In Memoriam Sojourner Kincaid Rolle
1943–2023

Sojourner Kincaid Rolle. Full stop. That’s the sentence. How do you capture an icon’s life into a word count? Especially one who was a master with words, every detail, every diction, and every dialect. To know Sojourner was to understand truth, history, and true love. She was a perfectionist, an artist, a peacemaker, and an activist who saw beauty in all things and all people, a true steward of justice and an inspirer of hope. Her story exemplifies a person who has lived many lives and understood the meaning of living a fulfilled life. I am honored to be among a few close friends to share her magnificent story.

Joy “Sojourner” Kincaid was born on August 26, 1943, in Marion, North Carolina. From age 5, she lived with her grandmother, an active leader in the community and church ​— ​a person Sojourner credited with being a huge influence in her own work. At a young age, Sojourner was introduced to poetry. Her grandmother would have her recite poems at church and school. She became a top orator and competed in competitions by the time she was in 8th grade, the same year she had the lead in the school play.

In her early years, Sojourner also spent time with her mother in New York City and with her father abroad in Germany. Growing up in a military family meant moving a lot, and in 9th and 10th grade, she lived with her aunt’s family in Fort Bragg, North Carolina. For 11th and 12th grade, Sojourner lived with her father and graduated high school in Munich, Germany.

In the 1960s, Sojourner moved to Washington, D.C., where she worked for a radio station that received a visit from James Brown and a conversation with the White House the night that Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was killed. Sojourner moved back to North Carolina when her father retired from the military after 30 years and opened a business. She helped him with the business and eventually attended the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, where she received top marks and the Outstanding Graduating Senior Award. She was involved in the Children’s Rights Movement on campus and majored in criminal justice, emphasizing juvenile delinquency. Around the age of 30, she added “Sojourner” to her name after the suffragist and abolitionist Sojourner Truth.

Sojourner attended the University of California, Berkeley School of Law. In that time, she became an activist, serving in the Graduate Assembly and the Coalition for a Diversified Faculty. Sojourner was indifferent about her time at Berkeley Law as she began formulating her post-law-school aspiration to be a “legally trained person in service to the community.” Sojourner graduated from Berkeley Law in 1981 and was honored with the “Silver Key Award” from the Student Association. 

At Berkeley Law, Sojourner was advised that “you have to decide whether you’re going to be a lawyer or a crusader.” In her next chapter, she chose the latter to join her good friend from North Carolina, Rod Rolle, who was attending Brooks Institute in Santa Barbara. In this place, she began to build deep, nurturing roots. In the 1980s, Sojourner and Rod married and had a beautiful ceremony in Santa Barbara.

Sojourner began working in administration at Santa Barbara City Hall in areas of conflict resolution and became the first director of the Rental Housing Mediation Task Force. She later worked for the Isla Vista Mediation Program and was the Violence Prevention Educator for the Community Mediation Program. From 1985 to 1987, Sojourner hosted African Kaleidoscope radio programs on KCSB and then the Outrageous Women television program on TVSB from 1988-1995. Sojourner also worked as a frequent contributor to the Santa Barbara Independent from 1988-2020.

In her life in Santa Barbara, Sojourner has been known as a playwright, producer, poet, author, advocate, historian, and teacher, among several other distinguished titles. All of the above supported her 2023 California Arts Council award of Legacy Artist in the 17-county region. Below are select notable contributions and recognitions of her life.

Playwright, Producer:  Sojourner worked for 20 years with City at Peace, a theater group for teens, specializing in the arts and conflict resolution, including poetry and performances. And from 1994-2007, she wrote and helped produce seven plays, most with Dramatic Women at Center Stage Theater. One notable play is The Receptionist, in 2007, which was based on her close-up view of the impact of Dr. King’s assassination in D.C. Another is her production Ayo’s Journey, written with Robert Potter and Val Limar, a multidimensional theater performance about the transatlantic slave trade.

