Imagine Freedom: Transforming Pain into Political and Spiritual Power

Journalist and theologian Tesfamariam debuts with a bold vision for Black millennials living in Africa and across the diaspora. Grounding her analysis in liberation theology and Pan-Africanism, she argues that, to “break free” from the control of racist systems and cycles of violence, young Black people must work to “decolonize” their minds and hearts, a process that can be achieved through a reimagining of community, especially a closer relationship between Africans and African Americans, as well as other Black diaspora communities. Much of her focus centers around a return to privileging the communal rather than the individual, with biting critiques of the ways in which popular culture promotes a harmful individualism. In her view, celebrity obsession feeds capitalism and “toxic productivity”; social media is “white supremacy’s media arm” (though she recognizes that it also plays a significant role in activism); and hip-hop, while a powerful venue for Black expression, leans too hard into materialism and misogyny. Drawing on her life story as a dual citizen and resident of both Eritrea and the South Bronx (she narrates her family’s involvement in freedom fights in Eritrea), the author urges Black Americans to learn more about and connect with those living in Africa. Tesfamariam’s prose blends rigorous research befitting her academic background, the emotional punch of autobiography, and the raw impact of preaching. This has the power to move readers. (Mar.)