From The Green Book to Travel Noire: The Importance of Black Travel

When I was a kid I would dream of traveling the world. I would imagine all the places I would go and all the different types of people that I would meet on the journey. It started with a family road trip to Six Flags in Atlanta, Georgia when I was around 8 years old with my parents, two brothers, and three cousins all piled into a rented three-row van. It continued during a Black College Tour that I took during my sophomore year of high school down the eastern part of the United States. We took off with two chartered buses full of high school kids from Withrow High School in Cincinnati Ohio, headed to Howard University in Washington D.C., and then visited Historically Black Colleges throughout North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida. We ended the journey at Florida A&M University in Tallahassee Florida and then drove back home to the Midwest. What surprised me so much was how we would be driving through these scenic routes, reminiscent of a scene from Selma or the Great Debaters, a scene very uninviting and unfamiliar for the black Ohio teenagers on the bus, and then out of nowhere appears this black oasis of culture and hospitality. The biggest smiles and the warmest welcomes would follow, and we felt safe and at home.?

As I started my career in finance I would always jump at the ability to travel for work. From a conference in Chicago to a client meeting in Denver, I would fly in, uber to my new home for a few days, and preferably stay at an Airbnb. I could never quite understand what made my Mom so on edge when I told her about my arrangements. She would always rattle off all the gruesome and disturbing things she has ever heard or read about my destination. “You know they kidnapped a young black girl in Dallas a few years ago, right?” or? “Milwaukee? You know that's where Dahmer killed all those black men, where are you staying?” I hated it. I thought that years of watching the news had turned her into an over worrying Mom. I now know that those fears were ingrained in her long before she became a mother. It took me until now, in my mid 30’s, to fully understand the complex legacy of black travel and how that experience shapes the international travel landscape today.?

My Mom grew up in the era of The Green Book, a guide for black travelers in the United States during the Jim Crow era. It was published annually from 1936 to 1967 by Victor Hugo Green, a black postal worker from Harlem, New York. The guidebook was created to help black travelers find safe and welcoming places to stay, eat, and visit during a time when racial segregation was legal and widespread. This was a time when cars were becoming mass produced and a middle-class family could afford to have their own vehicle. It also avoided the humiliation and discrimination faced when using public transit like buses or trains. Also, following the Great Migration most black families had relatives in the South and would visit from time to time. Whether it was a trip to Alabama to visit family or a vacation to the beaches of Martha's Vineyard, The Green Book was vital. It didn’t just ensure that you had a pleasant experience when looking for food in Tennessee, but in a time when racial violence was commonplace, it helped black travelers avoid settling in sundown towns when they might not have made it to sunrise. It is no exaggeration to say that The Green Book saved a lot of lives. It was that focus on safety and caution that my Mom thought about every time I stepped on a plane, got in a stranger's car, and stayed in a stranger's home. Now I understand.

Today, we are experiencing a modern Black Travel Renesiance, and I thank God that I am alive to experience it. When we set goals with our clients, eight out of ten of them have international travel high on their list of aims for the upcoming year. Destinations like Thailand, Portugal, Ghana, and Costa Rica roll off their tongues almost on a weekly basis. In some cases, our clients have the goal to set up remote working conditions and live abroad permanently. In this modern era of black travel, our tools have evolved to be digital, sharable, and global in scope, and none of those encompass this more than the website Travel Noire.?

Travel Noire, owned by Blavity, is a digital travel platform that focuses on the experiences of black travelers. The website offers a range of resources and information for black travelers, including travel guides, destination recommendations, and cultural insights. Like The Green Book, it also aggregates the stories of black travelers to provide safe and secure recommendations as black folks travel the world. From which cities in Italy are most accepting of black folks to which regions of South Africa still harbor apartheid ideologies, sites like Travel Noire help keep black international travelers safe and sane. In some parts of the world, we are still in situations where making the wrong accommodations won’t just ruin your trip, it could ruin your life. The travel guides made for the general public still don’t take into account the role that racism plays in the world. I have read many accounts of black travelers being denied service or being followed closely in places deemed fun and inviting by mainstream travel experts. It can also be difficult to ask a white friend or colleague who is going on and on about their life-changing trip to Ireland, “Is Ireland inviting to black people?”. However, it is something that you want to know before you book your trip.?

To me, travel is the physical embodiment of freedom. There is nothing more freeing than the ability to get up and go somewhere just because you want to. I often reflect on the fact that most of my ancestors couldn’t safely travel to the other side of town, let alone the other side of the world. I truly cherish that privilege. These days as I pack for trips abroad, I am mindful that I am not only packing a suitcase but carrying with me a legacy. A legacy of anxiety and faith that on the other side of this drive or flight, I will find a safe place to sleep, eat, and explore the world around me.?