The United States of America is one of the most ethnic-diverse countries in the World. With a population of more than 300 million people, Americans assume different cultures, ethnicities, races, and religions. Historically, the Red Indians are known to be the earliest inhabitants of America. However, today they do not constitute the largest population of Americans. For this reason, it is correct to say that the greatest percentage of Americans is made of immigrants. However, the time that different people migrated to America and the conditions that surrounded their migration forms the basis of the ethnic division that has been pronounced in America and other parts of the world.
History of Black Americans and Immigration
Black Americans are also referred to as African-Americans. Today, they form the largest percentage of the minority groups in the US. As the name ‘Africa’ suggests, they originated from Africa, which is believed to be the cradle of humankind. Just like other ethnic groups, Black Americans migrated to the US through different ways and for various reasons while others moved to the US from the Caribbean Islands. For this reason, it is not exclusive to state that they came entirely from Africa (Painter, 2006). The earliest Blacks to migrate into the US were brought in as slaves by merchants for the sole purpose of providing labor.
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Slave Trade
Slavery is one of the oldest forms of abuse of human rights. In most demographic set-ups, the minorities are those who are considered weak. In the contemporary society, slavery is still believed to continue, especially in Asia and parts of Africa such as Libya. It is critical to point out that slave trade was mainly a bidding enterprise where future masters would come and contend to purchase people. At a time when some human lives did not matter, individuals were traded like commodities. As indicated, the weak or minorities in the societies were the ones who were enslaved. The practice dates back to as early as the 16 th century when the Portuguese are believed to have completed the first successful voyage while conducting slave trade. The fact that air transport did not exist at that time meant that the sea facilitated the trade and transportation of slaves (Jordan, 2013).
Technology was still in infancy during the 16 th Century meaning there was half a chance that the long-journey voyage would be successful or end disastrously. Most of the slave trade activities that brought the first Black Americans into the US took place between 1554 and 1866. These events were characterized by stiff competition for slaves between European and American Merchants. In Africa, Most slaves were from West and North Africa. The main reason why most slaves came from these parts of Africa was the strategic geographic setting of these areas. As indicated, technology was not as advanced as it is now. Therefore, it was easier, more convenient, and less risky for the merchants to sail to West and North Africa as compared to other parts of Africa.
Most of the slaves who were brought to America came from Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Senegal, Ghana, Benin, and parts of Central Africa. They were captured during the African wars and other raids conducted by merchants and other slave traders. The strongest and healthy Africans made the best slaves. The reason was that they were being taken for manual labor, and were thus seen as the best ‘candidates.’ The journey from West Africa to the US was made through the Atlantic Ocean, hence the name ‘The Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade.’ Many of them died during the voyages, and those who fell ill were disposed of in the sea (Bennett, 2008). On arrival to the US, they were auctioned and then transported to the respective homes of their masters where they worked in cotton, tobacco, rice, corn, and wheat fields.
Impact of Slavery on Black Americans
Slave trade had a lot of influence on the Black culture. First, it was a form of mistreatment and abuse since the slaves who were mainly Black Americans, worked effortlessly with meager pay or even without pay. They did not have any option other than to conform since no laws were implemented to protect them. To this end, their rights and freedoms were dependent on what their masters proclaimed. In sociology, equity is usually an important element of any society. When a particular group of people feels that they are oppressed, or fairness does not apply to them, they typically resort to being rebellious or find other avenues that they can utilize to air their grievances and make their voices heard. To this extent, one of the impacts of slave trade and slavery on Black Americans was instilling the element of rebellion, something that is witnessed even in modern America (Finkelman, 2006).
Black Americans did not have the right to vote or participate in political contests. In addition, Blacks did not have any rights to own land or any property of value for that matter. In fact, this was done deliberately to suppress them and crack down any elements of rebellion and social entitlement that they had. The hard labor, the absence of rights and freedoms, and the entire phenomenon of being immigrants culminated in a unique culture that was slowly adopted by the Black Americans. They learned to speak English gradually, but the grasp of their language was not the same as that of their masters since it had some accent sway as well as crooked pronunciation. Overall, the impact of the slave trade was the basis of the cultural and behavioral affiliation that Black Americans have had over the years.
