Black. Diasporic. Planetary. Each word alone holds such potency, depth, potential. Together, they form the web to how we are approaching this temporality we call futures. Black Diasporic and Planetary Futures is an initiative co-created by Olivia Woldemikael and Dana Burton. Our dream is to hold space for presence, in a moment when futures seem like a dark dystopia. Instead, through making, reading, gathering together, our intention is to seed the possibility of futures that are not held hostage by capitalist, supremacist, and colonial legacies, systems, and enduring material realities.

On February 6th, 5-7pm, we will gather in the Anthropology Lounge. This gathering happens as the winter deepens around us. Winter, as we are experiencing it here in New York, is a time of stillness. Come to enjoy the food, the playful prompts, and the company. Black Diasporic and Planetary Futures embraces this season of quiet, of composting, oftentimes grief and solitude. Of holding it down, holding on, being held up, surviving, laying in wait, laying seeds, laying down to rest. The gathering will be a space for communing with and despite the conditions that surround us.

At our winter gathering, we will also provide opportunities to learn about upcoming programming and to sign up for events that you are interested in. Throughout the coming months, we will be collaborating with organizations throughout the New York City area, with the intention of elevating what these partners are already doing. Thus, expect everything from the food we will be sharing, the materials we will be using, and the offerings we will be participating in, to reflect the multiplicity of the black diasporic identity in New York as well as the divergent ways in which we all are entangled in our planetary existences. Our approach is a choose-your-own adventure, letting your passions and curiosities guide what you want to become involved in, with the hope that it will foster connection with those joining from TNS and with the community partners from around the city.

Dana Burton

Faculty

Event Speaker

Olivia Woldemikael

Postdoctoral Fellow