I hope people of all identities will continue to dap each other up—and also understand that Black public expressions of joy are not merely cool or creative. They are sacred, deep, and a cultural phenomenon.

or the Māori hongi greeting, a ritual where two people press their foreheads and noses together to signify sharing the same breath of life. Despite becoming a popular gesture, like other deeply meaningful greeting rituals, the dap also merits reverence.”

As I explain in Black Public Joy, “the dap is no less sacred or culturally significant than the namaste greeting originating from India…

—carried solidarity, survival, and mutual care during international war and domestic discrimination. Visual artist LaMont Hamilton’s watershed research beautifully documents its countless creative variations (see image) and its depth.

The DAP is arguably the most joyful public-space greeting, yet many people don’t know its layered history or sacred origins. Originating with African American service members fighting in Vietnam, this hand and body gesture—an acronym for dignity and pride

Yet this broad embrace can separate our public joy practices from their cultural roots, and some within Black communities view expressions emerging from descendants of enslaved people as not being real or legitimate culture.

Thank you!

You’re obsessed with his failure to get a security clearance 😂.

The corner convenience store was literally as important as the community centre in the public housing community where I grew up. It’s where I learned how to share, where I debriefed the day and a safe gathering space (the community centre had limited programming). Such a weird, unproductive debate.

I’m sorry this happened to you. I know your post is about a larger structural issue but wanted to acknowledge your experience.

:)

I think this is THE conversation we need to have at this time. A conversation that could possibly pull us out of partisan politics & repeated, ineffective criticism of an individual. A conversation about our shared interests and responsibility to repair, remake & reimagine democracy.

I’m unconcerned about any single “leader” or political party. I’m concerned about the power they—both “leaders” and parties—have within a democratic system. I find myself grappling with the fragility of democracy itself—the structural issues that undermine its core tenets, promises & protections.