Following in the Footsteps of a Globe-Trotting Black Woman

This semester, as part of our SIUE Reads activities, dozens of us will read and discuss The Catch Me If You Can: One Woman's Journey to Every Country in the World (2022) by Jessica Nabongo. Her book will be the featured selection for one of our weekly gatherings.

Nabongo’s work is a vibrant travel memoir chronicling her quest to become the first Black woman to visit every country in the world. Along the way, she offers powerful reflections on identity, culture, and the transformative potential of global exploration.

Every fall semester since 2008, I’ve taught an African American literary and cultural studies course for first-year Black women at the university. Beyond supporting the students in my class, I’m always looking for ways to create learning and community-building opportunities for Black women navigating the university on their way to graduation.

Too often, when I talk with the sisters on campus, they share that there aren’t many activities designed with them in mind. I ask, “What do you do?” An all too common answer is, “I go to class, then go back to my room and sleep.” I hear it again and again, and each time, it stings.

That’s why I’m especially excited to create regular gatherings this semester as part of SIUE Reads. It feels important, and urgent, to introduce young sisters to Nabongo’s journeys and insights, offering them stories that inspire curiosity, confidence, and boundless movement. 

Related:

• SIUE Reads