African American Identity

There are numerous ways to identify would I am. I am a african american female that is country and loves the outdoors mainly like mud riding . My cultural identity is important it’s part of me . it’s who I am . inside and out . My religion is very important to my family, when I become an adult my religion will pass on to my children. Growing up it made me realize that my cultural is like a oreo hard on the outside and and the inside is thing sweet person filled with joy and happiness .

Marcus Garvey, was born in Jamaica in 1887 and is considered to be the father of the Black Nationalism Movement. During the early 1900’s, after reading Booker T.

“The soul was the body that fed the tobacco, and the spirit was the blood that watered the cotton, and these created the first fruits of the American garden” (Coates 104). In Between the World and Me,” and within this quote alone, Ta-Nehisi Coates argued not only the importance of black identity, but also how and why black identity was so deceivingly shaped in response to the dark history behind it. Through Coates’ recollections and fair warnings to his son, the relationship between black identity and “The Dream” becomes clearer. In spite of the “white supremacist” trademark that comes stamped upon “The Dream,” Coates provides impermeable evidence as to why black identity is not only more invested in history than white identity, but more importantly why it is the investment to be made in “The American Dream.”

The mission of the students around the country who fought for an education that would shed light on African Americans. The progress the students created is seen today in American Universities ,and also HBCUs, where (AAS)African American Studies is implemented into the curriculum. Before, the dissection the formation of AAS, it should be noted that without the sacrifice from others I undoubtedly would not be writing about AAS ,or reflecting on the significance it has created for generations so far.

The genre of hip hop has a positioning in the African American identity because it has helped people to form connections and builds powerful statements with tunes, lyrics and ciphers. In the case of Dred Scott v Sandford (1856), in which a slave, sued for his freedom because his master had taken him to a free territory and believed it made him free slave. The Supreme Court ruled against Dred Scott. With this decision it was clear that a compromise would not be reached, and so war was the only resolution, this lead to the Civil War. In Dred Scott v Sandford case, the court ruling had a huge influence on politics also the 14th Amendment prohibited all violations of citizenship. The Civil War made a huge impact and equal civil rights to African Americans who had been liberated after the American Civil War.

I identify myself as a person of African descent. Therefore, I call myself an African American. What is generally understood by the term African American is that African origination became mixed with American culture to produce a hybrid identity, a mixed identity. The phrase also can be used to identify my ancestors that were brought here from Africa by the European settlers. As an African American, I think that term is politically correct because it helps us to find an identity, to position ourselves, within American culture and on the other hand, it also gives recognition to my African origin.

Heritage can be defined as the traditions, achievements, beliefs, etc., that are part of the history of a group or nation. (Merriam Webster) One of the main ideals of heritage is the interconnection of the past and the present because that is what it is all about. It is about taking the traditions, ideals and beliefs of the people who came before us and using them in the present. African American heritage, specifically, happens to be one of the hottest topics in America today. Even though it is one of the most popular and trending topics, it is also one of the most controversial and intriguing subjects. Why is it intriguing and controversial? Perhaps because people have not learned the whole story or because people have never learned about

Being born in Columbia, SC and moving to a small town called Lancaster, I identity as being African American, although many perceive me to me biracial. Many people would ask if I were mixed or adopted because I looked distinctly different than my mother. My mother is a very chocolate lady while my father looks almost Caucasian with his very sandy brown hair. As many African Americans are stereotyped as not having a father figure in their life, my father was indeed in my life but he did not play a key part. My mother on the other hand is not your typical “black” mother.

At this stage in the capstone process I have finalized my ideas regarding my topic and I am currently brainstorming pictures ideas that I could use for my project. Originally, I was focusing on black identity and primarily answering the question, "What does it mean to be Black?". Now my topic has shifted a bit and while I am still focusing on black identity I am not specifically and outrightly answering that question. I have also chosen my medium. Originally, I was leaning towards photography or videography, but I have decided upon printing.

The African American community has sat at the end of a discriminatory lens from the moment they set foot in the United States. For that reason, black communities have undergone the process of community building to ensure that all members feel a sense of belonging.

What are you? Do you classify yourself as simply black, African-American, or do you not know? When I ask what are you, I am asking you about your roots, the roots that make you, you. My roots is what I use to differentiate myself because I am more than just an American and I am more than just black. Nowadays black identity is used not only as a race but as ethnicity, including for people who do not know their heritage. On the other hand, freedom for people in the black race is much more than it was in the 20th century. Although, the black race have civil rights, racial issues still continue to exist today.

In many ways it could be argued that Marcus Garvey was the most significant African American civil rights leader of this time because of his role in tackling the social issues African American’s faced. He aimed to improve the lives of African Americans by encouraging them to take control of their own affairs and education. His role surrounding this issue is illustrated by his founding of the UNIA. This Universal Negro Improvement Association was an organisation dedicated to racial pride, economic self sufficiency and the formation of an independent black nation in Africa. Through this and the magazine the ‘Negro World’ he urged African Americans to be proud of their race, and argued “a people without the knowledge of their past history, origin and culture is like a tree without roots”. It has been said that through Garvey’s dedication to social improvement for his race he managed to capture the imagination of many blacks for whom the American Dream was a dirty joke.

Marcus Mosiah Garvey was the leader of the largest “Back to Africa” movement during the 1920’s, which renewed passion in the lives of African Americans during that era and created a new sense of nationalism and pride in one’s cultural heritage

The 1920’s were a period of struggle for African-Americans. Slavery was abolished, but blacks were still oppressed and were in no way equal to whites. However, at this time blacks were starting to make some progress toward racial equality. The Harlem renaissance started the first real sense of African-American culture through art, jazz, dance, and literature. There was also at this time the beginning of strong African-American movements to further the black race. A prominent movement was led by W.E.B Dubois that focused on educating blacks to create equality. On the other end of the political spectrum was Marcus Garvey, who led the movement for blacks to unite as a race

The term “African-American” is very controversial to black Americans. There is a large debate over "the meaning of the African-American experience and who is (and isn’t) part of it" (Berlin). In the magazine article, “The Changing Definition of African-American: How the great influx of people from Africa and the Caribbean since 1965 is challenging what it means to be African-American”, author Ira Berlin raises the “not my history” phenomenon which entails the idea that labelling someone as African-American is more of an ethnicity title rather than an actual race. Similarly, in the article, “Where I'm From”, author Aisha Harris gets across that “the term African-American doesn't quite suit [her] identity” but at the same time she comes to a conclusion that when people asked about her ethnicity, “black wasn't a sufficient answer” immediately laying out a constant struggle she faces with her ethnicity as well as showing many black people do not accept the simple answer of being black for ethnicity (Harris).