Black Com!x Day in San Diego celebrates 5 years reminding fans ‘the kid in you never dies’
Event creator Keithan Jones has turned his lifelong passion into a successful celebration of Black comic art and a second career
Dozens of artists and hundreds of fans packed the WorldBeat Cultural Center in San Diego on Saturday for the 5th annual Black Com!x Day, drawing enthusiasts from all over Southern California and as far away as New York and Atlanta.
Visitors streamed through the cultural center in Balboa Park throughout the day, talking with illustrators and writers, while thumbing through glossy comic books, posters, t-shirts and stickers.
“This event is tremendous,” said Andre Owens, 57, comic book writer and publisher of Hiro Unlimited. “This means everything to us in Black indie comics in Southern California. I don’t know of an event that’s bigger than this.”
Black Com!x Day has grown considerably since it was first launched at the Malcolm X Library in Valencia Park in 2018. More than 1,200 people and 30 artists were expected to attend this year’s free event.
That’s thanks to Keithan Jones, who after spearheading the event, quit his day job as a graphic designer to follow his childhood dream of being a comic book writer and illustrator.
Today, Jones has self-published a comic series called The Power Knights under his company KID, short for “the kid in you never dies,” he explained.
“I want people to know your dreams are not too big for you,” he said. “If it’s something you keep doing off on the side, it’s probably your true passion.”
The 52-year-old said Black representation in pop culture has come a long way since he was a kid. He hopes his event is helping to continue that push, spreading a positive message to young comic book fans.
“Yes, you can be the hero,” Jones said. “You don’t always have to be the sidekick or the comic relief. You can be the guy or the girl. That’s what we’re trying to achieve here.”
Jones’ mother, Carmine Miner, greeted people at the cultural center’s doors, handing out merchandise bags. She remembered encouraging Jones to organize the first event six years ago.
At first, she said her son was resistant to the idea. But Black Com!x Day, which happened to coincide with the theatrical debut of Black Panther, quickly proved very successful.
“It got too big for the library,” she said with a warm smile. “Now I think he sees this as a part of his future. It kind of snuck up on him.
“All he’s ever done is art,” she added. “I would say, ‘Go to bed Keithan,’ and he’s got a flashlight reading or drawing comics.”
The event, running Saturday and Sunday between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m., also featured discussion panels and notable speakers, including Rodney Barnes, John Jennings and Kevin Grevioux. The high-profile group recently worked together on a new crowdfunded comic called “Shook! A Black Horror Anthology.”
“I haven’t heard of anything of this magnitude in any other cities,” said Attiba Royster, 47, who’s attended the event for several years. “I’ve got connections on the East Coast and LA. I don’t know anything this specific and this big.”
Many of the vendors agreed that Black comic book creators have been able to capitalize in recent years on an independent publishing boom created by the internet.
“I think we’re in the zeitgeist,” said Jason Reeves, 43, who launched 311Art publishing about a decade ago. “I think this is a great era for us to make strides.”
Don Walker, 49, traveled down from Los Angeles for the event. He’s been an illustrator for nearly 30 years, simultaneously inking his own books.
“With crowd funding now, you cannot not get books done,” he said. “You’re just limited by your imagination.”
Walker, author of Dreadlock the Barbarian, said events like Black Com!x Day are important because it can help inspire the next generation of not only comic book fans but creators.
“This crowd wants to see us because they want to do this too,” he said. “A lot of them probably didn’t know they could. Then they see all these creators doing it. Not asking for permission. Taking the bull by the horns and getting it done.”
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