Biography
Early Life
Gwynelle Dismukes was born in 1952, near Asheville, North Carolina. Her mother was Norvelle Dismukes, a music teacher in the Nashville City Schools. Norvelle got pregnant by a married man. Because of this, relatives adopted Gwynelle and raised her in Nashville, Tennessee. She graduated from Colby College in Waterville, Maine, in 1973.
Dismukes worked as a performance poet, publisher, writer, museum curator, and workshop leader. She read her poems as part of the Joaquin Miller Poetry Series at the Joaquin Miller Cabin in Nashville. She also read poems at an art show called Women On the Inner Journey, held at In the Gallery in Nashville in the late 1990s. This show featured 19 artists, most of them biracial women.
Dismukes wrote about and taught classes on African-centered spirituality, Kwanzaa, conflict resolution, peace education, and sustainable living. She helped start a performance art group with Sela “Serenity” Pearson and Thandiwe Shiprah. She also helped start the Hadley Park Concert Series in Nashville. She published two newspapers, called Brite Moments and the Multicultural Resource Guide. She was the first curator of Nashville’s Sankofa African Heritage Museum.
For a while, Dismukes managed Reggae Sunsplash concerts on the islands. There, she fell in love with Alpha Blondy, a reggae superstar. Blondy’s music promotes peace, unity, social justice, and understanding between Christians, Jews, and Muslims. In 2005, he became the United Nations Ambassador of Peace for Côte d’Ivoire.
Kwanzaa Workshops at the Farm
At different times, Dismukes lived in Boston, North Carolina, and Washington, D.C. With her first husband, she had a son named Chaing-tu Emmanuel. With Blondy, she had a daughter named Alpha Aminata Dismukes. When her kids became teenagers, Gwynelle moved to The Farm in the late 1990s. The Farm is a cooperative community in Summertown, Tennessee. She first learned about The Farm while teaching workshops on Kwanzaa there. She visited many times and then decided to move. She became an editor for The Farm’s publishing house. She was one of only a few African Americans who lived there. She and her children stayed for ten years.
Dismukes said she hated city life and traffic. She wanted a safe place to raise her kids, especially her son. She said, “They can go out the door in the morning and roam around the place at night. There are no guns, and it’s quiet, peaceful, and beautiful. There’s a real sense of security and community here, similar to the traditional African societies that I talk about in my workshops.” She wrote that people always helped each other at The Farm. She also wanted to help older members who needed support.
She said, “Like anywhere, there are disagreements, but we discuss things and work it out. My parents have both passed on and I don’t have brothers and sisters, so aside from my kids, this is my family.”
Dismukes served on several nonprofit boards, including The Farm, MediationWorks!, and the Center for Peace Education. Her leadership helped make EarthMatters Tennessee and the George W. Carver Food Park successful.
Later, she moved to Asheville, North Carolina, and joined Mt. Zion Baptist Church. She also took part in activities at the Dao Temple in Fletcher, North Carolina. She lived in an apartment on Crystal Mountain with her 17-year-old dog, Coco.
Dismukes died of kidney disease in 2009. Her memorial service took place at The Farm Cemetery. A Celebration of Life event was held at the George W. Carver Food Park and Garden, where she had served on the leadership team for many years. The event included art, music, massages, Reiki healing, and tree plantings in her memory.
