Fandom for Us, by Us: The Pleasures and Practices of Black Audiences

Finalist, 2026 PROSE Award in Media and Cultural Studies, given by the Association of American Publishers

The convergence of the politics of representation and Black fan cultures

Boldly going where few fandom scholars have gone before, Fandom for Us, by Us breaks from our focus on white fandom to center Black fandoms. Alfred L. Martin, Jr., engages these fandoms through what he calls the “four C’s”: class, clout, canon, and comfort.

Class is a key component of how Black fandom is contingent on...