Three Black Men

A Journey into the Magical Otherwise

a conversation about

Trauma, ritual and the promise of the monstrous 

Tracing the diaspora in reverse, this series of gatherings will take place
across three continents.

The first meeting took place in Los Angeles at the Japanese Cultural and Community Center on June 24 for individuals who identify as black men and on June 25 for the entire community.

The journey arrived in Salvador, Brazil, on September 1st and 2nd, and now continues to Accra, Ghana, from December 11th to 16th.

Join us in Ghana or follow us on-line @Three_Black_Men Instagram platform.

DECEMBER 11 to 16, 2023

ACCRA, GHANA (AFRICA)

the art concept

SEPTEMBER 1 AND 2, 2023

SALVADOR, BRAZIL (SOUTH AMERICA)

MUSEUM OF MODERN ART OF BAHIA

june 24 AND 25, 2023

los angeles, california (north AMERICA)

japanese cultural & Community center

This is a time to gather in community and reach beyond what we know. You are warmly invited to join us on a voyage of deep inquiry.

How do we meet the crises of our times? As we reckon with the legacies of historical harms, the normative murder of Black and Brown bodies, climate crises, and surging global inequities, how might we respond in ways we have not yet imagined?

The politics of today doesn’t reach into what is possible. We need something different – fugitive pathways that escape the plantation. To dream our futures into being, we need liberation-spaces of healing, exploration and discovery.

From this place, the Three Black Men: A Journey into the Magical Otherwise was born. This project brings together three visionary leaders – Resmaa Menakem, Bayo Akomolafe and Orland Bishop – for the first time.

In 2023, Resmaa, Bayo and Orland will share space as they visit three cities across three continents, tracing a diasporic route in reverse. “We are at a turning point”, Orland tells us, “towards another reality.”

In their beloved writings and teachings, these explorers investigate community, racial and social justice, individual and collective trauma, ritual and healing, new cultural forms (the promise of the monstrous) and deep interior capacities.

Our theme connects vibrant conversations on matters of embodiment, explorations of the sacred and the ancestral, and visions of other places of power and alternative futures.

Resmaa says “I consider it my job in this moment to make the invisible visible.” The healing that we need invites us into a new shared seeing, anchored in a place beyond conventional culture. The struggle for radical transformation is a soul-struggle, and Bayo invites us to “risk new shapes”.

This traveling village, a space for the not-yet-imagined, will take form as a series of vibrantly festive Black-centering gatherings. Whether in person or by live-stream, we will connect like mycelial threads as our collective life-force convenes.

These three visionary Black men, sharing their leading edges, are inviting us into a radical re/imagination of how we respond to our time. We will sense into emergent possibilities, triangulating toward a synthesis of new forms, new magic, and new directions.

In Orland’s view, this is a portal, a kind of initiation, and a potent invitation extended to us all.

Will you join us?

Explore the Conversations

Bayo Akomolafe: Video
“What If Justice Keeps Getting In The Way?”

Orland Bishop: Video
What Gives Form To Consciousness

Resmaa Menakem: Podcast
On Being with Krista Tippett

CONTRIBUTE TO THE JOURNEY

Enter your email to stay informed about all the magic afoot!

We take your privacy seriously. Please note that by registering you agree to have your information shared with the organizations associated with Bayo Akomolafe, Resmaa Menakem, and Orland Bishop as well as the 3 Black Men project sponsors. We will always handle your information with the utmost care and respect, and will never share information with parties outside those named.