Meet Courtney Bowden | Editor-in-Chief & Founder of BlackExpatStories.com

We had the good fortune of connecting with Courtney Bowden and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Courtney, how does your business help the community?
Storytelling is a liberatory tool and I believe that media is the most powerful way to tell a story.

I also believe Black people at the vanguard of change deserve to be seen and be heard on all mediums.

My company exists to capture and share humanizing narratives centering Black people and amplify them in the media by leveraging the power of storytelling.

More than ever, Black people are choosing to untether themselves from the oppression, discrimination and exclusion we often face in the United States. Many of us have decided to take a more radical route toward liberation and free ourselves from the incessant fight by leaving to find belonging outside of the only land we’ve ever known.

Black Expat Stories, the digital publication I founded, was born out of my own expat journey as well as my desire to share the stories of other Black expats living all around the world – one unique and riveting story at a time.

Simply put: my goal is to document the next Great Migration.

I believe this phenomenon is not just a moment; it’s a movement with nuanced narratives that should be captured and shared with humanity, sincerity and authenticity by those who have an invested interest in our uplift and empowerment.

Black Expat Stories is dedicated to the courages souls who have decided to take giant leaps of faith and – despite all the challenges, obstacles and sacrifices – they are finding the beauty in their Blaxit.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I can’t pinpoint exactly when I started writing because it’s always been something I’ve just done without second thought.

What I do know is I was born to be a writer because writing feels like breathing, and the more I do it, the more I *want* to do it.

Writing is how I witness the world. It’s how I orient myself within it and it’s how I alchemize whatever emotions I’m feeling into art.

It’s always been the one thing that I could come back to again and again without being bored or tired of it.

I’m proud of the fact that I’ve cultivated a practice and a mastery that allows me to express myself in new, exciting ways through words.

I guess I first realized that I had talent as a writer after I won full scholarships for both college and graduate school, and I chose to earn my degrees in Communications, English Literature and Media Studies.

As a student, I became conscious of two things:

1). Media is the most powerful way to tell a story. So if stories about a particular people are repeated through enough influential channels, everyone believes them and then acts accordingly.

2). Mainstream media doesn’t portray Black people in all the complex, nuanced ways we deserve. This is because there aren’t enough of us as decision makers to ensure our stories are told with humanity, integrity and creativity.

My graduate studies at Penn State helped me clarify my professional mission: to become a decision maker who makes positive impact in the media space by helping to change the way Black people are portrayed.

After graduating, I entered the world of online marketing as a consultant and communications strategist. I spent nearly a decade helping Black-owned businesses shape their brands’ narratives.

Ultimately, though, COVID-19 and the suicide of a close friend made me face the fact that I wasn’t truly doing the kind of work that fed my soul.

I realized that I wasn’t being creatively fulfilled, so I took a step back from consulting to focus on healing and self-discovery. In the process, my husband and I decided to move from the Atlanta area to Mexico.

Becoming an expat opened up a new world of creativity and excitement for me because I started meeting people from all over the world.

I found a special connection with other Black expats who all had their own reasons for making the move abroad, and I couldn’t get enough of listening to their stories.

The creative writer in me was awakened again and I began asking the folks I connected with if they’ would allow me to capture their stories and share them with the world. Everyone I asked agreed.

So, I decided to create a digital publication to document the journeys of Black Expats living all over the world, one unique story at a time.

That publication is BlackExpatStories.com, and our intention is simple: to capture the next Great Migration by showcasing the beauty in the Blaxit.

It’s my love letter to all the ones who have made the courageous choice to leave the only land they’ve ever known in search of belonging and acceptance.

This publication is showing the world that Black people are finding freedom and community all over the world.

Finally, it’s my hope that subscribers will be moved by some of the most riveting and relatable stories about international living on the internet.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Atlanta is one of my favorite cities in the world, and even though I spent nearly a decade living there I often find so many amazing places to discover.

I’d recommend they stay at one of my favorite hotels in the heart of downtown, the Marriott Marquis.

I’m a big foodie, so many of my recommendations center around the variety of culinary experiences the city has to offer.

We definitely would have to go to eat at STK, Juicy Crab, Tassili’s Raw Reality, and the Bando.

I’m a nature lover, so I’d take them to walk along the Greenway or take a stroll through Piedmont Park.

I’m also a sucker for great live music and performance and Apache always has talented performers.

Atlanta has a rich history and I’m a history buff, so we’d have to pay a visit to the museum at the National Center for Civil and Human Rights as well.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I wouldn’t be the woman I am today without the unconditional love and support of my family: my husband (Larry), my mother (Loretta), my brother (Jonathan), my late father (Charles), as well as the encouragement from a host of others who I am grateful to call friends.

Website: https://www.blackexpatstories.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thecourtneybowden/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thecourtneybowden/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BlackExpatStories

Image Credits
Angel wings images have been captured by Francesca Reina