Why Some Black Americans have emotional/spiritual breakdowns visiting the Slave Castles in Ghana? (influence, speak)
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Is this a form of PTSD? Do Caribbeans experience this too? What is the psychology of this? I realize that
great evil was done there and one or some of my ancestors MAY have passed through there. But to me,
that is too far back to mean anything. Is this unique to AAs being a product of America? I did read once that
American Slavery was the worse psychologically in that it involved total destruction of the personality.
I'm originally from the Caribbean and have some African blood in me. I've written this before, but it begs to restate:
I recall my father and my father's father referring to Africa as if they'd been there before. They had never set foot anywhere on African soil. Over the years, I often questioned how could they have felt a connection to a place they knew little about? Maybe something in their DNA served as a bridge connecting them (and me) to our roots.
Regarding the pain our ancestors were forced to endure, yes, like many African-Americans, that pain resonates in my psyche. There are certain movies I will not watch due to depictions of harsh treatment inflicted upon slaves.
But here is a bit of light which beams brightly at the end of this dark tunnel:
Forty years ago, I set foot on the soils of Mombasa Kenya. As I stepped onto Mombasa's earth, I took a deep breath and concentrated on each step I took. The words of my father and grandfather crossed my mind. As I thought of their words, I felt as though I had completed that connection which they often displayed in conversation. A deep void in me was made whole the day I set foot on African soil. It was a humbling experience which I have since treasured.
Is this a form of PTSD? Do Caribbeans experience this too? What is the psychology of this? I realize that
great evil was done there and one or some of my ancestors MAY have passed through there. But to me,
that is too far back to mean anything. Is this unique to AAs being a product of America? I did read once that
American Slavery was the worse psychologically in that it involved total destruction of the personality.
I'm not sure if afro latinos and afro Caribbeans share the same black collective experience as Black Americans due when it comes to Africa pilgrimage.
If you speak to the West Africans, who live in upper Manhattan and in the west Bronx, you will hear that they endure more hostility from segments of the black American community than they do from white Americans (that is other than the cops). So why the emotional reaction to a tie to Africa?
Most black Americans are really too distant from West Africa to care about it. How many can relate to contemporary Africans or to its cultures? They know less about Afropop than do many white youth who live in London, England, and that is inclusive of Prince Harry.
And I don't expect any closeness to Africans because the split happened over 250 years ago.
Now the lynching and the open race based segregation, and even today's police brutality (rooted in the culture of slave patrollers) I can see an emotional reaction. This is a direct part of the heritage of being a black Americans. Seeing the Green Book, and knowing that not having it could have resulted in extreme humiliation or even death, and many have relatives who can directly relate to that. THAT is where I can see honest emotion.
I think that many who react in those castles do so because they think that they have to. Similar reactions to reading the Green Book would be more natural. If there is this visceral connection to Africa so deep that being snatched from it results in raw emotion then surely there will be more interest in those who were left behind.
The BIG difference between Black Americans and Afro-Latinos and Afro-Caribbeans is that the latter have more DIRECT cultural
links to Africa than Black Americans. The other big difference is that the latter are running their own countries and do not have
to contend with or worry about HOSTILE or possible HOSTILE white racism.
Black Americans are still in an oppressive social racial context and treated as outsiders, from slavery to the recent chasing down and shooting a guy in Georgia. So the Black American focus is on racial abuse. So when they get to Africa, it is like they
are finally out of an abusive house, but focus on the Castles as where the abuse started.
Caribbean people living in their own countries don't have to worry about white people calling the cops on people as they go
about their daily business or the possibility of it. So the focus is more on culture rather than just race.
I would say even though Brazil is racist, the nation recognizes its Afro heritage as part of it national character, because of that as of late some Brazilians are developing a "Black" identity. So where there was white racism against people classified as "Black" a "Black" identity developed in response to this as opposed to a national identity (Jamaican) or tribal identity (Yoruba). In black majority run countries, the "Black" identity takes a backseat to national and ethnic identities.
Short answer is empathy. A person who is emotionally healthy would feel sorrow and empathy for a people who were murdered, kidnapped, and sold into slavery.
