04-07-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Times
For Them, Juneteenth Was a Celebration of Black Love
Ermida Koduah and Theodore Brown-Matos Santos-Gaffney got engaged on Juneteenth in 2024 and were married this year during Juneteenth weekend — by design. They say their love story is about much more than just the love the two of them share.
'I believe our marriage shows a new type of Black love,' Ms. Koduah said, 'one that is culturally diverse in many aspects. I'm Ghanaian American. But I'm a mix of three different Ghanaian tribes — Fante, Ashanti, and Ewe. Theodore comes from rich Afro-Brazilian and Black American backgrounds.'
When they first connected on July 4, 2018, on Bumble, their cultural backgrounds were at the forefront of their connections.
'I swiped right on a couple of people,' Ms. Koduah said. 'But I ended up having a conversation with him because he was the most interesting. He wanted to go to Brazil to see the eclipse and mentioned he was half Brazilian.'
On July 13, 2018, they had their first date at a Nationals baseball game in Washington.
Neither was focused on the game, and they 'spent the entire time engrossed in conversation,' Ms. Koduah said, 'sharing stories and exploring our diverse cultural backgrounds.'
After the game, they had dinner at 1230 Afrofusion Restaurant and Champagne Lounge, a Ghanaian-owned eatery that has since closed. 'Theodore tried Ghanaian suya kebabs for the first time,' Ms. Koduah said.
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