Spaces and Places

Abstract

This essay is an autoethnographic account of the ways Black cultural performance, specifically Black social dance, works to produce and maintain Black cultural space in predominantly white spaces. I consider the significance of the “City Boy Wit It” song and dance as an expression of Black identity that marks Blackness in Tampa, FL. By framing my personal experiences through a discussion of Black identity and Black space, I critically examine larger issues of Black performativity and Black cultural spaces.