A black Briton’s view of black British literature and scholarship

Because of the increasing popularity of "Postcolonial," "Transatlantic," and "Diasporic" studies, black British literature, once marginalized if not entirely ignored, is today a burgeoning field that is beginning to receive serious critical attention from scholars on both sides of the Atlantic. In light of the past Windrush celebrations in England (celebrations that embraced the cultural, social, and political contributions that blacks made to British life and culture, both before and after the 1940s-1950s SS Empire Windrush era), British readers and critics are also beginning to examine black British literature. This essay presents a view of black British literature from the perspective of a black Briton who resides in the United States. It does not, however, seek to provide an in-depth critical analysis of black British literature itself. Instead, my discussion focuses on my earliest experience with British literature (while I was growing up in England), on my graduate experience of and exposure to black British literature in the United States, on my personal sense of the crucial issues for scholarly and teaching attention, and on what most certainly would be the cultural and social implications of my teaching black British literature in this country especially as it relates to African American scholarship and my experience of the American academy.