African-American Female Geeks and Nerds

A Cultural Explosion of the Female Kind

Geeks and Nerds are not one and the same . Yes, they are, in many aspects, kindred spirits. But while both are intensely dedicated to their subjects, there is finally, some line of demarcation. For those of you who are not in…ahem…” the know”…consider yourselves, henceforth, enlightened.

 On the one hand, geeks are enthusiasts of a particular area or topic. They are avid collectors of facts, curios, and mementos related to their subject of interest. Geeks are often obsessed with the newest and trendiest commodities that their subject has to offer. On the other hand, nerds are studious individuals, drawn to a specific field. They are achievement-oriented and mostly focused on acquiring knowledge, facts, and skills, over memorabilia and trivia. In short, where geeks are fans of their subjects, nerds are practitioners of them. For the sake of full disclosure, let it be known that this writer considers herself a bit geeky and somewhat nerdy.

Pushing Past The Silicon Ceiling

Entering into the domains of White male cisgender geeks and nerds can generally be a distressing experience for most women. It is doubly so for women of color. For African-American female content creators, it is a community where they often feel invisible and unwelcomed. Historically, Nerds of Color (N.O.C.)  have been rejected and negatively targeted by White male nerds. African-American gamers frequently hear the N-word used casually during online sessions — in some cases, they are even outrightly attacked, verbally. More exasperating, many African-American fans of cosplay, science fiction, and fantasy are routinely ridiculed by their relatives and friends.  

Nerds Welcome

What has grown out of this antagonistic climate is now a burgeoning subculture where N.O.C. and Blerds (a portmanteau for “Black Nerds”) can feel right at home. For the record, Blerds include artists, activists, comics, scholars, social influencers, content creators. They include anime fans, e-sports and tabletop gamers, fans of science fiction and fantasy and at least one President. This subculture was bolstered following the 2009 inauguration of Barack Obama – a self-proclaimed science nerd. In a 2016 interview with Popular Science, the 44th President of The United States admitted that, unlike when he was a child, now, being a nerd is something to be proud of.

I sat down with Jamie Broadnax, founder, CEO, and editor-in-chief of the Black Girl Nerds (BGN). She is also a well-established and respected writer, podcaster, and film critic. I wanted to get Jamie’s informed opinion on the burgeoning Black girl nerds and geeks movement.

Here’s what she had to say: 

I don’t see this movement so much as a socio-political agenda. I view it more as something that grew out of people having a need, and wanting to see themselves reflected — be it a person of color, a woman, or a member of the LGBTQ community. It’s about people wanting to feel included. When I started Black Girl Nerds back in 2012, the term “nerd” wasn’t at all endearing. It wasn’t anything that anyone wanted to be labeled as. It’s so funny. I was always called a nerd by my brother. But I never really embraced my identity as a nerd until after I had created the Black Girl Nerds space. Then I noticed that there were a lot of websites that were dedicated to the nerd subculture. Those spaces were mostly owned by white male cisgender geeks. As my platform evolved, I realized that what I had created had actually become a part of pop culture. That’s when I knew that being a Black woman and a nerd was something to embrace, celebrate and be proud of.

The Intersection of Culture in Feminism

She pointed out that there are now other global programs that are geared specifically towards young Black girl geeks and nerds. Among them are Black Girls Code (BGC), founded by Kimberly Bryant in 2011, which focuses on African-American girls who are into computer programming and technology. Another platform, founded by Jay-Ann Lopez, is Black Girl Gamers (BGG), a safe-space, multi-platform LGBTQIA inclusive online gaming community.

Ms. Broadnax uses the tagline “the intersection of culture in Black feminism”  to describe her BGN platform. She proudly explains that,

BGN creates content that is giving African-American women a voice but also shows them in different roles and areas of our culture.

For example, on the first day of confirmation hearings for Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, Ms. Broadnax retweeted a post that had earlier been written about the judge. BGN also highlights independent African-American entrepreneurs, entertainers, artists, and women in a variety of other areas. She points out that especially emphasized by BGN is the long list of women of color who have gone missing, and who, like their white counterparts, receive very little, if any public attention from news outlets and social media.  

Within the cultural realm of African-American female nerds and geeks, Ms. Broadnax said there are several important key points that should be addressed.

First and foremost, the number one key point is that we are not a monolith. Black female nerds and geeks should not be put into a box, where only Black women are known to like or have a disposition towards certain things. Black women geeks and nerds love all kinds of fandoms. This includes science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, as well as entertainment, music, art, comics, gaming, and cosplay. So, the main key point is to not allow anyone to put us into a box.

Secondly, she feels that the wide disparity in pay between white men and African-American women needs to be rectified, and the gap closed. As a publisher and website owner with a considerably large following, she admits that she is often been overlooked while White men with much smaller audiences are favored over her for industry engagements at high-profile events such as Comicon.

It is good to finally see more visibility being given to Black women. But what is really needed is more legislation in that area. In the meantime, I’m looking forward to “National Black Women’s Equal Pay Day” on August 3, 2022.  

Her words of advice to young African-American girl nerds and geeks:

Do not focus on what other people say about you. Be comfortable in your own skin.

On a broader, more inclusive note, to create a more equitable America, the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History is researching, distributing, and amplifying the histories and contributions of American women. In celebration of “Women’s Futures Month”, the Smithsonian and its “American Women’s History Initiative” recently unveiled a collection of 120 statues of women in the areas of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). 

