In The Black Utopians (2024), Aaron Robertson writes that, “[t]he apparent persistence of abysmal realities for black people, and the certainty that there exists much more besides, is the soil from which black utopianism emerges. This tradition has encouraged black people to decide for ourselves how our inner resources can best be used to transform the outer world. It is an unceasing orientation toward the possibilities inherent in black social life.” For this and other reasons, it’s Afrofuturism’s time in the sun (Black skin gleaming with Vaseline), and Ytasha L. Womack is its prophet.

Womack was instrumental in expanding our understanding of Afrofuturism as the author of the defining, pioneering, and groundbreaking Afrofuturism: The World of Black Sci-Fi and Fantasy Culture (2013), in which she described Afrofuturism as “an intersection of imagination, technology, the future and liberation.” The term “Afrofuturism” itself was coined by Mark Dery in the 1990s, and it has come to represent more than a genre but a worldview, a complete philosophy of aesthetic approach, scientific principles, and cultural themes. Womack’s own view of Afrofuturism is thus:

Afrofuturism is an exploration of outer space, the symbolic great beyond that hovers beyond the mental, emotional, and physical boundaries placed upon us. It is also an exploration of inner space, our subconscious, our dreams, and aspirations. I define Afrofuturism as a way of looking at futures or alternate realities through [an] African/African Diasporic or Black cultural lens.

In The Afrofuturist Evolution, Womack is writing to creatives who operate within the framework of this worldview. In her words, the book explores “Afrofuturism as cultural space/time relations, vision, dance, rhythm, and story as present pathways to reveal futures thinking and being,” and offers “road maps for using Afrofuturist creative approaches to craft new works, new futures, new visions; to challenge conventions; and to rethink (remix) identity.” Womack touches on how African/Afrodiasporic concepts of time and space are completely unlike, for example, Western ones, and that therefore the worldview of African and Afro-descendant peoples is necessarily quite distinct from, in particular, Western worldviews (though she notes that there is nothing to be gained from binary comparisons, as there are a multitude of ways of knowing).

Based on this perspective, Afrofuturism is not just an “artistic aesthetic” but also “a practice and a method.” So, this book is about fostering a change of outlook towards a holistic framework in approaches to Black creativity. Womack begins at the start by examining “self-narratives,” or the stories we tell ourselves about how we came to be. The Afrofuturist Evolution is the exploration of meaning-making, followed by the application of what one finds. It reads as quite mystical, framing as it does a whole way of looking at the universe, a cosmology—a way of thinking, and a way of life. A great deal of ground is covered, from traditional religions and spiritual practices to inherited trauma passed down through generations; Cyborg theory; Afrofuturist emblems and symbols which Womack calls avatars—like Sankofa, the Ankh, the Mothership, the (Afro-) Pick, the Afro, the Black (Power) Fist, crossroads, and more; and even encouragement to engage with rural locations when considering Black futurity. Sankofa in particular is important in Akan culture in considering ways to move towards a future, so Womack also considers the place of history. She says, with respect to lost African American histories, that “[there’s] a peace to be found in the scant data, histories, and guesswork we quilt.”

There is, of course, a discussion of the foremost Afrofuturist musician and philosopher, Sun Ra, and a larger discourse on the importance of music in African, Afrodiasporic, and Afrofuturist exploration and expression. Womack explores jazz, techno, house, amapiano, kwassa, hip-hop, and other genres. There’s an especially telling quote in the book from Edward Bland’s 1959 film The Cry of Jazz:

Denied a future, the joyous celebration of the present is the Negro’s answer to America’s ceaseless attempts to obliterate it. Jazz is a musical expression of the Negro’s eternal re-creation of the present.

Other Afrofuturist expressions that Womack investigates, in a lot of or somewhat less detail, are fashion and style, visual art, food (have you heard of Bronze, the first Afrofuturist restaurant?), dance, and literature—because another thing Afrofuturism can be is imaginative play in expression. I love what Womack has to say about why AI could never have created it. It’s worth quoting the passage at length:

The challenge with imagination is that we tend to drum up references that already exist, plucking them from our memory bank, much like the AI generative art programs that try to duplicate human creativity.

I once spent days on an AI art generating program prompted by words and descriptions, attempting to generate an image of a Black woman on a snowy future planet where she was actually dressed in clothing that resembled winter wear. No combination of African woman, Black woman, African princess, Black cyberpunk winter princess, and fur coat could generate anything other than a really attractive brown skinned woman in a fur, open neck halter top with her six-pack midriff exposed. At best, she’s decked in a short capelet covering her shoulders, one that matches her bustier. While these AI generated images were intriguing, it was clear that the AI was sourcing Black women from video games, comic books, or fashionable models in warmer climates. Despite the centuries of Black women who’ve lived in snowy climates (hello Detroit, London, and Chicagoland), this AI generator couldn’t project any of these images into a future snowtopia that didn’t resemble a frozen Dubai. The available reference points wouldn’t allow them to go any further.

We can always take in another set of data and reference points to override bias, being intentional to do so. However, if we’re not careful, we can allow the images and sensations we take in from media or our lives to dictate not just what we can imagine, but also what we deem possible. Such images, coupled with beliefs, can also become barriers to understanding our environment, the cultures we’re in the midst of, or other ways of life.

Ultimately, Afrofuturism is an existential search for a Black utopia (an extensive topic on its own). The Afrofuturist Evolution is a further exploration of Afrofuturistic theory, an expansive review of Afrofuturistic production, and a handbook for how to apply Afrofuturist thinking in artistic and creative practice.