Friday Black

A Black man named Emmanuel has a nightmare about Fela, a beheaded girl. Fela is one of the Finkelstein Five, a group of Black children that was killed by a white man named George Wilson Dunn using a chainsaw. The sensationalized nature of the resulting court case has kept the crime in America’s collective social consciousness long past Dunn’s acquittal. Emmanuel dresses up in solidarity with the Finkelstein Five but is conscious of the image he projects as a Black person—his Blackness—once he leaves the house.

At the bus stop, Emmanuel encounters his grade-school friend, Boogie, who encourages him to take part in a trend called Naming. The trend involves carving the number five into one’s skin and physically assaulting white people while saying the names of the Finkelstein Five. Later, while preparing for a job interview, Emmanuel buys a dress shirt at the mall. Afterward, a staff member demands that he present a receipt for his purchase. On his way back home, the employer calls Emmanuel to cancel his interview, saying that they already have two people of color on their staff.

Later that night, Emmanuel puts on his dress shirt and leaves the house to meet with Boogie. After some consideration, he decides to bring an aluminum baseball bat.