Building Our Own Table: Pamela Hilliard Owens

Hello, friends,

Today I’m introducing an old friend and writing buddy. She’ll tell you how we met near the end of this interview. Earlier this year, she and her husband started a new publication which is a must-read for excellent content on US history, culture and more. Please meet Pamela Hilliard Owens.

Pam, tell me briefly about your background prior to founding the "We Are Speaking" Substack Publication

My first career was as an educator where I taught ALL history to ALL of my students of ALL races. My second career was as a corporate sales executive where I was often the recipient of racial and sexual discrimination. My third career now is as a creative solopreneur. Because I work for myself, I am free to express my views whether others agree with them or not.

Give me the elevator pitch for "We Are Speaking"

Married couple Keith and Pamela Owens speak on American History and Culture, Government, Education, and Politics from a Black perspective.

And in more detail?

My husband is an award-winning journalist, published fiction author, and opinion writer, and I am a retired educator of all grades, a published nonfiction author, and business coach. We both have deep interests in African history throughout the Diaspora, civil rights and racial/sexism issues (and all of the other "isms"), and we worked together on other projects throughout the years. This new publication is perfect for us.

What inequity were you trying to redress/address, and why is this important?

Throughout our professional careers as well as our lives since childhood, we have worked in various ways to address racism, sexism, civil and voting rights, and other forms of discrimination and the attempted erasure of our Black history. Hubby's father was the Colorado State Director of the Urban League and his mother and my parents and grandparents volunteered in civil rights, civic, and political organizations for as long as we can remember.

How’s it going? What has the response been?

We've only been publishing for about 10 months, but we're showing steady increases in subscribers and interest in our publication from all over the world. I am enjoying how I can add "extras" and new initiatives to our Substack to add value for our subscribers.

What’s next?

By the time of our 1st anniversary in February 2023, our goal is to have a minimum of 2,500 subscribers of which at least 500 are paid subscribers. We started in February 2022 with 13 paid subscribers who we brought over from our previous newsletter/podcast.

In relation to racism, what is your vision for the future?

We will continue to tell OUR stories, especially about American history and culture, U.S. education, and liberal and progressive politics from a Black perspective, because there will always be people who want to silence us and derail our moves forward in all areas and for the rights of ALL people in the United States.

Is there anything I haven't asked you that you'd like to add?

How you and I met several years ago when I just needed help with British English for some of my UK clients and then both of us finding out we have so many other similar goals, career trajectories, and values.

Folks, you can connect with Pam via the We Are Speaking publication, on LinkedIn, and on her Facebook page which highlighted her previous business and served as a community for independent writers and creative professionals.

© Sharon Hurley Hall, 2022. All Rights Reserved.

I am an anti-racism writer, educator and activist, Co-Founder of Diverse Leaders Group, the author of “I’m Tired of Racism”, and co-host of The Introvert Sisters podcast. If you value my perspective, please consider upgrading to a paid subscription.