<p>Throughout the 400 years since the first &quot;20 and odd Negroes&quot;&nbsp;were brought to the British colonies American Descendants of Slavery&nbsp;have experienced a Black Holocaust: enslavement black codes sharecropping Jim Crow lynchings convict leasing redlin-ing restrictive covenants police brutality subprime lending mass incarceration all of which have resulted in the ghettoization/impoverishment of black communities across America.</p><p>Contained within each daily prayer and reflection page is an excerpt from the documentary <em>The Underground Rail Road: A Record</em> by William Still. Each excerpt is a direct quote from Mr. Still; therefore any wording that does not align with standard or contemporary English is reflective of that time.&nbsp;</p><p>The second reading on the daily prayer and reflection page is a collection of historical facts revealing the ongoing systemic oppression leveled against our black forebears who were first enslaved and that continued against American Descendants of Slavery.</p><p>The third writing on each daily prayer and reflection page is the &ldquo;We Are the Voice of One&rdquo; Prayer Declaration which is adapted from Isaiah 40. We ask that you speak this prayer declaration aloud each day and then close with your personal prayer.&nbsp;</p><p>Participants are encouraged&nbsp;to participate in the 40 Days of Prayer&nbsp;within circles of influence &mdash; with spiritual partners church members organization members friends and family members. During these 40 days participants may want to join with others on a teleconference and read the daily reflections together. Be encouraged to join with those of other races or ethnicities. Everyone can pray aloud using the Prayer Declaration with a designee closing the prayer time and paying homage to those formerly enslaved and their descendants.</p><p>At the close of the 40 days participants are invited to host a commemoration ceremony. The ceremony guide is available as a separate resource.</p>