Welcome back, everyone. Thanks for
sticking with us here on The CW.
San Diego Art Gallery is honoring Black
History Month by showcasing local
talent and black culture this Sunday.
The Oya Art Gallery and boutique is featuring
Afro futurist haiku author Winston Shaw.
Winston joining us this morning to talk
about his work and about the event.
That's a lot to take in haiku.
Afrofuturism, can you start off by
telling us what Afrofuturism is and
about how how you came to be involved in
it? Yeah, sure. Well,
first of all, thank you so much.
Thanks for joining us. I appreciate it.
Afrofuturism is really just about
taking the narrative and in terms of
who we as black people depict ourselves
as and how we think about ourselves
just being at the vanguard of that,
whether that's technology.
Whether that's, you know,
in terms of movies like Black
Panther where concepts like vibranium
using that as sort of an an,
you know an idea and. Just.
Being original and about how we
depict ourselves in the future,
it's like what this intersection of
black culture and sci-fi almost right,
right. That's exactly what it is.
And so usually when people
talk about Afrofuturism,
they they're mentioning, you know,
comic books and sci-fi because
technology and new places like
space allows us the perfect
opportunity for new ideas and to,
you know, sort of depict.
Ourselves in in an original way,
in an original space.
And you put a piece together.
You said it's on audiobook people.
We have that QR code that people
are able to download and there's
also more on our website.
But tell us about what you put
together involving haikus, right,
absolutely. So the reason why
I consider an Afro futuristic
book is because, you know, it's,
it's the intersection of cultures.
The last Black Panther movie was
was like that and the book really
tries to pick up on what linkster.
Langston Hughes, authors like like
Langston Hughes who wrote a haiku
book in the Harlem Renaissance and
and Walter Mosley do when they,
you know look at American culture as a gumbo,
as a melting pot.
And so that's what I try to do
with this book is, you know,
to give a a different angle of
the black experience by using
haiku because I've always been
interested in in Japanese culture.
I look at it like,
you know I don't know if
you know about gumbo,
but I come my family comes from Louisiana.
OK.
So there's all these different elements
and they're all important and it's.
Our culture here is sort of
like cooking right there.
Yeah, the timing is important,
the amounts are important,
the temperature,
all these little things matter
and I imagine it in my head gives
a good opportunity for young black
people to see themselves in sci-fi and
in different pieces of literature,
film all, all the variety.
You know, like you said,
sci-fi I feel like historically
has been a white dominated field,
so afrofuturism also almost
gives that opportunity for young
black kids to be able to.
See themselves in that.
And the great thing is
there's a history there.
You know, there's a history and
all the way back from the original
Star Trek up until, you know,
new movies and and series.
Now there is a history there,
but it's increasing and it allows
kids to imagine themselves
as whoever they want to be.
You got an event coming up that you're
going to be at right on Sunday, right?
Tell us about what the event is
gonna be like and and how people
can find out more about it.
Well, the event, you can find
out more about it on southeast.
Artteam.com it's gonna be at Oya art gallery.
Yeah, which is in Logan Heights
and the historic building there.
So we're gonna have a Q&A.
Food, music, exhibits featuring
live painting with Kim Phillips P,
who's one of the leaders
of the Southeast art team.
There at the art Oria Gallery 3 to 9.
Just show up.
It's a free event open to the public.
And no matter where you're from in San
Diego or outside, please, come on.
Come on out and enjoy.
Enjoy the black history event.
We only have a little bit more time.
You're saying you grew up in Oceanside?
Tell us. How that kind of interacted
with you with your upbringing and how
it brought you to today being black.
Well I actually grew up in in
Southeast San Diego OK OK.
But I live in Oceanside now so it's
kind of you know both both tips
of single county there you saw both right.
I'm assuming it's it's different now
being up in Oceanside but you're still
able to come down to to the South
Bay to to. Absolutely.
I still have family down here my my
grandparents and aunts and uncles
still live all over San Diego you
know from Chula Vista downtown SE
have family all over San Diego
remind people where they can go
For more information on you social
media website anything like that.
Right. G Tat ent.com or
greater than equal toto.com.
That's the name of the website.
The concept is, you know,
strive to be greater,
but you're no greater than anyone else.
We're all equal here.
So the find out more at gtechent.com.
You could follow me at at
GTE TNT on social media.
Winston Shaw, thank you for joining us.
Thank you. It's a
cool concept. Afrofuturism.
Never heard of it before today.
And now learning more about what it means
and and how it can help out, you know?
Young black people and just
incorporating all of it together.
Like you said, the gumbo,
the melting pot. That's right.
I like it. Alright.
Thank you for being with us.
Thank you so much. Netta.
Eric, something back to you?