Multicultural Collaborative Launches Digital Platforms To Tell Latino And Black Origin Stories

Two new multicultural digital media and documentary platforms – Nuestro Stories and Our Black Origins (OBO) – aim to tell Latino and Black stories from a different perspective: bringing the past back to life by highlighting “origin stories” and sharing how they’ve shaped today’s social culture.

“We’re talking about cultural traditions, people, fads, foods, and more to pick from more than 30 countries. Thirty countries represent a lot of cool content,” says Angela Sustaita-Ruiz, CEO of Brilla Media, co-founder and partner of Our Black Origins.

The multicultural, multi-platform collaborative, created by the founders of two content marketing companies, Brilla Media and Joy Collective, won’t focus on breaking news or partisan politics. Instead, the founders say they will emphasize cultural history and notable achievements by people of color, many of which are unknown to the general public.

“This new platform is intended to inspire, motivate and uplift the Black and Latino/Hispanic communities to know and celebrate their cultural origins,” says Kelli Richardson Lawson, CEO of Joy Collective. “It’s incredibly important to preserve these stories for generations to come so they can understand the influence of the Black culture.”

Some examples from Nuestro Stories: a story that traces the roots of punk music to Peru, a “bite size” documentary about the origins of telenovelas or an expanded listicle about five Afro-Latino leaders who changed U.S. History. And from OBO: a story about fine Black art and the mini documentary Origins and Love of Black Music.

Both platforms will feature written stories, cultural “Did You Knows,” quizzes, and photo essays, among other things, across the branded websites and social media channels on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Snapchat.

“There really is power in the cross-cultural unity you see here and we know that and are very hopeful that our joint venture in Our Black Origins will be an example for Black and Brown partnerships,” states Sustaita-Ruiz. “Together we’ll be able to pool resources, vast insights, talents, alliances and relationships that will benefit all of us – and ultimately our community.”