Today, we pause.

March 10th marks the National Day of Rest for Black Women, a reminder that rest is not a luxury—it is a necessity. It is also the anniversary of the passing of Harriet Tubman, a woman whose very existence was an act of defiance and liberation.

These two events are deeply connected because Black women have always been the backbone of movements, families, and communities, often pouring into others while neglecting themselves. From Harriet Tubman’s relentless fight for freedom to the everyday labor of Black women who hold up entire households, workplaces, and social movements, rest has too often been treated as an afterthought.

But today, we reclaim it.

The National Day of Rest for Black Women is a call to pause, to breathe, to resist the pressure to always be productive. It is an act of self-preservation, a radical refusal to be overworked and underappreciated. Rest is not laziness. It is not weakness. It is a form of resistance.

Harriet Tubman’s legacy reminds us of the strength and resilience that define Black womanhood. But beyond her courage, we must also honor her humanity. She was a woman who endured unimaginable hardships, yet she kept going—because she had to. But we don’t always have to keep going at the expense of ourselves. Rest is a birthright.

So today, to all the Black women reading this: give yourself permission to rest. Turn off your phone. Take a nap. Sit in silence. Let the world wait for you, because you have already given it more than enough.

And for those who love and support Black women: honor their rest. Don’t just encourage it, make space for it. Because when Black women rest, they heal. And when they heal, the world changes.