11:49But that's the kind of stuff, you have to be strong to raise children on a healthy level.
11:54But you have to be loving.
11:57You have to, I made my own sunflower cookies.
12:00I took the sunflower, grinded it down, grinded it down, and that became the flower.
12:05I made everything from scratch.
12:07I lived in the kitchen lab.
12:09That's what I call it.
12:10It's not a kitchen.
12:11A kitchen where you get fast food, junk food, microwave, fry, you know, all that.
12:15But in a conscious kitchen of consciousness, everything you eat is for the purpose of wellness and healing.
12:22So I would size my children up every day and say, okay, you're having a problem.
12:26I know a food.
12:27I know a juice.
12:28I know a prayer.
12:29I would mix it and put it in a blender, put it in a juice, or make it a soup, make it a salad.
12:33And that's how I started to feed you.
12:35How did you last this long, both, all three of, my daughter, she lasted, she's still a vegan, plant-based, Sharice, Supernova, Hip-Hop Medicine Man, Man Healed By Itself, Wellness Warrior, and then Adeline, Legacy, Adeline.
12:51How did y'all survive that because the world was going one way and we were going another?
12:55I would say to you and all the mothers that are in the room that are raising their children plant-based or considering it, you have to be, I would say you have to be a wellness warrior and fathers as well.
13:05Oh, well, I like wellness warriors.
13:07So all the fathers and mothers in the room, if you want to raise your children plant-based, vegan, raw food, live food, alkaline, you got to be a wellness warrior.
13:14And what it means to be a wellness warrior as a parent is when a parent is very clear of their mission and purpose, what they're building, they're intentional, and you're going sometimes against the grain of family and friends.
13:28People think you're crazy, don't know what you're doing.
13:30You know, what does the doctor think about it?
13:32You know, things along those lines.
13:34And so my mother was never about attacking doctors and attacking the family, but she knew her purpose and mission, okay?
13:40And me and my brother and sister saw that our whole life.
13:45So we saw that inspiration, we saw that conviction, we saw that tenacity, and my father was not always there.
13:51So for the mothers that had to raise their children single or with the support of the family and the fathers were not there, I saw all the mothers.
13:57And so by him not being there and you also compensating for that part, we saw a full warrior and you had to do even more, you know, raising two boys and one daughter.
14:07And so that wellness worriorship is what now has been passed on to me.
14:11And I'm a father of two daughters, and I'm raising a stepson as well, and I'm keeping those wellness warrior principles alive.
14:19And so can I just get a hand of those in the audience, are anybody here alkaline, plant-based, vegan, or even considering it?
14:26Raise your hand.
14:26Let's see.
14:27If you are, okay?
14:28And raise your hand if you're considering or you're open.
14:30If you're on your way.
14:31If you're on your way.
14:32So we've got a good that's considering it, and we've got a good that's already that, okay?
14:36And so I definitely want to give them a charge.
14:38Wait a minute.
14:38Well, if you've been there and done that.
14:40Okay, been there and done that.
14:41You know you did and you were doing pretty good and then you fell off.
14:44That's okay.
14:45We got you.
14:47Yeah, well, that happens too.
14:49We're all levels.
14:50That happens too.
14:50And you know what?
14:51We just went to a community organizational meeting, and it was two in one building.
14:57And what I noticed, we have a lot of work to do.
15:00Because in one room, they said, oh, we have plenty of food in the back.
15:03They're talking political consciousness.
15:05And when they came up, I saw fried chicken, macaroni and cheese.
15:09I thought that was played out.
15:11Oh, no, it's still happening.
15:13Right.
15:13I said, we've got to bring some whole foods in so we can, like, introduce them into alternative eating.
15:19Then we went down to another, maybe a half an hour later, another meeting in the same type of food.
15:25But in that food, what we call food, because we put it in our mouth, what we were doing, what we were observing is there's diabetes.
15:33There's high blood pressure, fried foods.
15:36There's drinks with sugar in it, stress, malnourishment mentally.
15:43So we are, everything that we're eating is creating our thoughts, our feelings, our emotions.
