05/31/2026
It is with heavy hearts and profound grief that we, the family of Dr. Rachel Elizabeth Harding, announce her peaceful passing on Monday, May 25, 2026, in Salvador, Bahia, Brazil — the city she loved and called her "second home." Rachel left this earth surrounded by family and by beloved members of Terreiro do Cobre, her Candomblé home for decades. We are grateful beyond words for the Terreiro do Cobre family, the Southern Freedom Movement/Civil Rights family, and the Denver and worldwide community who held Rachel with such tenderness over the years.
A poet, historian, and scholar of religions of the Afro-Atlantic diaspora, Rachel spent her life weaving together the sacred and the struggle for social justice. Her scholarship and poetry opened new ways of understanding the deep ties between Black spiritual traditions, creativity, and social transformation — her work made a profound impact on communities across the United States and Brazil. She co-directed the Veterans of Hope Project and served as associate professor emeritus of Ethnic Studies at the University of Colorado Denver.
Details regarding a celebration of life will be shared in the coming days. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorial donations be made to The Black Star Project, Indigo Arts Alliance, cavecanempoets and The Veterans of Hope Project, an initiative founded by her parents, Rosemarie and Vincent Harding, in Denver to preserve the intersection of religion, culture, and democratic social movements.
