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CCTV sees me and finds a Black boy thriving
Even under the weight of a cold white gaze
As consciousness doubles
The boxes built to contain me are just lines
A fiction drawn around an idea of me when the reality is too complex for borders
See, there’s far too much of me
Too many scraps and rags, passed down and picked up, carefully stitched together
To make me small
To fit neatly within their structures
Instead, I’ll take this city as my inheritance
Every brick laid, raw material
Building blocks set aside
For the construction of me
These streets are just stages lined with props
And me, a character and an author
Playing complex parts along tarmac boards
Defying expectation with every performance
I step back to take it in
I am my greatest creation
A masterpiece
A celebration of multitudes
A welcome song for a place where I don’t have to explain myself
An ode to Jacks who refused the box
Blxck Enough explores the multifaceted nature of young Black males in London and beyond through fashion, photography, and spoken word. Operating as a lens of the societal gaze, the photo-series follows a young Black male navigating his way through London. The skateboard as his vehicle of transport, the series interrogates both the physical and metaphorical idea of navigating and negotiating identity.
With false perceptions and toxic stigma attached to Black British males, notions of what it is to be a Black mxn in Britain are often restrictive and presented as a monolith. Blxck Enough aims to liberate the identity, normalising the so-called oddities, and celebrating the multifaceted nature of young Black males, in doing so debunking unhelpful myths, and stagnant stereotypes.
The multiplicity of the Black male identity is elevated through styling incorporating white tie tails, ankara print trousers, a headband, and sunglasses with a pearl chain. The styling aims to confront attempts to essentialise the Black male identity, and conversely champion the many ways in which identity can be expressed.
Creative Direction: Tobi Onabolu & Brogues Cozens-McNeelance
Photography: Agatha Powa
Spoken Word: Folarin Akinmade
Model: Ethan Richards