15:50I'm working with a wonderful sister in Harlem right now, Stephanie McGraw, stopping domestic violence.
15:57So when I talk to the women, I'm there every Tuesday doing yoga meditation.
16:00I'm asking their lifestyle, and they're eating all the toxic foods and drinking the toxic drinks.
16:07And that's also frequency.
16:09The higher your frequency in terms of your wellness and your alkalinity, the greater your ability to prevent violence to yourself.
16:17Even internal violence of negative thinking about yourself that also brings all that hostility wherever you walk.
16:24Because you can come out of a relationship, and if you're toxic, you're going to another toxic relationship.
16:30So it's really so, food is so powerful.
16:34Food is not just, Dr. Ackerman would say, and he best in peace our ancestor, food is not just physical, it's spiritual.
16:41Food is literally a prayer.
16:43So when you're eating, you want to eat foods that's going to love you, that's going to build you up.
16:47And women, 90%, have you seen it in your group, in your circle?
16:52Because the latest statistic is, Ali, 90%, Lexi Ali, of black women have fibroid tumors.
17:00Now when the book Sacred Women first came out, it was 45%.
17:05With all the technology and all the studies and all the women that have excelled in their excellence, we are now 90%.
17:12And what is that 90% leading us to?
17:14It's leading us right to hysterectomies, and now in blood clotting and suffering.
17:20And prostate cancer for men.
17:22And prostate cancer.
17:23Oh, the men are not out of it.
17:24Erectile dysfunction and issues there as well.
17:26Erectile dysfunction, prostate cancer.
17:28So it's not happening to just one of us.
17:31Toxic food consumption and addictive eating is happening to all of us.
17:37But Ali, you know, you and your grandmother did something amazing, because why is it Legacy Ali?
17:42Why are you Legacy Ali?
17:43Well, I'm born as Ali, and I took on Legacy Ali because, for those that don't know, I'm a graduate of Howard University.
17:51So I've been HBCUs at Howard and alumni of black colleges.
17:56Big up, you know, okay, we in the building.
17:58And so basically, me going to Howard, learning business management, hospitality, my sister, who worked for you, invited me to come into the company after serving for about a year or so.
18:09And I've been working with my mother for the past 20 years, and it's been a journey, a plant-based journey, an alkaline journey, a very intense journey, a spiritual journey.
18:19And we've been able to travel the world together.
18:22We've had a wellness center, which we heal people through the massaging, colonics, workshop seminars, taking them to the water, and doing all color healing works.
18:29And so I've been able to grow up in the Legacy, I've worked in the Legacy, and so I'm a protector of Legacy.
18:35And we have our product line.
18:38Yes.
18:39In our family for over 25 plus years.
18:41That's correct.
18:41That covers 103 issues.
18:44Yes.
18:45And you've been over that, and when your grandmother, she left at 100 years old.
18:48Yes, our minister, manufacturing, shipping, as well.
18:50Yes, but she left us strong enough to continue to work.
18:53Yes.
18:53So actually, a lot of your healing and your growth is going to come from your family.
18:59So we want to encourage you to take care of your family.
19:03But there's some other.
19:04And don't feel a way if at Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner, you're now plant-based and vegan, you don't eat the turkey no more.
19:11I'm for that.
19:11You don't have to attack the family.
19:13You've got to be real strategic when you engage with the family because they're going to take offense.
19:17Okay?
19:18They're going to take offense.
19:19Right.
19:19We're not too far from Louisiana.
19:22Our family's from, my mother's side is from Louisiana.
19:24So for those that are down south in Alabama, Mississippi, live over here, we know how real that food can be when it's time for the holidays.
19:32Yes.
19:32So we have to be loving and mindful and offer some vegan meals for the holidays and find a way to educate the family in a way.
19:41But we're not attacking big mama or auntie or uncle when you now decided to let go of the, what's some of the meals?
19:47You know, the macaroni and cheese.
19:49Macaroni and cheese and the collard greens with some fat back.
19:51Potato salad with the egg whites in it.
19:53That's right.
19:54And then the fat back.
19:57The fat back.
19:58In the green.
19:59Uh-huh.
