I love being Black, not for the world but for Black folks
--
I thought saying/showing I love being Black to the world was a defense against its anti-Black nature. However I’m come to understand that’s not when I do it.
I openly express I love being Black as an ongoing act of love and admiration to other Black people.
The reason is relatively simple, much like this blog, it didn’t stem from the fact I wish to inform everyone. I merely share thoughts and feelings other Black folks may have.
I agree with Kimberly Drew and Jenna Wortham said in their Black Futures book. “Blackness is infinite — a single book cannot attempt to contain the multitudes and multiverse.”
We exist, expand, and engage in Blackness every breath we take. Whether you, I or anyone maybe aware of or even thinking of really. This is the power of the diaspora we belong to.
Now, I understand completely when another Black person expresses or tells me that they aren’t defined by their Blackness.
They’re a person whom is Black, their life experiences are what they are — anti-blackness and intersectional harm aside. Many folks rightfully and logically think so. I get that, really I do.
However…
I* was born in a Black Caribbean immigrant family that moved to the southern US — where most Black people live — Raised by my Black parents in a city with a sizeable Black population.
I’ve lived in Black communities all my life, where I’ve been watched and cared for within a large multicultural city. Where I went to schools that even though the Black student body was low, I was far from being a fish out of water.
I was born and raised in a city that despite how utterly racist it was/is Black folks helped make it what it is. A city where I see/saw the influences of Black art, innovation, and pride everyday.
My few Black teachers in my formative years that taught me to take pride in myself. My Black friends helped me realize that solidarity is natural as breathing. I’m also thankful that my friendships helped me…
