Challenging the Radical Imagination: Afrofuturist Resistance as Personal Narrative
Afrofuturism at its foundation is radical work. From its inception, our pioneers challenged the world by placing themselves and their subjects in the sacred future – a space the marginalized have traditionally been held from. We have made ourselves space cadets and time travelers in spite of tactical violence spurring from the genre’s gatekeepers. But where do we find the current self within this celebratory art? How do our identities and those of our communities manifest themselves? Do present-day intersections fall to the margins in lieu of traditional sci-fi elements? Through exploration of contemporary Afrofuturist literary work, this discussion and artistic exercise will consider intersectional Blackness in character development, story arc, and imagery.
