No Country for Moving

Pilisam or Sam for short, is a proud Bronx transplant. His mother, a diplomat, brought his sister and him over and as a green card holder, he braved the overpriced educational system, then proceeded to meet his wife at a soup kitchen he volunteered at - because if you didn't know, immigrants also like to give back. Listening to Pilisam explain being Black in America vs Black in Togo and how he learned the history of enslavement in Africa, will help you understand that the African diaspora is not a monolith and Black history has been taught incorrectly in the US, but that shouldn't be a surprise.

Jay welcomed me to his workplace near Grand Central, with multiple conference rooms, new-age office decor, and lots of snacks. Jay grew up as the eldest of three boys, in Iran, amongst a family who encouraged him to follow his dreams. So it was no surprise that he took an education and work opportunity that landed him in Singapore for five years and soon after he followed another opportunity to pre 9/11 Jersey. Despite his mother's and the common heald belief in Iran, that the West was filled with drug addicts with loose morals, he managed to survive and thrive. These days, not too much has changed for Jay, he still defines the free spirit and his stories will make your draw drop.

On a rainy Fall day in a not so quiet bookstore, Kadiatou shared with us herstory. Born to Malian professors, who emigrated to Gabon, she was supposed to be born in Mali, due to the xenophobia faced by West Africans in Gabon, however her born day, had other plans. Similarly, her life's trajectory could have placed her living in France with other Francophone African nations or in Houston or Dallas with the increasingly burgeoning African population. However, by a stroke of luck and a sister in NYC, she found a home in Brooklyn. Join us on a true emigration/immigration story as we discuss her love of cosplay, her artistry, founding  NerdyBae, and exoticization of the Black female body.

There is no doubt after this interview that Sherry is a global citizen of the world. Sherry was born in Mumbai, then moved to the Middle East with her high school sweetie, she graced Kuwait and Jordan with her presence and even decided to move to Delhi for a while. A few years ago, she moved with her husband and son to New Jersey, and she quickly became my day one at our new job. This episode is a glimpse of the types of conversations we had about our families, cultural similarities, and the distinctly North American nuances that are unmistakably hard to miss.

There is nothing more comforting then speaking to someone who shares a culture that you can relate to at an intimate level. Therefore speaking to Gabriel was pure joy, his stories reminded me of some of my own and it was easy to hear what he had to say and how he said it. Understanding why his parents came to the United States, the reasons that propelled them to send him to Ghana, and what his "great return" felt like is as common to me as fufu on a Sunday. As the world open's its eyes to realize how the African diaspora fights to make our way despite the world despising our success by placing racial, economic, and geopolitical obstacles in front of us,  stories like Gabe are incredibly relevant because they prove that each day we wake up, we fight, and we hope for more for our children because our successes will make their future a little easier. 

In this episode, Dali and I get down and dirty into West African educational prowess, Black love,  and first language obstacles faced as an immigrant child in a white America.  We delve deep into the communities around us that we connect with and what our society deems as "Okay" for the status quo of a Black woman in America.