You know. Being a black fangirl in my childhood was very weird.
Like I said before, I was one of the easy targets to bash on because of the ways I've acted, the ways I've talked and the ways that I've dress differently, not because they didn't like it, but its because I wasn't following the code of an Black person stereotype; either to fit the code of our own people or to be comfortable of being the butt of a joke to white people.
Black fans in fandom, back in the older days like the 60s, 70s and 80s has be complicated as heck, even for being quiet: you either don't get noticed cause you were quite and shy but, still want to be heard, OR you do get noticed; but for being "different" outside of group the wrong kind (basically getting called a Nerd). So it took deadcaction to enter a group to fit in to by another group that is rejected by an even bigger society that don't respect the geek and nerd culture.
Take William Thomas III for example, he was one of the few black people who started one of the oldest anime club in America back in 1982.
Where his club was running a screening of "Final Yamato" as well as Japanese Live Action and other Animation in General and by 1985 Bill (one of William friends) had made it an independent group and renamed it as the Philadelphia Animation Society.
Being led by a personality such as William, He was one of our people in the Early days of Japanese Anime Fandom that shared and tell His love of the Genre to others.
And even after Bill's death in 2015, the remaining members decided to keep their group going on their own still this day!
Then In the 90s, where the real anime boom was beginning with a debut show called toonami showing anime like Sailor Moon, Ronin Warriors, Voltron, Robotech and most importantly Dragon Ball Z, which was a black crowd favorite, and many more in the 90s. It was a great year getting involved in a genre the black community have never seen before.
Then you go to the 2000s and we definitely saw a differences. Cause even Adult Swim gave more anime, showing anime like: Cowboy Bebop (seeing character like Punch and Coffee blow my mind!),YuYu Hakusho, Lupin the third, Big O, witch Hunter Robin, Fullmetal Alchemist and much more; and with even more anime that came in, the black community grew even bigger. With more attending in Anime Clubs, getting more into cosplay and fanart many more.
What was once considered a niche subculture in America, has become deeply embedded in Black pop culture. From fashion and music to social media and conventions, the Black community has embraced anime not just as a form of entertainment but as a medium of expression, identity, and creativity.
But beneath all the positive. Comes the negative.
And that perfectly described the early 2010s; Physical media almost fading from the fad and tech including the internet was growing more people online, that also include in the anime fandom too and that also means more angry, ignorant and self-conscious white kids, teens and even adults are even more confident and proud of there hatred towards black folks online.
Because let's address the elephant in the room: Japan has had an rocky yet strange history with Black American. From seeing the first black samurai to, Japanese people tried there hardest to gaslight us and themself or even erase between a small history beween black/Asian history, but we're quickly brainwashed by the white Americas and make us look like were something different.
For Example: in the early 1830s, the Northeastern states, Minstrel Shows were the epitome of promoting racism. Minstrel Shows were everywhere in America. It was another way of fueling stereotypes against Black people that were put in place to ruin our self esteem & to teach us to hate ourselves & each other, Which means it's gone global too...
From unrealistic behaviors to the many, many, MANY blackface during its long history of anime
It’s characters like the ones above that shows anti-Blackness & further the idea that Black people as a whole are less than human beings. Especially when the representation of Black people treats them as if they’re animals.
And that made little me feel confused and uncomfortable...
But, back in the 2000s there was one character that that blew my little girl brain...
Afro Samurai
The most badass character I've seen!
written and illustrated by manga artist Takashi Okazaki for a dōjinshi manga magazine called "Nou Nou Hau" from November 1998 to September 2002
He was Inspired by listening and showed his love for hip hop and soul music in the black community
It follows the life of Afro Samurai, whose father the owner of the No. 1 headband was killed by a gunslinger and the owner of the No. 2 headband. Afro would sets on a journey for revenge.
I remembered Seeing this back in 2005 and seeing the pilot video from anime studio: Gonzo and witness the Awesome Animation and memorable music: 400 Years by Cyne, Next Time by Gang Starr (My Personal Favorite) and Run to the Sun by N.E.R.D. which open up more of my music taste for me. And being successfully greenlited, made into an actual series with memorable creative team between Okazaki himself, Gonzo, THEE Wu-Tang Clan member RZA and FREAKING Samuel L. Jackson voicing the main character...like WHAT!!
It was truly a treat to the black community in the 2000s.
But back to the 2010s, and although the negative was growing...our proudness and creativity was growing still growing in the black community along with anime itself.
You can definitely see a change in representation of Black people for the better. For example… We have great anime like 2008 Michiko To Hatchin that respectfully depicted Black people in the best and non offensive way possible. And heres more of my favorite...
To name a few💗:
Claudia LaSalle- Super Dimension Fortress Macross (1982)
Uub- Dragon Ball GT (1996)
Casca- Berserk (1997)
Jason Ozuma- Hajime no Ippo (2000)
Cyborg 005 /Geronimo Jr. And Cyborg 008/Pyunma- Cyborg 009 (2001)
Glenda- Petite Princess Yucie (2002)
Bob Makihara- Tenjho Tenge (2004)
Yoruichi Shihouin, Kaname Tosen And Jackie Tristan- Bleach (2004)
Dutch- Black Lagoon (2006)
Villetta Nu- Code Geass (2006)
Issa Mihotoke- Air Gear (2006)
Darui, Killer B, and Karui- Naruto Shippuden (2007)
Kilik Rung- Soul Eater (2008)
Agil (Andrew Gilbert Mills)- Sword Art Online (2009)
Miyuki Ayukawa- Basquash (2009)
Canary- Hunter x Hunter (2011)
Mohammed Avdol- JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Stardust Crusaders (2021)
Nils Yajima (Nils Nielsen)- Gundam Build Fighters Try (2014)
Rock Lock (Ken Takagi)- My Hero Academia (2016)
Carole Stanley- Carole & Tuesday (2019)
Ogun Montgomery & Charon- Fire Force (2019)
Onyankopon- Attack on Titan-S4 (2021)
And of course Huey & Riley Freeman- The Boondocks (2005) (Yes they count!)
Which comes to my conclusion: why bother being racist to black people NOW in 2026 for a pathetic reaction or to be dominant when we the black community been knew that we have the higher up in our creative history.
As of right now, Stay Blessed and Stay Woke Black History month💚🖤🧡✊🏾 and Stay Golden 💛
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