Aida Mariam Davis, an Oakland native and mother of three, is on a mission to reconnect Black Americans with their African roots through her groundbreaking debut book, Kindred Creation: Parables and Paradigms for Freedom.
Released on Dec. 3 by North Atlantic Books, the work stitches together Davis’s Ethiopian-American heritage, academic insights, and lived experiences into a vivid tapestry celebrating the resilience and beauty of Black culture.
The book’s journey to publication was anything but smooth. Initially commissioned by a university press in 2020 during the global uprising following George Floyd’s death, the project was eventually dropped when Davis was asked to “cater to a wider audience.” For Davis, this setback became a catalyst.
“There’s a Yoruba proverb: ‘The ram only takes a step back when it’s building momentum,’” she explains in an interview with People.
With the support of her aunt, legendary activist and scholar Angela Davis, who wrote the book’s foreword, Davis found a new publishing home.
Angela’s encouragement was pivotal.
“She taught me the value of precision in language,” Davis says, noting that her aunt’s emphasis on kinship perfectly aligns with the book’s themes.
Kindred Creation weaves poetry, philosophy, and personal narrative to urge Black Americans to reclaim strength through their cultural and ancestral histories.
Davis describes the work as “a quilt of prophecy where pain is transformed into power,” noting its role as both a comfort and a call to action.
“This was created to celebrate our heritage, bring warmth, and serve as a cover and comforter for displaced Africans,” she says.
Davis’s dedication to uplifting Black communities extends beyond her writing. As the founder of Decolonize Design, she works to dismantle inequities in organizational spaces.
Her dual role as a mother and advocate fuels her drive.
“Motherhood has given me superpowers,” she shares. “But anyone who has an idea to be birthed is a mother of sorts. You want to make the world better so it’s worthy of your children.”
With Kindred Creation, Aida Mariam Davis delivers a bold, unapologetic affirmation of Black identity.