Ethnocentrism, the Dillingham Flaw, and Racism
During the initial immigration of Africans into America, they came purely as slaves. This meant that they were property without entitlement. However, they became rebellious to fight for their rights, freedoms, and equality. They wanted equity and the institution of their rights and liberties. Subsequently, during the 19 th Century, some states started abolishing slavery. Abraham Lincoln, a civil rights activist, also instituted a ban on slavery (Shavit, 2001). However, the states that banned slavery were reluctant to have laws where blacks were treated equally with the whites. For instance, blacks were not allowed to vote and engage in specific activities. Moreover, some restaurants did not let blacks to dine with Whites. Therefore, despite being free, equity was far from achieved. This formed the basis of ethnocentrism and racism, which is a fundamental phenomenon in some societies today.
Ethnocentrism
Ethnocentrism, which is the multi-dimensional assessment of other people’s cultures from a comparative perspective with one’s culture, also began its manifestation in America during the slavery period. The native Whites could not envision the African culture being superior to theirs, and this was the reason why some Whites could not share social services and amenities with Blacks. For instance, some restaurants and buses were exclusively meant for whites. However, over the years, ethnocentrism has faded off in America, and especially among the Whites and Blacks. This is because most of the Black Americans have adopted the White culture, which seems unanimous across the US. Cases of ethnocentrism in the US today occur when immigrants, tourists, and visitors from diverse cultures come into the US.
The Dillingham Flaw
Closely related to Ethnocentrism is the Dillingham Flaw which is a logic based on false information that natives of a particular area create about immigrants. Today, films make fun of how White people fear the Blacks. For instance, when blacks move into a predominantly White neighborhood, some of the White people start feeling insecure. If by any chance there is a robbery or any other crime that is committed in that neighborhood, the fingers will be pointed at the Blacks (Shavit, 2001). The Dillingham Flaw is prevalent in modern America. It is a natural societal wave that often catches certain demographics. Its prevalence in America and even other parts of the world is hugely attributed to ignorance, misinformation, insensitivity, and prejudice. Sadly, Black Americans are the greatest victims of the Dillingham Flaw in America and other parts of the World.
Racism
Racism is any form of bias, judgment or prejudice that is instituted on an individual due to their skin color. It began during the slave trade and the entire period when slavery was prevalent in the US. The term ‘ Negro ,’ which is an insensitive and inappropriate word, has an ethnic affiliation. Racism is one of the most popular and longest forms of racial discrimination that has existed in the US demography. From prejudice to opportunity and discrimination, skin pigmentation has been used by some people as a criterion in many fields. Sadly, Black Americans have been the greatest victims of racism in America. Even though there have been cases of racism against other minorities like Mexicans and Asians, it has been more pronounced against Blacks.
From civil rights activists like Martin Luther King to the Rodney King beating, race has always been central in the American demography, particularly regarding Black Americans. It is true that racism still exists in the contemporary society. However, modern racism is in a lower tune as compared to racism in the 17 th , 18 th , and 19 th Centuries. According to Parrillo, the probability of ethnic-related disagreements to arise in a society with diverse ethnicities and cultures is high (Parrillo, 2014). Black Americans have complained for decades about police brutality and other forms of discrimination based on racial profiling. In the political scene as well, Blacks are underrepresented. In fact, a significant number of the White majority believe that immigrants, especially Blacks, are not good enough to hold influential positions in the society
Black Lives Matter is a popular movement that aims at fostering black lives and sensitizing the community about police brutality that is often seen to target Black Americans. Just like the time of slavery, the unequal treatment that Blacks always receive sparks rebellion and activism. The contention between Black Americans and the Whites who do not entirely believe in equality has been observed in America since time immemorial. Most recently, the Charlottesville incident between White supremacists and Activists who were raising concerns about racism is a clear indication of the racial contention in the US. It is also in the same connection that the ‘All Lives Matter’ movement was formed. These incidences show that despite the American society being diverse, the journey towards social equity and equivocal consideration of all people’s opinions and ideas is still far from being achieved.
