Florida A&M University’s School of Journalism & Graphic Communication (FAMU SJGC) congratulates Professor Arionne Nettles, Garth C. Reeves eminent scholar chair and instructor of digital journalism, on being selected for a Summer 2025 Short-Term Fellowship with the Black Metropolis Research Consortium (BMRC).
Nettles joins a highly accomplished cohort of scholars, artists and historians selected through a rigorous international review process. The BMRC Fellowship supports research and scholarly work that deepens public understanding of Black history and culture in the Chicago area while enhancing the archival record for future generations.
The award includes a stipend and a month-long residency in the Chicago metropolitan area. Fellows will conduct specialized research at BMRC institutions and present their findings during the organization’s annual Fall Speaker Series.
“This fellowship has special meaning to me,” Nettles, a Chicago native, said. “Writing my first book, ‘We Are the Culture: Black Chicago’s Influence on Everything,’ brought up so many questions, and I’m grateful for the opportunity to expand my research in a way I have not yet done.”
Launched in 2009, the BMRC Fellowship has played a key role in shaping new stories and research discoveries that reflect Chicago’s impact on Black history at home and abroad. The program brings together researchers from diverse fields to expand and enrich the historical record.
The fellowship will help Nettles pursue her passion for continuing her exploration of Black cultural storytelling. Her new research, supported by the BMRC Fellowship, lays the foundation for her next written work, “What We Owe the South: Stories Rooted in Black Culture and Grown in the Great Migration.”
In this upcoming book, Nettles will examine how the cultural traditions of the South—brought north by millions of Black Americans during the Great Migration—took root in cities like Chicago, New York, Detroit, and Los Angeles. Her research centers on storytelling through creative writing, radio, television, and film, all while tracing the deep Southern roots of urban Black culture.
By highlighting storytelling from slavery through the 20th century and beyond, Nettles’ work challenges stereotypes and underscores the cultural continuity among Black communities across the United States. She plans to begin her research this summer at multiple BMRC member institutions, following a chronological approach that starts with early narratives and expands into modern media.
For Nettles, the fellowship is both a scholarly opportunity and a personal journey. As the grandchild of Great Migration descendants, she is uniquely positioned to trace the cultural threads between the South and the cities that became cultural beacons for generations of Black Americans.
“Chicago history is one of my greatest joys,” she said, “but I’m also interested in how Black American culture has spread throughout the country. We all share the same heartbeat, and I feel lucky that so much of our history is archived and lives right at home in Chicago.”
