Is there any space for young Black people in Black culture?

This year, I had the privilege and honor of working at Essence Festival, in New Orleans, Louisiana. I had a wonderful experience, being surrounded by beautiful Black people from around the nation gathered to celebrate the collective. As grateful as I was to be there, the young scholar in me, of course, had all of my critical lenses on.

I found that there was a few "red flags" raised over the duration of the weekend. When I made it back home and finally found some down time, I knew what I thought was a shared sentiment.

All over social media I saw Essence Festival being critiqued for structural issues this year. There were a lot of constructive criticisms mentioned, but the most relevant to me was the demographics. Yes, Essence's biggest audience is 40-60 year old Black Americans. Still, I was sadden to see the lack of space for Black youth.

Upon further reflection, I began to notice how frequent I have a similar take away from Black spaces.

Houston, Texas is a Black gold mind, full of creatives, artisans, chefs, pioneers and entrepreneurs. I initially fell into a deep love with Houston for this exact reason. The rich representation was something I was not aware of how desperately I needed.

One of my favorite hubs in the Houston area is Binz Street, which strikes me as the start of a contemporary Black Wall Street. The whole strip is decorated with Black bars, event spaces, restaurants, clothing shops and more.

As a 23 year old though, my access is frequently denied. Nightlife on the block is 25 plus, if not 30 plus. Mocha, 5015, etc. all have an age requirement. Even when I am out beyond Binz Street, or Houston, the arts scene and nightlife is very mature.

Which brings me to the questions I am exploring in this post. Where do the young black people go? Is there space left for young Black people in Black culture?

I was able to have several conversations with young Black people in Houston about the subject. They all acknowledged the lack of space for us, but accredited it to different reasons.

Some say that it is due to older Black people wanting to avoid the "YN's", and the chaos that may come with them. Others said that there is a lack of interest for Black young people in wholesome and creative events.

My most thought provoking conversation came from a 25 year old Black man I had spoke to at Neighbors, an ecclectic bar that hosts many events throughout the week. He mentioned a wide scale of points, ones I previously mentioned above. However, the remarkable part of the conversation was when he told me that he sees a want for it, and the true reason for the lack of space is because we have not created it yet.

After my experiences and chats, I have been left with even more questions then I set out with. Are Black young people lost in club culture, just looking for a catchy party? Are they inside, glued to their screens? Or, are they like me? Young people seeking a community in a place that feels like there is not space for them yet. Is it just me… or are we in need of more spaces curated for young Black people?

The main takeaway I gained was to treat this dilemma like all the other dilemmas related to lack of space. Just like my ancestors, when they saw something missing, they created it for themselves.

I will end this post with a quote by the astonishing Toni Morrison, who consistently reminded us of our power through curation.

"If there's a book you really want to read but it hasn't been written yet, then you must write it."

Light and Love,

Kadaysha