“I am not African because I was born in Africa but because Africa was born in me.”
-Kwame Nkrumah
“There can be no black-white unity until there is first some black unity…. We cannot think of uniting with others, until after we have first united among ourselves. We cannot think of being acceptable to others until we have first proven acceptable to ourselves.”
-Malcolm X
“Emancipate yourselves from mental slavery. None but ourselves can free our minds.”
-Bob Marley
Blackness is beautiful, intricate and multifaceted.
But there are not many opportunities to converse about the myriad of Black experiences across the board and across the world.
Who gets to claim Blackness?
Is there gatekeeping in the Black community?
Are Africans the original Black people?
Are our differences bigger than our commonalities as Black Peoples?
We are very excited to launch noirpress Town Hall, a monthly gathering to discuss pressing issues in our community. The first one will focus on Bridging the Gap: Healing intra-racial relations between Africans, Black Americans, Black Caribbean people and ALL Black people.
Tell your friends and fam, bring your full self, as well as questions and comments about how you experience Blackness based on your background to share with our guests.
Join us on Saturday, August 1 at 10am EST, on Youtube!