Rebellion and Segregation
The largest population of convicts and incarcerated individuals today is composed of Black Americans. In fact, some of the roughest and most dangerous neighborhoods in the US are inhabited by Black immigrants. Rebellion, as indicated during the slavery period, was one of the aspects that arose due to the hardships and mistreatment blacks received from their White masters. This character is still predominant among many Black Americans. Indeed, there is a mentality that for a Black person to manage and secure a comfortable life like most Whites, they have to go against many odds. This is because of the limited opportunities that are availed to them coupled with the institutional bias that has been entrenched in many organizations that favors the Whites and devalues Blacks (Jordan, 2013).
Over the years, therefore, there has been a lot of segregation of Black Americans. In fact, some have observed that the police are more reluctant in responding to 911 calls from predominantly black neighborhoods as compared to White neighborhoods. Also, black neighborhoods are less developed as compared to White ones. In terms of access to education and the literacy levels, blacks feature poorly with the average number of graduates and people with education significantly lower (Painter, 2006). Black Americans have also been associated with criminal activities and the involvement in drug dealings. These elements are a gradual effect of the lifestyle that Black Americans have lived over the years. One of the social theories, conflict theory, has been hugely evidenced by Black Americans whereby those with power and resources (Whites) utilize it to dominate and exploit the poor in this case Blacks.
Black American Culture, Religion, and Language
Black Americans’ culture is similar to that of an ordinary White American due to the fact that Blacks have adopted the lifestyle that is popular in America. By doing this, the African culture they had when they arrived in America has faded.
A considerable number of Black Americans are Muslims. The reason is hugely attributed to slavery. Indeed, during the slavery era, Whites used to be Christians. However, from the cruelty that black people received from their masters, they felt that Christianity was not the right religion since it allowed people to mistreat others. With that notion, many Blacks adopted Islam as opposed to Christianity (Parrillo, 2014).
The articulation, pronunciation, vocabulary, and the syntax of an ordinary Black American is not the same as that of a White. This is also ascribed to their immigration into America where they learned English, but it was not as perfect as that of the Whites. For instance, during slavery, blacks referred to their maters as ‘ Massa’ because they could not pronounce ‘Master’ correctly. Therefore, they developed a lingual structure that is uniquely identified with them. Vulgar is also common in the language of Black Americans largely due to the aggression, hardships, and pain that most of them went through regarding equality, mistreatment, and even the slavery to some extent.
Social Induction and Integration of Blacks into Corporate America
Today, Blacks have a greater role in cooperate America as compared to earlier centuries. Most notably is former President, Barrack Obama, who defied all odds and beat his White competitors to become the President of America for two terms. In business, science, music, art, and sports, Black Americans have excelled exceptionally. Social theories like symbolic interaction have also been adopted by Black Americans and led to inter-racial marriages, which is something that seemed to be a taboo in past centuries. Black people have also increased their literacy rates as more parents take their children to school. Despite the journey being long, the strides that have been made to advance equity, equality, and social justice over the years are impeccable. Perhaps the most seminal moment in recent times that edifies the struggle Blacks have undergone over the years is the celebration of the historical and record-setting film, ‘Black Panther’ which is a symbol of the journey of Blacks in America.
References
Bennett, L. (2008). Before the Mayflower : A History of Black America. Paw Prints.
Finkelman, P. (2006). Encyclopedia of African American History, 1619-1895 : From the Colonial Period to the Age of Frederick Douglass Three-volume Set. Oxford University Press.
Jordan, J. H. (2013). Black Americans 17th Century to 21st Century . Trafford Publishing.
Painter, N. I. (2006). Creating Black Americans : African-American History and Its Meanings, 1619 to the Present. Oxford University Press.
Parrillo, V. N. (2014). Strangers to These Shores . Pearson Education Publishers.
Shavit, J. (2001). History in Black: African-Americans in Search of an Ancient Past. Psychology Press.
