Nine titles that imagine what a Black utopia could be

Aaron Robertson is a writer, an editor, and a translator of Italian literature. His translation of Igiaba Scego’s Beyond Babylon was short-listed for the 2020 PEN Translation Prize and the National Translation Award, and in 2021 he received a National Endowment for the Arts grant. His work has appeared in The New York Times, The Nation, Foreign Policy, n+1, The Point, and Literary Hub, among other publications. He lives in Brooklyn, New York.

Robertson's nonfiction debut is The Black Utopians: Searching for Paradise and the Promised Land in America.

At Lit Hub the author tagged "nine key works that provide a window into the long history of Black utopian experiments, tracing it through political, social, and speculative lenses." One title on the list:

Wilson Jeremiah Moses, Afrotopia: The Roots of African American Popular History

Moses explores the historical development of utopian thought within African American intellectual traditions, tracing its roots from the eighteenth century through the twentieth century. He examines how Black thinkers and leaders, from Martin Delany to Marcus Garvey, constructed visions of a better future for African Americans, often blending utopian ideals with nationalist and diasporic aspirations.

Moses highlights the complexities of Afrotopian thought, revealing how it encompasses both the hope for a utopian future and the critique of present realities. By analyzing various political and religious movements—including Black nationalism, Pan-Africanism, and Ethiopianism—Afrotopia uncovers how African American visions of liberation were often grounded in the desire for a separate, self-governing Black nation, whether in Africa or in the United States.

Through these historical explorations, Moses shows how Afrotopian dreams have been a driving force behind African American activism and cultural production.

Read about the other entries on the list.

--Marshal Zeringue