Blair Imani (born Blair Elizabeth Brown, October 31, 1993) is an American author, historian, and educator. She identifies as

queer ''Queer'' is an umbrella term for people who are non-heterosexual or non- cisgender. Originally meaning or , ''queer'' came to be used pejoratively against LGBTQ people in the late 19th century. From the late 1980s, queer activists began to ...

Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

bisexual Bisexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior toward both males and females. It may also be defined as the attraction to more than one gender, to people of both the same and different gender, or the attraction t ...

and

Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

. Since 2020 she has been known for creating and hosting the viral web series ''Smarter in Seconds''. In previous years, she came to popularity after her involvement with the

Black Lives Matter Black Lives Matter (BLM) is a Decentralization, decentralized political and social movement that aims to highlight racism, discrimination and Racial inequality in the United States, racial inequality experienced by black people, and to pro ...

movement and her unlawful arrest while protesting the

shooting of Alton Sterling On July 5, 2016, Alton Sterling, a 37-year-old black man, was shot and killed by two Baton Rouge Police Department officers, Blane Salamoni and Howie Lake II, in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Police were responding to a report that Sterling was selli ...

. She also participated in protesting

Executive Order 13769 Executive Order 13769, titled Protecting the Nation from Foreign Terrorist Entry into the United States, labeled the "Muslim ban" by Donald Trump and his supporters and critics alike, and commonly known as such, or commonly referred to as the ...

Education and career

Imani grew up in

San Marino, California San Marino is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. It was incorporated on April 25, 1913. At the 2020 United States census the population was 12,513, a decline from the 2010 United States census. History Origin of name Th ...

, and graduated from San Marino High School in 2012. She graduated from

Louisiana State University Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as Louisiana State University (LSU), is an American Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louis ...

(LSU) with a degree in history in 2015. In 2014, during her time at LSU, Imani founded an organization called Equality for HER (Health Education Resources). Equality for HER is a non-profit that provides resources and a forum for women and nonbinary people to feel empowered. In 2016, she worked as a Press Officer for

Planned Parenthood Action Fund The Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc. (PPFA), or simply Planned Parenthood, is an American nonprofit organization

. She also worked as the Civic Action & Campaign Lead at

DoSomething DoSomething (also known as DoSomething.org) is an international nonprofit organization that aims to inspire and engage young people to create positive change in the world, both online and offline, through various campaigns. The organization is ...

, a tech company for young people and social change. Imani is the author of ''Modern HERstory: Stories of Women and Nonbinary People Rewriting History'', published by

Ten Speed Press Ten Speed Press is a publishing house founded in Berkeley, California, in 1971 by Phil Wood. It was bought by Random House in February 2009 and became part of their Crown Publishing Group division. History Wood worked with Barnes & Noble in 196 ...

on October 16, 2018. The book is illustrated by Monique Le and "spotlights 70 overlooked but important

people of color The term "person of color" (: people of color or persons of color; abbreviated POC) is used to describe any person who is not considered "white". In its current meaning, the term originated in, and is associated with, the United States. From th ...

queer people ''Queer'' is an umbrella term for people who are non-heterosexual or non- cisgender. Originally meaning or , ''queer'' came to be used pejoratively against LGBTQ people in the late 19th century. From the late 1980s, queer activists began to ...

, trans people,

disabled people Disability is the experience of any condition that makes it more difficult for a person to do certain activities or have equitable access within a given society. Disabilities may be cognitive, developmental, intellectual, mental, physical, ...

, and more who are changing the world this very moment." She is also the author of the illustrated history book ''Making Our Way Home: The Great Migration and the Black American Dream'', published in January 2020. It is illustrated by Rachelle Baker and teaches about the Great Migration, black history, and "how privilege shows up in the way that we even depict black stories." In September 2020, Imani launched "Smarter in Seconds", a series of informational videos on Instagram Reels and TikTok around topics such as consent, discrimination, and environmental protection.

