Her Story
About Anita
Anita Diop serves as the founder and executive director of the African Roots and Heritage Foundation, a Detroit-based nonprofit dedicated to culture, heritage, and language preservation. She earned her terminal degree in African and African American History and, after not immediately securing a teaching position, launched community programs such as Kwanzaa celebrations and events highlighting African American figures in partnership with institutions like Wayne State University and Ohio State University. In 2007, Diop relocated to Columbus, Ohio, where she co-produced the Black Cultural Festival, which evolved into the African Roots and Heritage Foundation in 2011. Her international prominence grew after an invitation from the African Union to speak at the Third Pan-African Cultural Congress in 2012, leading to further engagements with governments and ambassadors. She began teaching history at Columbus State Community College in 2013 and retired from that role in 2023 to dedicate herself fully to the foundation. Through the organization, Diop has developed study abroad programs with the University of Chong in Cameroon, impacting thousands of youth from multiple countries, and she identified and named the Forest of No Return, a lesser-known slave encampment site in Cameroon. She is a member of SICADIA and attributes her success to the determination modeled by her grandmother.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Anita
01What do you attribute your success to?
I would say my grandmother. She taught me determination. When I took my bachelor's degree, she had just had surgery on her eyes... she said that she was determined to come to my graduation, because I was the first person to get a bachelor's degree in my family. So to... for her to have that much joy, And my accomplishment. for her to have that much determination, despite the pain that she was in, it made me say, I must be determined like my grandmother. No matter what pain or what challenge may be before me, I must go forth and accomplish that I will.
02What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
The best career advice, I believe... what my professor told me, that if, in fact, you are not working in your field within 10 years, your degree becomes relevant. Because of that, it made me... do things that I would not normally do. In my mind, I only wanted to graduate from college and go right into teaching, but because I did not immediately get that teaching position. I was able to form this foundation and give it life And when it had a good life, then they called me to teach. So when I actually went into the classroom, I had world knowledge. Not just what I had learned, in the classroom, but now. connections, I have, connections with different governments, high level. ambassadors. I dined with 6 different presidents from around the world, so I. Yeah, so I think that was my best advice, is to not let your knowledge become stagnant, and that there is a different route that you can take that will eventually get you to the same, Position, but you will be more armed. And this is what I tell my students, that you must... Think outside of the box. Don't just think one way. There's multiple ways that you can go about your degree, and you have to be the one to push in either direction. Nobody is gonna just say, hey, just be here. No, you have to figure out how to get there. And when you're good at what you do, people will call upon you.
03What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
To have the non-quitting attitude. There will be times that things may not go your way. The administration or the system that you're in may not... you may not see eye to eye with, but there is a way to get everything done. It just may not be the way you want to do it, and it may not be in the time that you want to do it. So in that, you have to have a professional grace. A professional patience. But professional tenacity to never give up. And... to be flexible. To absolutely be flexible. Because when you get to a certain status, the. door is open. And they will call you and say, well, can you do this for XYZ dollars? And you can say, well, no, I can do it for XYZ dollars. And you begin. to get everything you want, because they want you. So when you get to the point that, that you are wanted, that's when you have everything carte blanche. But before they know you, before you have proven yourself, and you're just new, and you're fresh. Learn the game. Learn, make your connections.
04What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
The biggest challenge for me At this point in my career. Is that there's not more of me. Meaning that, at this place. Nearly every day, I'm getting a request to come here and speak, to go there and speak, and even this weekend, I had to cancel two engagements because I had another engagement already booked. So that's a challenge that sometimes I feel like I may be missing out on things because I have to say no.
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