How and why did an attorney become one of America’s leading experts on travel and a pioneer in Black travel? That was my first question when I read about Elaine Lee in a Black History Month feature I came across online. My Talking Travel interview with Lee answers those questions and provides much more information about the founder of Ugogurl Productions.

Realizing there were a lot of travel books but none specifically aimed at Black women, Lee found her true calling. In 1997 she published Go Girl: The Black Women’s Book of Travel and Adventure. The first travel book by and for Black women, it is a collection of 52 travel stories from amazing writers including Maya Angelou and Gwendolyn Brooks.

Seeing how much the world has changed since Go Girl, Lee recently published Go Girl 2. This book features 54 tales of Black women traveling and dealing with issues like racism, solo travel and fear.

Together, these books serve as a bit of a history lesson, seeing how the tones and views have changed over almost 30 years. Also, unfortunately, Go Girl 2 also shows how some things haven’t changed, but thanks to leaders like Lee, things are changing and Black women are better equipped to handle all.

Clearly the books are aimed at Black women, but there are plenty of things to be learned by all. From a strictly travel standpoint, there are a lot of fascinating stories of areas. With the lineups of quality writers, the stories are simply beautiful. Perhaps more importantly, through reading their tales, all others can gain a greater understanding of what Black women experience traveling. The more we understand each other, the more we all benefit.

Despite a somewhat late start in world travel, Lee has visited more than 70 countries and completed two solo trips around the world. She uses her platform to enlighten, encourage and empower travelers.

In our interview, Lee discussed what sparked her love of travel and how she hopes to do the same for others. She is especially proud of her impact on Black women travelers, but she also hopes it extends to others. She also talked about what writing her books and talking to those women meant to her. Before we ended, Lee spoke of her future plans, which of course, involves helping others.

Talking Travel is an interview series on Global Traveler. Subscribe to the GT YouTube channel to be notified of all future interviews and other travel content.

— John Wroblewski, online writer