The illustration was commissioned as part of the research project “Understanding the Impact of Anti-Blackness Online” conducted by the Nia Centre for the Arts in 2022. Based in Toronto, the Nia Centre for the Arts is a charitable organization that supports, showcases, and promotes an appreciation of the arts within the African diaspora.

The project aims to present the BLACKOUT findings on platforms’ censorship of Black people, and Black people’s resistance to anti-Blackness. Platforms have been found to disproportionately target Black users/content. In response to experiencing or witnessing anti-Blackness, participants preferred not engaging with the abuse, more so than responding to it. This included actions such as blocking abusers, increasing restrictions on who can access their spaces, or simply scrolling past the content.

As an artist, I was commissioned to interpret the research findings in innovative ways using the arts. My work involved creating new pieces that highlighted the key themes and lessons of the research, thereby contributing to sharing these discoveries with the community in a visually powerful and impactful manner.

Two illustrations were created:

1. “Walk away” underscores the impossibility of avoiding online anti-Blackness and the exhausting nature of the struggle. Walking away from online hate provides an opportunity to focus on what truly matters.

2. “A safezone” interprets how Black individuals can resist anti-Blackness by creating a safe zone. This includes actions such as blocking harassers, strengthening restrictions on access to their spaces, and establishing healthy boundaries.