Black Boy Joy
“Black boy joy” is a rising theme in the world of African American literature. Or, at least, it is a theme that is just now making it into the mainstream. Black boy joy is a reaction to the type of literature which has dominated the ethnic hub of stories about life in these United States for young boys of color which paints them mostly as either thugs to be feared and jailed or victims to be pitied. Whether taking place in urban ghettoes or the wrong side of the suburban tracks, the life of young black males in America is often portrayed within this either/or dichotomy, both sides of which are presented as sucking the simple joys of life experienced by white males right out of the experience. Black boy joy is a concerted response by writers intending to show that black boys also routinely enjoy the joyous exhilaration of things like video games, cookouts, rollerblading or anything else enjoyed in your average white boy neighborhood.
Nannyism
Each chapter begins with what the author terms a Nannyism: a quote offering proverbial wisdom passed down from the experience of his maternal grandmother, Louise Kennedy Evans, affectionately known by her grandchildren simply as Nanny. But Nannyism also exists as a theme as the full wealth of her experience comes to dominate the narrative. She becomes a symbol representing the comprehensive presence of the grandmother figure in black society trying to trying to navigate the expectations of normalcy in a world where white society has systemically crafted laws and rules designed to subvert the formation of the nuclear unit. Strong grandmothers in black families often fulfill roles occupied by the father figure in white society. Historically, it is familial role which demands expansion into the role of caretaker that is often handed over to nannies among the more economically privileged members of white society.
The Black Woman Experience
While the chapters within the narrative commence with a Nannyism, the Introduction also kicks off with a quote, but not one from the author’s grandmother. Instead, it is one attributed to Malcolm X in which he declares the Black woman to be the most disrespected, unprotected and neglected figure in America. The author then goes on to admit and declare that the experience of being a black woman in America is one he cannot really possibly understand. However, experience seeing it first-hand and remembering it through the prism of a newly appreciated perspective allows him to write about it with empathy and admiration. One may not come away from the book truly understanding the intricacies of that experience, but most should come away with at least a greater sense of empathy and admiration themselves.
