The Black Future (Part 2)
In 2018, Pittsburgh artist Alisha Wormsley created and posted what many considered to be a “controversial” billboard in the East Liberty neighborhood of the city. The billboard contained a single sentence that read: “There are black people in the future.” The simple statement was a profound one; in the context of a gentrifying neighborhood where black residents were being rapidly displaced, the billboard critiqued community planning strategies that expunge and erase black communities. But more than a critique, the billboard was also indicative of a particular artistic practice, mode of study and social engagement that has come to be known as “Afrofuturism.” In this episode, Secunda continues her conversation with De'Anna Daniels, Jaison Oliver, and Dr. Jessica Davenport about afrofuturism and its creative and cultural possibilities for community-building.
Episode 14 of the The Relay podcast, hosted by De'Anna Daniels, Jaison Oliver, Dr. Jessica Davenport, Secunda Joseph, Luke Brawner, titled "The Black Future (Part 2)" was published on November 12, 2019 and runs 60 minutes.
November 12, 2019 ·60m · The Relay
Summary
In 2018, Pittsburgh artist Alisha Wormsley created and posted what many considered to be a “controversial” billboard in the East Liberty neighborhood of the city. The billboard contained a single sentence that read: “There are black people in the future.” The simple statement was a profound one; in the context of a gentrifying neighborhood where black residents were being rapidly displaced, the billboard critiqued community planning strategies that expunge and erase black communities. But more than a critique, the billboard was also indicative of a particular artistic practice, mode of study and social engagement that has come to be known as “Afrofuturism.” In this episode, Secunda continues her conversation with De'Anna Daniels, Jaison Oliver, and Dr. Jessica Davenport about afrofuturism and its creative and cultural possibilities for community-building.
Episode Description
In 2018, Pittsburgh artist Alisha Wormsley created and posted what many considered to be a “controversial” billboard in the East Liberty neighborhood of the city. The billboard contained a single sentence that read: “There are black people in the future.” The simple statement was a profound one; in the context of a gentrifying neighborhood where black residents were being rapidly displaced, the billboard critiqued community planning strategies that expunge and erase black communities. But more than a critique, the billboard was also indicative of a particular artistic practice, mode of study and social engagement that has come to be known as “Afrofuturism.” In this episode, Secunda continues her conversation with De'Anna Daniels, Jaison Oliver, and Dr. Jessica Davenport about afrofuturism and its creative and cultural possibilities for community-building.
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
For more on Wormsley, click here.
Adrienne Maree Brown - Octavia's Brood
Rhiana Gunn Wright - New Consensus Green New Deal
The Intercept - A message From the Future with Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
How It Feels to Be A Colored Me - Zora Neale Hurston
Zone 1, Underground Railroad, Nickel Boys - Colson Whitehead
Wayward Lives, Beautiful Experiments - Saidiya Hartman
Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl - Harriet Jacobs
Parable of the Talents - Octavia Butler
Alondra Nelson - Body and Soul: The Black Panther Party and the Fight Against Medical Discrimination
CREDITS
Produced, edited, and mixed by Luke Brawner
Co-Produced by Dr. Jessica Davenport
Music licensed through PodcastMusic.com
Artwork designed by Heather Hale
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