Blackness Without Borders: How Caribbean and Afro-Latine Identities Expand What It Means to Be African Descended

October invites us to consider something I find increasingly urgent: not simply who belongs but how belonging is negotiated across languages, borders, and histories.

Too often, conversations about Black identity are framed as though Blackness exists within a single cultural experience or historical narrative. Yet millions of people throughout the African diaspora navigate identities that are simultaneously Black, multi-national, multi-ethnic, multi-lingual, migratory, and connected to diverse ancestral histories and cultural traditions. To belong to Blackness is not about choosing between identities. The stories and lived experiences of African descended people remind us that Blackness has never spoken with only one accent, one language, or one national identity.

As someone whose work centers global Black voices and intellectual traditions, I continue to be inspired by the ways art and literature, too, helps us cross these boundaries. Books, for instance, invite us to encounter unfamiliar histories or recognize ourselves in unexpected places, and understand that the African diaspora is not a monolith with a single narrative.  Instead, the diaspora is comprised of a multitude of living stories that unfold across continents, generations, and time.

Our journeys of belonging continues this month on the podcast Belonging to Blackness.  On October 13, Season 8 Ep 70 features an engaging discussion with guest Cindy Allman, founder of BookOfCinz and one of the Caribbean's leading literary advocates. Together, we explore why Caribbean literature matters, how reading shapes our understanding of Black identity, and what it means to build community through stories that have often been overlooked. If you've ever wondered how books can transform the way we understand the African diaspora, you won't want to miss this episode.