19:59Sweet potato pie.
20:00But you know what?
20:01We have an answer as a family.
20:03We created seven books will be out and we're going to do a book signing at Ascension.
20:10All roads lead to Ascension.
20:13Thank you, Munamira.
20:14And it's going to be in Brooklyn, but it's also going to be online.
20:17So everyone can join us no matter where you are in the world.
20:21And so we're having Ascension for the women who have learned how to become healers of their families.
20:26They took on this whole practice of alkaline living, plant-based, holistic living, detoxification, rejuvenation.
20:32And they have testimonies and you will feel it, will do it dramatically.
20:37And if you want to join us, you can.
20:39You can register and be here for a weekend of wellness and well-being and entrepreneurship and starting your business.
20:46Because that's all a part of being alkaline.
20:48Because if you can do the work that you really love and why you came on this plan to do, it will keep your blood system clean.
20:54It will keep your immune system revitalized and sharpened if you can do what you came here to do.
21:00So we want to invite everybody to be a part of the book signing.
21:03Now, the book signing, that first book actually answers that.
21:06It's called The Soul Food Vegan Kitchen.
21:09So we have the international soul food.
21:11You know, soul food is a flavor.
21:13And you make some out-of-sight kale greens.
21:16That's my favorite.
21:17And an out-of-sight broccoli dish.
21:19And when you would come home for the, you know, in between the holidays from Howard, you would make those dishes for me.
21:25And my soul would rest.
21:27Because he got a gifted hand.
21:28And so I would just always be grateful.
21:30So actually some of your recipes are in.
21:32You have the sweet potato pie.
21:33Yes, we got some amazing recipes.
21:35Right without the eggs in there.
21:36We got some amazing recipes in the book.
21:37And we also reached out to other chefs from around the world that Queen has met over the years.
21:42Yes.
21:43And they've also contributed to the book as well.
21:45Yes.
21:45So that's going to be amazing.
21:46And in this book that Queen is talking about.
21:49There's seven of them.
21:49Yes, the seven book.
21:51It's now evolved to be a wellness city encyclopedia of healing.
21:55And it's addressing, we're going to be eliminating with this book, Food Wars.
22:02And what did you just say?
22:03This book is going to address the elimination of food wars.
22:08What do you mean by food wars?
22:10Well, food wars is what I call a lot right now.
22:12People that's in the plant-based vegan community.
22:15They do what I call vegan set tripping.
22:17Oh.
22:18So you have the Sabaeites.
22:20You got the raw foodists over there.
22:21You got those Rocky McQueen of food over there.
22:23You got those that are vegetarian over there.
22:26And what happens is once one has knowledge of self and they shift their diet, they start attacking that next person.
22:32Well, I'm doing raw food.
22:33Now, you still cooking food?
22:35Well, I'm doing this.
22:36You still doing non-GMO food?
22:39Well, I'm not eating at all.
22:41I'm juicing.
22:42You still eating?
22:43I'm actually juicing.
22:44Wow.
22:45And we start to become bougie with our food and we start looking down upon the one that's still transitioning and it's still in their lifestyle.
22:52So this book is going to talk about unification and no matter what level you're on, even if you decide to still eat your meat, is it organic?
23:00Is it farm-raised?
23:01Is it the highest quality?
23:02And you're not necessarily trying to go full plant-based, but you're trying to incorporate more herbs in your diet, more greens, but you're still going to do your fish.
23:09We're not here to judge you and attack you, okay?
23:12We're still up to uplift you.
23:13So this food is going to address that, okay?
23:16And that's going to be very important to this next chapter.
23:18It's important because what happens is people end up being in the closet with their food.
23:22They pretend on the outside, I'm eating plant-based, I'm eating natural, but inside they're eating everything that's off.
23:28Nobody can see them, but they're coming out still sick, still hurt, and still broken.
23:34And we say be where you are and grow from that place.
23:38Don't make yourself feel bad about whatever level that you're on.
23:42When I think about this, vegetarians are different levels.
23:45Then just about 20 years ago, vegan came in.
23:48There was no such thing as a vegan.
