Young Creatives: Emma Dabiri (Writer/Presenter)

Anyone on Twitter looking to have their worldview expanded, challenged and educated should be following Emma Dabiri. Dabiri is an Irish-Nigerian author, academic and broadcaster, whose interdisciplinary work spans African studies, history, sociology and the arts. She is a teaching fellow in the Africa department at SOAS. A well-known broadcaster in the UK and Ireland, Emma is a regular BBC face, and her writing brilliantly blends issues of race, representation, pop culture, history and politics.

This talent for creating and exploring fascinating links between history and modern culture fuels her first book, Don’t Touch My Hair, which is available now. This book is about why Black hair matters and how it can be viewed as a blueprint for decolonisation. Dabiri’s book proves that far from just being hair, Black hairstyling can be understood as an allegory for oppression and ultimately, liberation.

Multi-talented and hard-working to the extreme, Dabiri is currently finishing a PhD in Visual Sociology at Goldsmiths, University of London, and is currently filming series 4 of Britain’s Lost Masterpieces.