A Black Inflammatory Response to Anti‐Blackness

Racism, heteronormativity, classism, and all systems of oppression produce an inflammatory response across varied scales, from bodily inflammation such as stress and disease to social chaos and structural violence. This response paper to Dána Ain‐Davis's notion of “Black anti‐bodies” considers how Black queer bodies are targeted and impacted by the inflammatory nature of violence in reproductive healthcare. I reflect upon how Black anti‐bodies may also be a vehicle to reimagine Black bodies’ own defensive inflammatory response to violence and social harm.