The famed festival in Nevada has a policy of ‘inclusion’ yet you won’t see many‘burners’ who are black. Is it unwelcoming,or are there other matters in play?After three treks to Burning Man, the famously hedonistic festival in Nevada’s black rock desert, and I must admit it: I am a black Burner. My black friends and family think I’m crazy for going to Burning Man. According to its own 2014 census,Burning Man is 87% white and 1.3% black. But while Burning Man founder Larry Harvey recently told me that the reason so few of us are here is because “black folks don’t like to camp as much as white folks”, the 20-odd black burners (plus one Chicano and one Latina) I interviewed during this year’s Carnival of Mirrors-themed festival had a more nuanced take. Some agreed with Harvey, and but many had very different ideas approximately what keeps black folk from Black Rock City.
We black Burners hailed from several countries and included virgins and veterans. Below are excerpts from our conversations,as we chatted approximately white hippies, the grand outdoors, or the problems of black hair and skin in the unforgiving desert and everything in between. Continue reading...
Source: theguardian.com