You Think I'm Black? Part 2
After my original post, “You think I’m Black”, I received a lot of feedback from some of my friends and colleagues- from some adulation, and from others scorn. Due to their varying opinions I decided that I couldn’t end the discussion on the note that Blacks everywhere should recognize their African roots. Let’s delve deeper into this contentious issue. Why do some Caribbeans, Latinos, and Africans not want to associate themselves with American Blacks?
Growing up in South Florida, depending on your neighborhood, it can be easy to forget that you are in the United States. The farther south you drive on the Florida turnpike the less English is used. Living in one of Florida’s most segregated city’s I learned how to flourish in two worlds- a wealthy, privileged white world and a middle class to poor Black and Hispanic world. I attended a predominately White gifted school from 3rd grade until graduation in South Sarasota County. However, I lived on the North side of Sarasota, which is heavily populated by Black Americans and Latinos. Interestingly, I never saw a difference between my Latino friends and me, other than our native languages. A lot of my Latino friends were darker than me, and spoke with the same colloquialisms peculiar to North Sarasota. For the most part, we all viewed our plight as a shared one. As far as I can remember my Latino friends and I rarely made distinctions about our race around each other. Contrastingly, at my school I was quite the anomaly. In elementary school kids were always asking to touch my hair, by middle school my peers wanted to know if Black people had extra muscles in their legs that made them run faster, by the time I got to high school some people had the audacity to say that the only reason I was admitted to the University of Chicago was because of my race. Don’t get me wrong I enjoyed attending that school. I made some life long friendships and received a superior education. Nonetheless, I never sensed racial tension between my Black and Latino friends growing up. However, there were plenty of times when I sensed a bit of unease from my White peers when they were around minorities.
With my background, I came to the University of Chicago thinking that all Black folks, regardless of their nationality, would feel some sort of shared heritage. I was one naïve young fellow. As soon as I arrived on campus, I began to realize that African students seemed to mostly hang around other Africans, Caribbeans seemed to mostly hang around other Caribbeans, and the same for Black Americans. Understandably, many of us came from different countries with different cultures and traditions. Also, I’m sure that for international students coming to a foreign country can be very intimidating, which would obviously make them seek out familiarity.
What was really shocking to me was when I would talk to foreign Black students and they would tell me that they didn’t like being associated with Black Americans. Trying to look at their comments through rosy colored spectacles, I assumed they meant that they just had great national pride. But many would tell me that there was a stigma attached to Black Americans that they wanted to avoid. The stigma of being lazy, unintelligent, and rude was enough for some foreign Blacks to even avoid fraternizing with American Blacks. My parochial mindset was shattered when I learned all of this. Did they think they were better than me, or did they think the stereotypes made about them were more favorable to the stereotypes about Black Americans? I had no idea and I still don’t, but I’m on a quest to find some answers. Don’t worry the conversation will continue.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KDICF9FFigM&feature=related
i thought i posted a long response to this earlier. But apparently not. Any way, i’ll try to recreate it here.
i had a similar experience at school. What i thought should be one Black community was actually broken down into African students, Caribbean/ West Indian students and those of us who actually came to be called “Regular Black”. As if there is something mundane about Blackness as opposed to Africanness or Caribbeanness. What i blame for this separation is the pigmentocracy of the united states. There is a stigma attached to being Black in the US. And claiming Blackness almost always puts a person at a socioeconomic disadvantage. So i almost don’t blame African or Caribbean students for attempting to distance themselves from the stereotypes.
What i will hasten to warn them is that membership in “Regular Blackness” is imposed rather than chosen. It was imposed on us Black americans and it will be imposed on them as well. It has nothing to do with self-identification and everything to do with melanin. So they can claim Africanness and Caribbeanness but when it all comes down to it, majority rules. And the majority will always lump us all together, regardless of how we classify ourselves.
Next thing i’d like to add is that there’s a bit of a cultural element involved as well. i have friends who have stated that they hold on to their Africanness because of a lack of “Black culture”. As if Blackness lacks a notion of culture. i guess my point is that perhaps for them, Africanness and Caribbeanness is a point of cultural or racial authentication.
i love that you are engaging this idea because it is important and i look forward to the rest of the conversation.
i thought i posted a long response to this earlier. But apparently not. Any way, i’ll try to recreate it here.
i had a similar experience at school. What i thought should be one Black community was actually broken down into African students, Caribbean/ West Indian students and those of us who actually came to be called “Regular Black”. As if there is something mundane about Blackness as opposed to Africanness or Caribbeanness. What i blame for this separation is the pigmentocracy of the united states. There is a stigma attached to being Black in the US. And claiming Blackness almost always puts a person at a socioeconomic disadvantage. So i almost don’t blame African or Caribbean students for attempting to distance themselves from the stereotypes.
What i will hasten to warn them is that membership in “Regular Blackness” is imposed rather than chosen. It was imposed on us Black americans and it will be imposed on them as well. It has nothing to do with self-identification and everything to do with melanin. So they can claim Africanness and Caribbeanness but when it all comes down to it, majority rules. And the majority will always lump us all together, regardless of how we classify ourselves.
Next thing i’d like to add is that there’s a bit of a cultural element involved as well. i have friends who have stated that they hold on to their Africanness because of a lack of “Black culture”. As if Blackness lacks a notion of culture. i guess my point is that perhaps for them, Africanness and Caribbeanness is a point of cultural or racial authentication.
i love that you are engaging this idea because it is important and i look forward to the rest of the conversation.
Thank You Tamara!
Thank You Tamara!
I saw this post a while back and meant to comment…
Edward, why do you think Africans and Caribbeans should immediately align themselves with black people in the US?
The only reason you think so is simply because of the similarity in the color of your skin. You are not surprised when Asians, Latinos, and other ethnic minorities do not align themselves with African Americans. Which means you are obviously falling short of MLK’s dream where people would not be judged on the “color of their skin.”
Tamara, there is no such thing as one “Black culture”. Black people are not one big homogeneous group, and to keep insisting that they are would always keep the racial divide alive. “Regular blackness” may be imposed by external forces, but a tacit acceptance of “regular blackness” by black people breeds narrow mindedness. It gives others the carte blanche to assume all black people are the same– which is obviously not the case.
I saw this post a while back and meant to comment…
Edward, why do you think Africans and Caribbeans should immediately align themselves with black people in the US?
The only reason you think so is simply because of the similarity in the color of your skin. You are not surprised when Asians, Latinos, and other ethnic minorities do not align themselves with African Americans. Which means you are obviously falling short of MLK’s dream where people would not be judged on the “color of their skin.”
Tamara, there is no such thing as one “Black culture”. Black people are not one big homogeneous group, and to keep insisting that they are would always keep the racial divide alive. “Regular blackness” may be imposed by external forces, but a tacit acceptance of “regular blackness” by black people breeds narrow mindedness. It gives others the carte blanche to assume all black people are the same– which is obviously not the case.