23:50It was all a lacto-oven vegetarian when it's having eggs and milk.
23:55And then there was the vegetarian that only had vegetables.
23:59And the lacto-oven vegetarian also had fruits and vegetables and grains and nuts.
24:02But then it became the vegetarian that was strictly vegetarian.
24:07And then vegan came in 20 years ago.
24:09So it just progressed.
24:10And then I remember Supernova, the oldest of your brother and sister, and I sent him away out of New Brooklyn streets.
24:22I said, I've got to have a live child.
24:24He's got to live his whole life.
24:26You know, a lot of our young people are being taken out.
24:29So I knew he was in the streets like this.
24:30I said, okay, I know what to do.
24:31I sent him down south.
24:34And he stayed in North Carolina with his aunt.
24:36His aunt was not into this lifestyle a little bit.
24:40So he had, what happened, he started doing everything that I ever trained him to do.
24:45And when he came back, he came back.
24:47I said, he had a gallon of this green tonic wherever he went.
24:52I said, so what's that?
24:53He was 17.
24:54He just graduated.
24:55He said, this is, I'm a chlorophyllion.
24:58I said, oh, really?
24:59So I said, so what's a chlorophyllion?
25:01He said, a chlorophyllion, I want to boast him, is 90% of chlorophyllic food.
25:05I said, oh, really?
25:07But when you look at the scale of chlorophyllion life, which is really alkalinity life, that
25:16was the green.
25:17So every day, have a huge salad at lunch, a huge salad at dinner.
25:24Have an avocado a day, we'll keep the doctor away.
25:27Have a lime in the morning with warm water.
25:29And then have your fruits in the morning.
25:32Make a green juice.
25:34Cucumber for the kidneys.
25:36Turners for the bones.
25:38Sully for the nerves and the hair.
25:41Start putting in your greens every day and you will have power.
25:44And you know the beauty of this, Ali?
25:45A lot of young people are getting older because they're eating the fast food, the junk food.
25:53Is this generation eating, cooking out?
25:55Is everybody making their food now?
25:58Are they making their own food?
25:59I mean, what's happening here?
26:00It's a combination of everything.
26:01Okay.
26:02Because of social media, there's a lot of exposure to information.
26:05Okay.
26:06And there's a lot of solutions out there now as well.
26:08So I will definitely give this generation has a lot of access that my generation didn't have.
26:14So people, there's a lot of more support circles and mechanisms that tap into the lifestyle.
26:18Right?
26:19And so that definitely has shifted.
26:21Things have shifted.
26:23But we are now going to shift to the higher ground.
26:26Yes.
26:27And I'm going to really, because it's mostly, are there's mostly women here?
26:31Yes.
26:32I'm going to give you an affirmation that our ancestors from the Nile Valley gave to us to empower us who we are.
26:40Women, rise up if you don't mind.
26:44And this affirmation is to help to remind you of who you are.
26:49You're all healers.
26:50You have a mission.
26:52Your family has diabetes, high blood pressure, arthritis, aches and pains, are under stress, obesity, immune system, a challenge.
27:00STDs are running rampant.
27:02Herpes is becoming the norm.
27:04We're becoming more infertile.
27:07We have issues.
27:08Whoever's here right now, you at the front line.
27:12Wellness salute.
27:13I'm glad to see you.
27:14Aren't we glad to see them?
27:15Oh, yes.
27:16Let's give them a wellness salute, Ali.
27:17Come on.
27:17Let's stand up with them.
27:18Come on.
27:19We got the men that's in the room that's with us as well.
27:21Stand up as well and join.
27:22Yes, yes, yes.
27:22Wellness salute.
27:24Salute.
27:25What does that mean?
27:26Wellness salute is that you're going to take this wellness by your hands because it's going to be your juicing, your blending, your cutting, your dicing, your hydrating, and you're going to put nothing but life in your body.
27:39So if you put life foods, living foods, alkaline foods, natural foods cooked by the sun's rays, you will have insurmountable power and energy and majesty and doors that will close will open and doors that need to shut will be shut.
27:57You don't have to go back and say, I'm repeating the same cycle.
