Essays

How Black Art and Literature Inspired My Evolution

Culture writer and critic Nardos reflects on growing up both Black American and Ethiopian, and the art and literature that taught her Blackness was never one thing.

Nardos Haile is a Brooklyn-based culture writer and critic who works as an associate editor at Impact Media. She’s on a mission to regain her attention span after years in media at publications like The Associated Press and Salon, where digital media took over her life. She is passionate about media literacy, critical thinking, and connecting with readers through thought-provoking,visually appealing storytelling about her personal experiences and pop culture. You can find her on Instagram.

Truth be told, it may be embarrassing to admit now, but I haven’t always felt the most secure in my Blackness. Most of my childhood, misinformed people loudly and wrongly explained to me what Blackness looks like, what it sounds like, and most importantly, what specific shape it is supposed to take. To my confusion, I was told that form wasn’t me.

I didn’t inherently reject Blackness, but I felt that rigid idea of it had rejected me as I was coming to terms with my own identity as both a Black American and an Ethiopian American. In resistance to this inflexibility, brick by brick, I built my own understanding of who I was, where I came from, and the weighty legacy of Blackness that may have nothing to do with my own ancestral line.

The fear I felt while stepping into my identity reflects a familiar and often-explored struggle that many children of the diaspora experience. The internal work is tiresome but rewarding when you can reach a place of learning, understanding, and appreciating Blackness and its ever-evolving shape or lack thereof. I will admit I’m a work in progress –– I’m only 26 after all. There are still numerous Black American experiences I missed out on growing up as a child in a predominantly white Pennsylvania suburb and an African household.

There are still Black books, movies, and television shows I have yet to read and watch in this
lifelong journey, but that’s the beauty of it: every day of my existence is a lesson. Every day is a new and fascinating celebration of Black creativity. Every day brings a deeper understanding of the people who stood on this land before me and tirelessly fought for liberation through their art –– through soul-crushing words.

That’s why Black History Month feels like just another month for me –– another opportunity to burrow into Black literature and art, soaking in the glorious and mighty pens of writers like Lisa Smith, Toni Morrison, Oyinkan Braithwaite, James Baldwin, and many more. Their works are shining examples that Blackness can be everything and anything Black people carve out for themselves through our innovative and expressive minds. The limitations that I wrongly associated with Blackness in my childhood now feel incredibly expansive because the fantastical worlds Black art and literature have been able to construct from real-life experiences.

If I’ve learned anything in this evolution, it’s that this sheer power deserves to be honored all year
round — not just for a short 28 days in February.