When I first saw Christine Platt, I immediately recognized her beauty. Flawless brown skin, bright smile and dimples. It didn’t matter if it was a photograph or a video. She was simply beautiful.
But there was “something” more. I don’t even think someone would be able to identify that “something” without already walking in it or yearning for it. It was liberation and freedom. I have been sitting at the latter end with the yearners for more than a year.
I wanted what Christine had. Freedom from things. Freedom from clutter and she seemed to have figured it out.
Parts of our journey to declutter our lives are mirrored. I am a divorcée. She’s a divorcée. She’s a mother and I’m a mother. There was so much to unpack as I drove down the street listening to her book, “The Afrominimalist’s Guide to Living with Less.” Hours later, I would find myself miles away from home as I binge-listened to the book and eventually started having a conversation as if Christine was in the truck with me. The book resonated with me.
Like Christine, I had initially thought minimalism was engulfed in black, beige, white and khaki-colored decor while only having enough material possessions for one person or maybe even two. Based on books I read, television shows I binged watched and documentaries that captured my attention minimalism was bland and lacked personality.
But she was full of color and peace at the same time. The two did not clash. They flowed seamlessly with one another. Because of this, I knew I could do it too and not lose my authentic self. That made the journey easier and I knew I wasn’t alone.
Christine said because of the lack of diversity in the minimalist lifestyle, she created an Instagram account, launched a blog and named herself “The Afrominimalist” to share her journey with people like me who were searching for people of color practicing minimalism.
“There wasn’t any real representation,” Christine said of her initial research into minimalism. “Not even just Black folks but BIPOC-lived experiences in general…I just went online and tried to watch everything and read all these blogs. I mirrored the aesthetic that I saw online, which was this all-white barren sort of environment…It was awful and I hated it.”
In a country where Black people represent a fraction of the nation’s population but are one of the biggest consumers, being a minimalist is no small feat.
According to a 2021 Forbes article, Black people are the second-largest consumer group but we are only 13.4 percent of the U.S. population. Data from 2019 show that Black people accounted for 10 percent of the nation’s total spending on goods and services, totaling an estimated $835 billion and that number is growing, according to McKinsey.com.
Additionally, the U.S. Census Bureau reported in 2019 that Blacks and Hispanics had reached “historic lows in their poverty rates. The poverty rate for Blacks was 18.8%; for Hispanics, it was 15.7%.”
To end a cycle of consumerism, Christine developed a system and asked herself three questions. Do you need it? Do you use it? Do you love it?
Though it may seem simple, Christine says it’s a process including having the space to forgive yourself and being able to look at your relationship with things.
“No one ever talks about attachments and motivations and all of these things,” Christine said. “It’s like, grab your bags. Throw your things away…I really encourage people to dig a little deeper with their attachments to things…We form attachments to things which means our emotions are tied to those things and that’s what makes it hard to let go.”
The book explores the process of letting go, the psychology of ownership, intentional giving, setting limitations for accepting gifts and works to dispel myths of what minimalism really is.
“[Minimalism is] living with intention. It’s being more conscious of what you buy or what you accept in your life…Being very intentional about what you have.”
For more about Christine Platt visit her website here.
Other minimalists to watch
The Black Minimalists™ is a community focused on connecting other minimalists together in a safe space to connect, share ideas and work together collectively.
Eric Owens is a writer who authors Antimaximalist, a blog where he shares tips on self-help, minimalism, and personal development.
Ronald L. Banks is a content creator, speaker, writer, coach and practicing minimalist. Check out his YouTube channel.