I first heard the term Homegoing seven years ago when the mortgage broker I was working with mentioned that she would not be available for a few days as she was going to her brother’s Homegoing  service.  I picked up enough from the context of the conversation to realize that what she was talking about was similar to a funeral service, but it was not until this unit when I realized the importance of  a Homegoing service and how the very act of meeting to remember the dead was a political act.

During the dark days of slavery, most Black people were not allowed to have formal rituals or gatherings to say goodbye to their dead as slave masters were afraid that such gatherings would be used to plot escapes or insurrections (Broadway, 2020).  While there is some evidence that funerals were used to plot escapes, there is even more evidence that some of the funeral customs of African Americans, such as sitting with the dead, developed as a way for enslaved people to extend the time they had together in order to strengthen their community (Cann, 2020).  Death, for enslaved people, meant freedom and a way home to their ancestors.  As such, Homegoings are a celebration of a person’s life because the deceased is going to be reunited with their loved ones (Broadway, 2020).

The casket is typically open at a Homegoing and the term “Casket Sharp” is used to describe someone being dressed in their best clothes, perfectly coiffed, and perfectly accessorized.  The reason dress and an open casket is so important is that a funeral may have been the only time that a Black person was presented as themselves and not as a slave or a servant.  At a Homegoing service, Black people received the respect that they may not have received in life (Fletcher, 2021). 

The families of Black men killed because of the color of their skin have often chosen open caskets to show the world how their loved ones were dishonored.  After Emmett Till was brutally murdered in Mississippi, authorities wanted to quickly bury the body and cover up the fact that he had been beaten so badly that his teeth had been knocked out, an eye was hanging out of its socket, and an ear had been cut off.  However, after seeing the mutilated state of his body, his mother, Mamie Till-Mobley, chose to have an open casket so that people could see the horrors inflicted upon him in the South (Harvey, 2022).  George Floyd’s Homegoing service in Houston not only had an open casket, it was a political event itself as speakers called for justice for Floyd who was killed by a White police officer in Minneapolis.  Speakers also called for an end to racial violence and wore t-shirts proclaiming “Black Lives Matter” (BOOKER, 2020).

Even the music at a Homegoing service can be political.  While one of her most famous songs, “Respect” was not sung at Aretha Franklin’s funeral, another song, :”Mercy Mercy Me,” did remind people that humans were destroying the planet(Izadi, Butler, & Rao, 2018).  While “Mercy Mercy Me” carried an overt message, the messages of other songs sung at Black funerals are more covert, but were crucial to helping slaves escape.  On the surface, “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot” is a song about being carried home to heaven.  However, when an enslaved person heard this song he would know to prepare for escape as Sweet Chariot was code for the Underground Railroad.  “Down to the River to Pray” is another song from the days of slavery that is often played at funerals.  The message in this song is directing people escaping slavery to walk in the river to hide their scent (DTugui, 2019).

As I reflect on the social and political meaning inherent in a Black Homegoing service, I am saddened by the need for people to use the funeral of their murdered children to send messages.  But I am also inspired by their courage in using the moments of their deepest pain to fight for justice for their children and for others.

References

BOOKER, B. (2020, June 9). Family Of George Floyd, Whose Death Sparked Protests, Says Final Goodbye. Retrieved from NPR: https://www.npr.org/2020/06/09/870808615/george-floyd-whose-death-ignited-a-social-justice-movement-to-be-buried-in-houst

Broadway, D. (2020, Septeber 18). The Unbreakable Spirits of Black Gospel During Funerals. Retrieved from The Order of the Good Death: https://www.orderofthegooddeath.com/article/the-unbreakable-spirits-of-black-gospel-during-funerals/

Cann, C. K. (2020). Black Deaths Matter Earning the Right to Live: Death and the African-American Funeral Home. Religions, 1-15.

DTugui. (2019, January 10). Black Gospel Songs. Retrieved from Black Excellence: https://www.blackexcellence.com/black-gospel-songs/

Fletcher, K. (2021, February 8). 7 Elements of African American Mourning Practices & Burial Traditions. Retrieved from Talkdeath.com: https://www.talkdeath.com/7-elements-of-african-american-mourning-practices-burial-traditions/

Harvey, A. (2022, October 5). The Inspiring Story Of Emmett Till’s Mother — And How She Became A Civil Rights Hero. Retrieved from All That’s Interesting : https://allthatsinteresting.com/mamie-till-mobley-emmett-till-mother

Izadi, E., Butler, B., & Rao, S. (2018, August 31). ‘She gave us pride and a regal bar to reach’: Everything that happened at Aretha Franklin’s 8-hour funeral. Retrieved from Washington Post: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/arts-and-entertainment/wp/2018/08/31/aretha-franklins-funeral-is-taking-place-in-detroit-watch-here/