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| Noname (Centre) with book lovers at the Nairobi Chapter meeting |
Not many celebrities or people in general take kindly to correction or criticism. But not Noname.
The rapper and political organiser, whose real name is Fatimah Nyeema Warner, used a teachable moment from twitter a few years ago after she tweeted that Black people should apply capitalism for Black Liberation. This opened the flood gates of corrections and education about capitalism’s ties to racial inequality, slavery, and all its other cousins. Not to mention, how it affects literally every aspect of our lives.
She run with it as a learning curve and made something out of it that nourishes Black people’s minds, and you can’t help but appreciate her for unlearning and taking critical steps to start something as fundamental as the Noname Book Club. She heeded the call and decided to take on thorough reading by starting a book club.
Founded in 2019, the initiative is an international book club with chapters in Africa, Europe, and US, including US prison chapters. Noname Book Club is a Black-owned business connecting community members both inside and outside carceral facilities with radical books. Each month they uplift one book written by a Black author.
They believe building community through political education is crucial for our liberation and that Black people everywhere should have access to unlimited educational materials. Since their founding almost six years ago, they have created 20 book club chapters across the United States and 4 international chapters (London, Lagos, Accra and Nairobi). In April 2021 they refocused their efforts on expanding their prison chapters and now send books to 1500 incarcerated members of the club.
In Oct 2021 they opened the Radical Hood Library. In this space they have teach-ins, movie screenings, prison program packing, book drives, etc. Not only are they committed to offering free resources to friends and family behind bars, they also think it is incredibly important to have revolutionary literature freely available in their local community.
How the monthly picks work: They choose a new book or two every month. Interested people pick one. What’s even more exciting is that books are bought at their Black-owned bookstores or local libraries, and then interested readers find a local book club chapter.
They also share additional resources for each book, so you can always read on your own.
African Chapters: The recently launched African chapters include Accra, Lagos, and Nairobi.
Up Next: The Kampala chapter will convene for its first meeting on Tuesday, 29th April, 2025, at 32 Degrees East library; starting with A Small Place by Jamaica Kincaid as the inaugural read.
A Small Place is a powerful work of creative nonfiction that examines the enduring impact of colonialism and slavery on Antigua and its people, focusing on the corruption of its government and the superficiality of its tourism-driven economy.
In the pipeline: There are plans for a prison chapter in Nigeria is in the works, and will be launched in due course in Abuja after official approval from government.
Concluding Thoughts
We should all learn from Noname about being teachable as an invaluable trait. It takes you places and can enhance your life for the better.
Reading is an evergreen habit, never to your detriment, especially intentional revolutionary literature. What a significant initiative?! Well done to Noname and team for such a nourishing treat of not only reading but also creating meaningful connections focusing on Black people’s shared struggles that emerge from the disruption caused by colonialism and slavery. I mean, like George The Poet once said, “Even though Africans share a continent, in a lot of ways we’re kept apart. Colonisation wasn’t meant to unite us. If anything, it set us off on separate paths." Here’s to many more meaningful community building and connection fostered by Noname Book Club chapters on the continent and its diaspora.
If you are a reader or curious about reading, and want to feel like a kid in a candy store, visit the Noname Book website here to immerse yourself in all the incredible carefully picked reads available. Happy reading!
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Books