Activism in Baton Rouge

On July 10, 2016, in the aftermath of the shooting of Alton Sterling, Imani took part in a protest in

Baton Rouge, Louisiana Baton Rouge ( ; , ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It had a population of 227,470 at the 2020 United States census, making it List of municipalities in Louisiana, Louisiana's second-m ...

. While protesting, she and her partner Akeem Muhammad were arrested. In an interview with ''The Intercept'', Imani detailed her encounter with Baton Rouge

SWAT A SWAT (''Special Weapons and Tactics'') team is a generic term for a police tactical unit within the United States, though the term has also been used by other nations. SWAT units are generally trained, equipped, and deployed to res ...

officers. She claimed that she was trampled and threatened verbally. She was photographed screaming as she was carried away by special force officers. While being detained, she alleges one officer ordered: "really give it to her," and that another officer removed her hijab. Less than a week after her arrest, Imani helped organize a vigil with the Louisiana State University Student Body Association in response to and in honor of the murder of three Baton Rouge police officers. In an article in ''

The Advocate An advocate is a professional in the field of law. The Advocate, The Advocates or Advocate may also refer to: Magazines * The Advocate (magazine), ''The Advocate'' (magazine), an LGBT magazine based in the United States * ''The Harvard Advocate' ...

'', she said, "All violence is wrong," and that she is against all brutality, including violence against police officers.

Personal life

Imani converted to

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

from Christianity in 2015. During the

protests following the 2015 Chapel Hill shooting, Imani decided to contact nearby

mosque A mosque ( ), also called a masjid ( ), is a place of worship for Muslims. The term usually refers to a covered building, but can be any place where Salah, Islamic prayers are performed; such as an outdoor courtyard. Originally, mosques were si ...

s to fight for both Black lives and the rights and safety of Muslims in America, which eventually led to her conversion. She stated she would read the Quran which helped further her connection with God. She changed her surname to ''Imani'' and explained that "Imani means 'my faith' and it's one of the days of

Kwanzaa Kwanzaa () is an annual celebration of African-American culture from December 26 to January 1, culminating in a communal feast called ''Karamu'', usually on the sixth day. It was created by activist Maulana Karenga based on African harvest fe ...

, it's also a Swahili word as well as an

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

word, and I felt like it encapsulated my journey to Islam." A year after converting she began wearing the

hijab Hijab (, ) refers to head coverings worn by Women in Islam, Muslim women. Similar to the mitpaḥat/tichel or Snood (headgear), snood worn by religious married Jewish women, certain Christian head covering, headcoverings worn by some Christian w ...

, but briefly stopped wearing it following the 2016 presidential election as a precaution for her own safety. Imani

came out Coming out of the closet, often shortened to coming out, is a metaphor used to describe LGBTQ people's self-disclosure of their sexual orientation, romantic orientation, or gender identity. This is often framed and debated as a privacy issue, ...

in June 2017 while making an appearance on '' Tucker Carlson Tonight''. During the program, she spoke about fighting for communities, one of which was the LGBTQ community, when she was interrupted. The host,

Tucker Carlson Tucker Swanson McNear Carlson (born May 16, 1969) is an American conservative political commentator who hosted the nightly political talk show '' Tucker Carlson Tonight'' on Fox News from 2016 to 2023. Since his contract with Fox News was term ...

, stated "You're not here to speak on behalf of those communities." Blair responded "Well, Tucker Carlson, in addition to being a Muslim woman, I am a black, queer person." The announcement received both positive and negative reactions afterwards including death threats and words of encouragement. After coming out, she said she received support "from queer Muslims and young people all over the world" and that she found solace in the representation of LGBT Muslims on '' The Bold Type''.

Works

References

External links

Personal website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Imani, Blair 1993 births Living people Black Lives Matter people African-American activists African-American Muslims Place of birth missing (living people) Bisexual Muslims African-American LGBTQ people Converts to Islam from Christianity American queer writers American queer women American bisexual writers American LGBTQ rights activists American Muslim activists Louisiana State University alumni 21st-century American women writers American women civil rights activists 21st-century African-American women writers 21st-century African-American writers 21st-century American LGBTQ people Muslims from Louisiana