The green book has always been such a needed concept --for me-- in my black adult life. When I first learned about it, I viewed it as a magical book created to protect black people wherever the road may take them. The 1949 edition introduction stated, “it has been our idea to give the Negro traveler information that will keep him from running into difficulties.” I’m all for the shared information that could help protect and keep one safe, particularly a black one. Read the 2020 room. I’m all for laws when it’s about safe places and equal spaces for all.
My nearing vacation was the first thing that came to my mind as I scrolled through twitter today. I saw another subtlety worded tweet of racism from forty-five but loud enough to hear from four hundred years in the back. I thought to myself that vacation at this very moment, today, sure would be welcomed—a getaway from my every day, an electronic turndown. Travel options are minimal, but I’m so looking forward to an upcoming cabin trip surrounded by woods and lakes. A place to clear my head, put some thoughts and ideas on paper.
I often follow the hashtag and look for pictures of black people when I decide to visit new places. It puts me at ease. I’m not sure any of my white friends have gone to those lengths before traveling. I have even searched for what could be a modern-day green book. What’s known formally as “The Negro Motorist Green Book” has been referenced as the “Bible of black travel during Jim Crow,” and was published annually for about thirty years, but where are you now, is the sad song I sing. Based on the little living I’ve done here on earth, there is still a place for such a trusty companion.
I have always been an explorer by nature. As a child, when the summers seemed much longer, I would wake up looking for my next adventure. I wasn’t so much concerned with safety because racism had not fully seeped into the crevices of my life experiences. I would just go, unafraid of what was in front of me, innocently thrilled at seeing something new in each day. That is how I feel about travel near and far. I just get excited to see something new in an old place or something old in an unfamiliar setting. What is most exciting is being able to explore and leave all your cares behind.
It wasn’t until about 5 years ago when I first traveled internationally did I remember having learned initially about the green book in an African American studies class at Temple University. While I have easily traveled through many states and saw people who looked like me, which made it easy to navigate. My layover in Qatar was an eye-opening experience. I saw nobody who looked like me, I did not speak the language, and had no idea who to tell when my space was violated by my taxi driver as he began to rub my thigh and asked me to be his wife. I wished I had had some type of guide.
I’d like to truly live sometimes as the secret explorer people I am, people-watching in a new coffee shop, eating my favorite food at a nice restaurant, and taking in a new place wholly. I wished I lived in a world where I did not have to desire the tools to