'AFRORI: Brighton's Black Bookshop' (with Carolynn Bain & Victor Alexander)

About this episode

The episode features a discussion with Carolynn Bain about Afrori, Brighton's Black bookshop, and its community impact.

Dropcall #10 Victor and I sit down with Carolynn Bain! Carolynn is the founder of Brighton's 'Afrori', The UK's only Black owned bookshop specialising in books by Black authors. Afrori recently launched a book drive to sell 1000 books to help keep its doors open. They managed to sell 1500 and are now launching a patreon to help make sure they're here for the long haul! We chat about The History of Afrori Building a 'village' The importance of a third space for Brighton's Black community (and their allies) Asking for help vs Pride Supporting independent businesses Changing our habits Shout out to 'Men of Melanin Brighton' Carolynn: "As young men in your 20s" BUY A BOOK JOIN THE PATREONS Recommendations: Carolynn's : 'Kin' (2026) by Tayari Jones Victor’s : 'Black England: The Forgotten Georgian History' (2022) by Gretchen Gerzina Khaliden’s : 'The Day God Saw Me As Black' (2024) by D. Danyelle Thomas ___________ Join Afrori's patreon! https://www.patreon.com/AfroriBooks You can also find them on instagram and threads: https://www.threads.com/@afroribooks https://www.instagram.com/afroribooks/ To buy a book + Check for upcoming events + find out how to support on their website…

People in this episode

Host: Dr. Khaliden Nas

Guests: Carolynn Bain, Victor Alexander

Topics covered

• Black literature
• Community support
• Independent bookstores
• Cultural history
• Social spaces

Keywords

• Afrori
• Black authors
• book drive
• community support
• independent bookstores

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Afrori, Men of Melanin Brighton

Books & works: Kin, Black England: The Forgotten Georgian History, The Day God Saw Me As Black

More episodes of Referential

• Anne Rice’s Interview with the Vampire (S1 and 2 with Derrick Austin!) [RELISTEN] · June 8, 2026 · 1h 9m
• 'This Podcast May Contain K-Pop [Demon Hunters]' (with Victor Alexander & Ash Alleyne) · April 14, 2026 · 49 min
• Mix #3: Brandy's Full Moon (2002) (With Dr. Jonathan Paul Higgins) · March 19, 2026 · 1h 35m
• 'The Screamisode' (With Victor Alexander)* · March 4, 2026 · 1h 3m
• 'Wuthering's Next Top Model' (With Victor Alexander) · February 18, 2026 · 54 min
• Trans Pride Brighton (with Dr. Sam Hall, Phat Problem & Sarah Savage) (Pt. 2) · February 3, 2026 · 1h 47m