The Cookout Online

Hello and welcome to the newest iteration of The Cookout Online, a social media community exclusively for members of the African Diaspora.

Hello and welcome to the newest iteration of The Cookout Online, a social media community exclusively for members of the African Diaspora.

Here are some important things to know about us:

Who we are:

We are a team of just THREE working class Black women who all met on the book of faces (known in Cookout lingo as the ghetto blue app). As vocal, LBGT+ Black women, we often run afoul of Facebook’s speech policing algorithms and are often subject to racist, sexist, and homophobic abuse that apparently is often not against community standards.

Frustrated, we set out in 2019 to create a better way for people like us to engage on social media and feel SAFE. Thus, the cookout was born.

How we’re different:

• We are exclusively for Black people. We feel that it is important for us to have space that is JUST for us. To this point- The Cookout is gated, meaning that not everyone can get in.
• We value authenticity as a core principle of the app. Here, everyone can get verified. We feel it’s important to know who on the app is a real person and who isn’t. This creates more honest conversation and genuine connection.
• We protect marginalized classes, not oppressive classes. Many Black, MaGE, and LBGT+ people on the internet which seem to echo that speaking out is considered hate speech but homo/transphobia, sexism, and racism is not. That is not the case on The Cookout. We reject the protection of oppressor classes and uplift the voices of the marginalized here.
• Most platforms are free because they are paid via ads. Because they’re paid via ads, quantity of members is prioritized over quality. Here, we value QUALITY.

How it works:

The Cookout is a fairly simple community. Here’s how it works:

• Register
  • When you register you will automatically be granted access to just ONE Cookout group: The Uninitiated. This is Cookout purgatory. In this group, you can interact, post, comment, like etc, but you can not yet add friends or explore the rest of the community. This is to protect the community from you until you’re vetted.
• Complete your profile:
  • Complete your profile by filling in all details in your account settings.
  • There are two separate sections to complete, you can access them like this:
    • Settings Icon -> Profile info. You MUST enter a social media link here for the community admods to review you, ensure you’re a real person. Make sure you save your changes.
    • Settings Icon -> Account info. all of these questions must be completed before you can be updated from The Uninitiated to being a full member of the app who is able to add friends, have your own community group and other typical social features.
• Invite your BLACK friends:
  • The Cookout grows STRICTLY by word of mouth. Invite your friends to The Cookout after 30 days of membership. Members who are invited by vetted Cookout members skip the Uninitiated phase of membership and become full members themselves. This is because The Cookout trusts that after you have gone through this process, you will do your part to keep the community safe. Be careful though and use discernment. If you invite someone who becomes a community nuisance, it reflects on your own membership.
• Engage:
  • Engage with the community. Start groups, add friends, post and comment. We will promote active members who are most inline with our values to moderator so they can play an even bigger role in maintaining The Cookout.

How are these changes different from the last iteration?

This version of The Cookout was designed by Kiki herself and currently only has a web version (the mobile app is still being built.

Our last developer contract expires Nov. 2021 and we decided not to renew that contract, as we were not satisfied with the features that were available. In addition, several features we were promised would be developed over time never came to fruition. While we are continuing to build our ultimate vision, we need to migrate our community somewhere that better suited their needs. This is that starting point.

Some of the things available on this version that were not available on the last version are:

1. Light AND Dark modes. You asked for this and we listened!

2. The ability to build your own groups! This was a big one. Having to make and manage every group in the last app was a massive labor intensive thing for our small team.

3. Reactions! Whoo fun right? Right now we have standard reactions but will be upgrading them soon to ones that are specific to black culture. Oh, and we have a dislike reaction too. ^_^.

4. Forums! In addition to groups, we have forums where members can engage.

Some things that you can look forward to in the coming months:

1. Live steaming including Twitch integration.
2. Events!
3. Relaunch of the mobile app on both platforms.
4. Courses! Sharing knowledge is one of the major goals of this platform.
5. In app marketplace for Black business to be patronized by Cookout members.

Some things you can look forward to in the coming years:

1. In person events whenever the pandemic is over.
2. Brick and mortar co-working spaces and business incubators.

This is only the beginning!

Does this sound good to you? Great, Apply now!