28:01So for the women, because the women are the primary hills of the family in the home.
28:06We're turning this thing around.
28:08You ready to turn it around?
28:10This is the affirmation.
28:11Say, I am the woman who lightened the darkness.
28:18I have come to lighten the darkness.
28:22It is lightened.
28:24I am there for those who weep, who hide their faces, who shut down.
28:31I am a woman.
28:34I am a healer.
28:36I am a woman.
28:37Claim it.
28:38I am the healer.
28:40I am the woman.
28:42I am the healer.
28:43And that is who you really are by your nature.
28:47When everything hurts, who did you come to for healer?
28:50When you hurt your knee, hurt your back, didn't know where to go, who did you come to, Ali?
28:54My mother.
28:55And your mother.
28:57That's right.
28:57But you also have wonderful men in our community.
29:02And so you're never by yourself.
29:04There's always a community if you just look out.
29:07I want to say to all the sacred women and men healed by itself, we're about to have our ascension.
29:12Come and join us online.
29:15Or come to Brooklyn and be with us at our ascension.
29:17Because it's our time.
29:19And you know what we all need?
29:20We all need to ascend to the next level.
29:24You all came here for a purpose and a mission.
29:25If you have a purpose and a mission, well, raise your hand.
29:28You're on purpose.
29:29Woo!
29:30Clap that up for your purpose.
29:33And your mission.
29:34And Queen, can I give the brothers a quick affirmation?
29:37Please give it to us.
29:37Go right ahead.
29:38So the brothers don't feel like they're not a part of this as well.
29:40Come on, brothers.
29:41Come to the front.
29:41Come.
29:42We got to see you.
29:43Clap it up for our brothers.
29:45Clap them all the way up to the front.
29:46Come on up to the front.
29:47Come on, man.
29:48Heal thyself.
29:48Come on, wellness warriors.
29:50From the book, Heal Thyself.
29:51All right.
29:52We have some wellness warriors.
29:53Come right up on the front.
29:54We're now claiming that we're protectors of the homes and of our kitchens and of healing
29:59ourselves so that we can be stronger and greater for our wives, our daughters, our sons, our
30:05community, our village.
30:06Thank you, brother.
30:07Thank you, brother.
30:07Okay?
30:08Thank you, brother.
30:09Thank you, brother.
30:10Thank you, brother.
30:11So brothers, repeat after me.
30:13This is from the book, Heal Thyself.
30:14This is our Heal Thyself declaration.
30:16I have the power to create in my life what I want and need.
30:23Purification of mind, body, and spirit is the key.
30:30Within this natural way of living and being, I choose not to cut nor radiate or drug my disease
30:40away instead I wash, pray, fast, juice, and bless my disease away.
30:48And as a whole village and family, we're going to say liberation through purification four times.
30:55You ready, queen?
30:56I'm ready.
30:56We're going to do a call and response.
30:58We're going to say liberation through purification and they're going to repeat it back to us.
31:02Ready, queen?
31:03One, two, three.
31:05Liberation through purification.
31:09Liberation through purification.
31:13Liberation through purification.
31:16Now together.
31:18Liberation through purification.
31:20Clap it up.
31:20Clap it up.
31:21Pass it on.
31:22Essence, thank you.
31:242025.
31:25Thank you, Essence.
31:25We love you, family.
31:26We appreciate you for having us.
31:28Family, if you want to like to connect with us, we'll be, we'll be, we'll be,
31:32we're going to be over to the side.
31:34Come see me for next steps.
31:35Thank you, Essence.
31:36Thank you, family.
31:37Appreciate you.
31:38All right.
31:38Thank you all so much.
31:40Y'all make some noise for a lot of game, a lot of life that they just put into everybody.
31:46We got so much more coming up inside the Food and Wine Experience.
31:49We got DJ Pop on the ones and twos.
31:51And we appreciate you guys stopping by for the final day of Essence 2025.
31:55Been a memorable one, a big one, making sure we give you the essence of our culture.
32:00So coming up, we got more inside the Food and Wine Experience.
32:03In the meantime, DJ Pop is doing his thing.
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