Black Boy Joy Yoga

Black Boy Joy Yoga was conceptualized in 2023 by graphic designer Khyneesha Edwards as part of her Art in the Loop project. This series returns for summer 2024, made possible in part by the ArtsKC Inspiration Grant.

Black Boy Joy Yoga centers and celebrates Black men and boys as they practice mindfulness and prioritize wellness. There are 3 events in the series (register for each event seperately)

• June 22, 8:30-10 a.m., Operation Breakthrough
• July 20, 9:30-11 a.m., Vine Street Brewing Co.
• August 17, 8:30-10 a.m., Ruby Jean's Juicery

Yoga instructor Joshua Davis will lead each of the beginner-friendly outdoor sessions. Davis will utilize breath work, meditation, grounding poses, and guided commentary about claiming joy to create the ideal environment for community healing.

Though open to all, Black Boy Joy Yoga exists to provide a safe space for Black men and boys with the support of friends, family and allies. This open-community concept further reinforces the idea that we get free together, and allows us to practice that freedom in real time.

Beloved activist and writer bell hooks said, “I am often struck by the dangerous narcissism fostered by spiritual rhetoric that pays so much attention to individual self-improvement and so little to the practice of love within the context of community.”

Black Boy Joy allows our community to rally beside Black men and boys to create a spiritually, mentally, physically and emotionally uplifting experience for all.

Host or Publisher Khyneesha Edwards