Just around the corner from the likes of Chloë and Alexander Wang, a simple, black sign stands in sharp contrast to its Spring Street neighbors, holding space for an unexpected commodity:

“AFRICAN DIASPORA GOODS.”

There wasn’t a matching sign outside of Gallery 999 at the Met Museum, but my involuntary double-take was surely the same.

Especially after I’d barely escaped the museum gift shop with my life. 

Spanning multiple tables outside of the Superfine: Tailoring Black Style exhibit, @denimtears wouldn’t even let me come up for air.

Union Jack and American flag sweaters redesigned in Pan-African green, red, and black.

Plush, leather watermelon wallets in collaboration with Commęs des Garçon and logo baseball hats reminiscent of 1990s Ralph Lauren.

A single t-shirt featuring Andre Leon Talley, Jean-Michel Basquiat, and Andre Walker, makeup-smudged at the collar, hung deep on a rack.

I snatched it like the last loaf of bread before the apocalypse.

And despite being almost that poor… NEXT STOP: 176 Spring Street. 

Between the Met Museum merch table and a Denim Tears ensemble featured in the Superfine exhibit (which remains in the Met’s permanent collection), the thread was clear.

Bespoke, imaginative clothing in luxurious fabrics, designed for Black bodies but accessible to anybody with swag (and the money to pay for it).

But on Spring Street, brand new themes like a Black Poseidon threatening a schooner daring to sail the Middle Passage, or cheeky Cotton Club dancers, come to life on shirts.

The brand’s signature cotton wreath design adorned sweats in every color, a symbol of cotton’s significance to the fashion industry, and a tribute to the enslaved people who made that possible.

Even the Denim Tears name honors the trials and tribulations Black people have overcome while still serving as the standard in fashion and culture.

If money and carry-on capacity were no object, I’d have taken one of everything.

Before I even walked into Denim Tears, I was a fan.

Since I walked out, that’s MS. Princess of Black Power, you ragamuffins.

Put your power on at denimtears.com 🖤

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Most years, my general existence at @wherejoywanders and my storytelling at @theamericanblackstory tend to inadvertently overlap.

But celebrating 100 years of Black History Month felt like a time to be more intentional.

Because as much as it pains this writer to say it, marking another 100 is going to take more than telling stories.

Especially in an era where books are banned, files are redacted, sources are silenced, and the truth is simply rewritten daily.

It’s going to take solidarity.

So I’m gathering all of my skillsets to deliver something new this February.

“Black Bags” combines my travels, my Black Americana, and my brand storytelling to spotlight businesses making Black History mainstream.

Come turn your 28 days into 365 with me and my favorite Black-owned & operated shops each Monday (starting tonight) on IG at @theamericanblackstory, @wherejoywanders, and here at theamericanblackstory.com

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