Demonstrating that Black lives are significant — everywhere

Raised in Switzerland, Jessie Cox struggled with discussing his Black identity. He perceived that Black lives were predominantly overlooked in the small, landlocked country.

Since that time, he has contemplated their significance. In his latest book, “Sounds of Black Switzerland,” Cox, an assistant professor of music currently instructing an advanced class on studio collaboration, explores the complexities of race in an environment where discourse is seldom engaged.

“One of my missions was to initiate a dialogue regarding Black Switzerland. Additionally, I aimed to contribute to the discourse surrounding Blackness and Black studies,” expressed Cox, a composer, drummer, and academic hailing from the western city of Biel.

“Sounds of Black Switzerland,” published in February as Cox began his second semester at Harvard, combines cultural critique with nuanced musical analysis. Certain chapters focus on themes of Blackness and Afrofuturism. Others delve into how anti-Blackness can be rooted in color-blindness and historical erasure. Cox scrutinizes the linked issues within Switzerland’s legal system, immigration policies, and concepts of national identity.

Nevertheless, Cox was careful not to let his examination of anti-Blackness dominate the narrative.

“Instead, I aimed to unveil the creative potential that can be found within the concept of ‘Blackness,’” he noted. “My objective was to illustrate that there are intrinsic possibilities revealed in the conversations surrounding Black existence and identity both in the U.S. and globally.”

Cox mentioned that he drew inspiration from Nigerian Swiss composer Charles Uzor, who created a series that features “Bodycam Exhibit 3: George Floyd in Memoriam,” to which Cox dedicates an entire chapter. The 2020 homicide in Minneapolis was later compared to the instance of Mike Ben Peter, a Black individual who perished in 2018 after being restrained by six police officers in the Swiss city of Lausanne.

Resolute not to confine the Black experience to the violence faced by these communities, Cox also incorporates songs from well-known Swiss artists, such as the Bern-based rapper Nativ.

“Nativ has a track where the chorus claims, ‘Today is a good day for change’ in Swiss German, yet the term ‘change’ is in English, alluding to Barack Obama,” Cox clarified.

Additionally explored is the influential title “Farbe bekennen” (“Showing Our Colors: Afro-German Women Speak Out”) by May Ayim, Katharina Oguntoye, and Dagmar Schultz. The 1986 publication is frequently acknowledged as a catalyst for Afro-German studies and sparking race-related discussions throughout Europe.

“Being able to contemplate our personal and societal experiences from as many dimensions as possible is essential for coming together and understanding one another’s narratives,” remarked Cox, who instructed a fall 2024 course named “Music to Re-imagine the World: From Afrofuturism to Experimental Music Across Planet Earth.”

“There is a fundamental possibility that we can unlock — if we invest in artistic practice as a platform for envisioning new realms — innovative ways of being, shared experiences, and new relationships,” he added.