By Aja K Riddick

In art, Black is not a color. Black is the absence of color, or more technically, of light. At the same time, Black absorbs light. So much so, that the energy can shift and emerge as heat. These thermodynamics parallel the Black experience. As Black people we are always able to absorb the proverbial light, whether the light at the end of the tunnel or the light that shines within us all. We absorb light. We transform energy.

Take the Negro spiritual for example. Rising from the depths of something as coldhearted as slavery it inspired and encouraged and became the foundation that is the Blues; begetting Jazz and swing and Bebop, right up to Hip Hop that links and stirs souls around the world. We transformed that energy. And so in the spirit of transformation, I make the motion that Black is in the eye of the beholder.

I think Black and channel the strength of my ancestors, as I enjoy every day the ripened fruits of their labor. I feel their resiliency as it courses through my own veins. I think Black and am filled with inspiration from those who marched and sat and fought against all odds for the right to write, express, read, create and vote, to matter, to live. I think Black and see toasted melanin. I see olive and bronze and caramel, peanut butter, mocha and midnight faces.

Black is beauty and emotion. More than a color. More than a notion. Black is a Diaspora spanning the world, from native Africa to the Caribbean, to Europe and Americas North, Central and Latin. From Canada’s Ontario to Costa Chica, Mexico. Black is global. Black adapts. Black is formidable and intense. Black is hospitable with good sense. That’s if you ask me.

Black is in the eye of the beholder. Let’s look to the light within to define ourselves. My Black is not better or more valid than yours. They all exist together as overlapping circles in a Venn diagram; soaking up light and emitting the rays of warmth the world basks in.

Aja Riddick is Principal of The Kellington Group, a company dedicated to marrying superior written communication to your creative vision. They offer eloquent, professional writing tailored to your audience. The written word is a powerful tool, and they want to help you use it

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