IF/THEN® is an initiative project designed to activate a culture shift among young girls to open their eyes to STEM careers. From tagging sharks, searching for extraterrestrial life, fighting superbugs, to choreographing robots, these STEM innovators were selected as leaders with a commitment to inspire the next generation. 

What inspires someone to dream big, reach further, leap higher?

We asked Lyda Hill, entrepreneur and founder of Lyda Hill Philanthropies, sponsor of the project.

The exhibit was a big idea that we created with the intention to reach young girls to spark their dreams and support their interest in science.

Putting STEAM into STEM

I caught up with Dr. Nettrice R. Gaskins several days after she spoke at an event at Carnegie Hall to which Routes Magazine was invited.  Dr. Gaskins, is a 2021 Ford Foundation Global Fellow, and a passionate advocate of STEAM — science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics. An African-American academic, digital artist, and cultural critic, Dr. Gaskins recently joined the Ford Foundation’s inaugural Global Fellows cohort to build a global community of 72 active fellows working to combat inequality. 

Dr. Gaskin’s journey began with her mother, a computer programmer analyst. For many years, her mother was the only African-American woman she knew who did that kind of work. Initially, she had no interest in computers because there was nothing creative or artistic about them. It was when, in high school, a ceramics teacher showed her how to use computers to make art. With the learned skills, she created a portfolio that resulted in a full scholarship to Pratt Institute, where she majored in computer graphics.

Today, Dr. Gaskins’ body of work explores “techno-vernacular creativity” (TVC),  and Afrofuturism. She is the first-time author of a full-length book titled “Techno-Vernacular Creativity and Innovation. During this interview, I asked her to talk about her book and view on the STEAM models of integrated education compared to STEM, and her artwork.    

My book, titled Techno-Vernacular Creativity and Innovation was released with the MIT Press in 2021. It is actually a condensed version of my Ph.D. work at Georgia Tech. Although used primarily for education and scholarship, it does touch on the work I do as an artist. TVC is a novel approach used to engage students, young people, and practitioners from ethnically underrepresented groups to STEAM — science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics. We are currently working with a school in New Jersey that wants to implement my framework in the planning of a new makerspace.”

TVC draws on real-world examples, both domestically and internationally, to create new learning opportunities and dynamic environments for marginalized students. This model of STEAM has been used with African-American students in Atlanta, with Latino students in Albuquerque, New Mexico, with mixed populations of students in Long Beach, California and Boston, Massachusetts. Her model is based on the “maker” way of knowing and includes students, teachers, and members of the community who “play, tinker, design, and create.”  

As Assistant Director of Lesley STEAM Learning Lab at Lesley University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Dr. Gaskins co-leads a team that explores innovative ways to engage underrepresented students. For example, she is currently working on a pilot program that is based on mass equity.

I am inspired by Native American beadwork, so we’ve adopted a model that uses beads to teach mathematics to second-grade girl scouts.

Gaskins believes that an equity approach to STEAM learning will bring out the best in all students, especially those from ethnically underrepresented communities. Her argument for STEAM is based on the belief that adding Art to traditional Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics pedagogy will create more opportunities for students of color.

Where Color and Culture Positively Plays a Role

Unlike STEM, the STEAM model can be utilized to help create spaces that respond to culture, within a culture, thereby becoming a catalyst for change inside communities, rather than being controlled by outsiders. Dr. Gaskins believes that STEM has always existed within sectors that are not historically included in the mainstream course. The model looks at pockets in the world — places where people do not have access to a lot of money and resources but seem to be doing a lot of incentive things with what they have. This spirit is used to engage students in areas where there might be some major disconnect.

I’m presenting a paradigm that will help teachers and educators to think outside the box, but too, to think in a way that also engages everyone.

In terms of her overall body of work, Dr. Gaskins, author, educator, researcher, and digital artist, has chosen her own way. She’s creating a path as she goes along. Her numerous achievements as an artist must certainly be noted. As an artist, her portrait of  Harriet Tubman titled the “Harriet Tubman Bicentennial Project” was featured in a special issue of  Ms. Magazine.

As part of the FUTURES exhibition at the Smithsonian Arts & Industries Building in Washington, DC, eleven of Gaskins’ portraits of  “featured futurists” such as Octavia Butler were installed. Generated using deep learning algorithms, the portraits will be on display until July 2022.

Back to the Future

As I stepped away from my conversation with both of these dynamic gal geeks, I found my own inner geekdom deeply satisfied.  The garden gate has sprung open as represented by the 120 women celebrated in the Smithsonian’s FUTURES exhibition and by the excellent work of Dr. Gaskins and Ms. Broadnax. The rich resource each of these women are providing is exemplary of a growing trend of Girl Geek empowerment. Just have a look at one of the many YouTube videos out there on this subject, being reported across a broad spectrum of channels.

Ultimately what is most reassuring is that the movement that has taken root is not only demonstrated nationally but internationally.  Organizations like The Society of STEM Women of Color are insuring the continued empowering of women of Color in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics fields. Other nonprofit organizations such as the Pan American Development Foundation are creating and managing programs that empower girls and women of color through STEM programs throughout Latin American and the Caribbean.

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