Poet:  Sojourner’s strong poetry helped to heal and motivate the Santa Barbara community as she answered requests to share her words throughout the decades. Four of those poems written and recited for significant events include “We Take Back the Night” with the Santa Barbara Rape Crisis Center in 1996, “Circle of Painted Stones” at La Casa de María with rival gangs, “We the Women, Free at Last” with the League of Women Voters of Santa Barbara in 2011, and “I Am That Woman” for the 2018 Women’s March. She was appointed Santa Barbara’s Poet Laureate from 2015-2017, a high accolade for poets. She found extreme joy in teaching and inspiring children through California Poets in the Schools and her own programs.

Author:  Sojourner has also graced the world with six published books, which include: Mellow Yellow Global Umbrella in 2016 and Free at Last: A Juneteenth Poem with illustrations by Alex Bostic in 2022.

Teacher:  From 1992-1999, she taught creative writing at the Men’s Colony State Prison in San Luis Obispo. In her work as a poet, she conducted numerous workshops that encouraged local poets to share their work, especially in the annual 100,000 Poets for Change event. 

Sojourner’s commitment to organizing diversity and cultural awareness programs was one of her most important gifts. In the Heart 2 Heart discussion groups (2016-2022) co-facilitated by diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice educator Cheri Gurse, themes such as “Sharing Stories of Race and Culture” produced transformational results.

Community Advocate & Educator:  Sojourner helped guide the creation of the Santa Barbara Eastside Library and the development of the African-American Resource Center at Franklin, now known as the Franklin Center.

After being lobbied for two years by Sojourner and friend Shirley Kennedy, the City of Santa Barbara recognized the national holiday for Martin Luther King Jr. in 1988. For the next 19 years, Sojourner organized or participated in MLK Jr. holiday activities. There was major expansion in 2007 when 48 people representing a cross-section of the community planned a rally, walk, and theater program for 2008. That was also the year that Sojourner initiated the essay and poetry program. In recent years, the MLK Jr. Committee, with Sojourner’s help, has expanded to a five-day program, including the popular performances at the Arlington and events at UCSB, Pacifica, and Santa Barbara City College.

Historian:  Over her four decades of living in Santa Barbara, Sojourner, in her infinite wisdom, began to take notes and archive documents for the African-American community. She shared and stored historical items with the UC Santa Barbara Center for Black Studies Research, where she was a Community Outreach Coordinator, and also stored historical items at UCSB’s Davidson Library. In recent years, Sojourner supported Healing Justice Santa Barbara and the City of Santa Barbara in creating the African American/Black Historical Context Statement and identified key leaders, historical buildings, anecdotes, and lives of Black/African Americans in Santa Barbara’s history. She was featured in the Black Is Beautiful documentary by Healing Justice S.B. In addition, Sojourner served as a guiding elder for Juneteenth Santa Barbara.

Accolades:  From an early age, Sojourner received awards and accolades. Her life was full of recognition for her brilliant work in the arts and the community. Honors included Woman of the Year from three different organizations ​— ​the 24th Congressional District (Salud Carbajal’s Office in 2021), the California Legislature (State Senator Hannah-Beth Jackson and Assemblymember Monique Limón in 2020), and Club Arcturus with the Lompoc Historical Museum (in 2014). Three of her most prized recognitions were being selected as Poet Laureate for Santa Barbara (2015-2017), the Arts and Culture Award from Healing Justice as part of the 2021 Juneteenth celebration, and the California Arts Council Fellow “Legacy Artist” Award (2023).

Sojourner passed away on Monday, November 13, 2023. She leaves in love her husband, photographer and musician Rod Rolle; family members Sharon Dula, Vanessa Monroe, Barron, and Vernon Kincaid of Marion, NC; Christina and Zory Monroe of Los Angeles; Lamar Kincaid of Asheville; Alvin Kincaid of Atlanta; Dehaven Phillips of Hickory, NC; Erroyl Rolle of Rochester, NY; Elm Rolle of New York City; Dessely Miller of Fontana, CA; and her many, many good friends from Santa Barbara County and surrounding region.