It is the same when people with no connection to the Jewish Holocaust visit the various museums and get emotional. Or when someone visits any memorial and feels a human connection to the pain that memorial speaks to.
The BIG difference between Black Americans and Afro-Latinos and Afro-Caribbeans is that the latter have more DIRECT cultural
links to Africa than Black Americans. The other big difference is that the latter are running their own countries and do not have
to contend with or worry about HOSTILE or possible HOSTILE white racism.
Black Americans are still in an oppressive social racial context and treated as outsiders, from slavery to the recent chasing down and shooting a guy in Georgia. So the Black American focus is on racial abuse. So when they get to Africa, it is like they
are finally out of an abusive house, but focus on the Castles as where the abuse started.
Caribbean people living in their own countries don't have to worry about white people calling the cops on people as they go
about their daily business or the possibility of it. So the focus is more on culture rather than just race.
I would say even though Brazil is racist, the nation recognizes its Afro heritage as part of it national character, because of that as of late some Brazilians are developing a "Black" identity. So where there was white racism against people classified as "Black" a "Black" identity developed in response to this as opposed to a national identity (Jamaican) or tribal identity (Yoruba). In black majority run countries, the "Black" identity takes a backseat to national and ethnic identities.
I can tell that you really understand all the dynamics at play. Thank you!
WOW! You know what's a trip? When I uploaded my raw AncestryDNA profile to GEDmatch, a couple of the calculators pegged me as Afro-Caribbean. But the locations they pinpointed were Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic. But, those could have shown up because they're the closest matches for the Caribbean that those calculators had, and so that's where my results defaulted to.
As far as your family members being socially rebuffed by Nigerians, Nigerians have a reputation among other Africans also. One
of the first things I was told from my first social encounter with West Africans ever was never to trust a Nigerian.
Some of them are very friendly, but many seem cold and socially distant at least initially,the vibe I got was too serious. I became friends with some, after being introduced by their family members. In my experience, the Eastern guys seemed to be
the most anti-social, not all though. Yorubas were friendly to me. Northern guys were in a world of their own, even though some were friendly.
Not exactly, "Chatty Kathy" types.
I was married to a man from Guinea, West Africa and he didn't like Nigerians at all. He told me the same thing you were told and basically said they were the scourge of Africa.
I'm originally from the Caribbean and have some African blood in me. I've written this before, but it begs to restate:
I recall my father and my father's father referring to Africa as if they'd been there before. They had never set foot anywhere on African soil. Over the years, I often questioned how could they have felt a connection to a place they knew little about? Maybe something in their DNA served as a bridge connecting them (and me) to our roots.
Regarding the pain our ancestors were forced to endure, yes, like many African-Americans, that pain resonates in my psyche. There are certain movies I will not watch due to depictions of harsh treatment inflicted upon slaves.
But here is a bit of light which beams brightly at the end of this dark tunnel:
Forty years ago, I set foot on the soils of Mombasa Kenya. As I stepped onto Mombasa's earth, I took a deep breath and concentrated on each step I took. The words of my father and grandfather crossed my mind. As I thought of their words, I felt as though I had completed that connection which they often displayed in conversation. A deep void in me was made whole the day I set foot on African soil. It was a humbling experience which I have since treasured.
The BIG difference between Black Americans and Afro-Latinos and Afro-Caribbeans is that the latter have more DIRECT cultural
links to Africa than Black Americans. The other big difference is that the latter are running their own countries and do not have
to contend with or worry about HOSTILE or possible HOSTILE white racism.
Black Americans are still in an oppressive social racial context and treated as outsiders, from slavery to the recent chasing down and shooting a guy in Georgia. So the Black American focus is on racial abuse. So when they get to Africa, it is like they
are finally out of an abusive house, but focus on the Castles as where the abuse started.
Caribbean people living in their own countries don't have to worry about white people calling the cops on people as they go
about their daily business or the possibility of it. So the focus is more on culture rather than just race.
I would say even though Brazil is racist, the nation recognizes its Afro heritage as part of it national character, because of that as of late some Brazilians are developing a "Black" identity. So where there was white racism against people classified as "Black" a "Black" identity developed in response to this as opposed to a national identity (Jamaican) or tribal identity (Yoruba). In black majority run countries, the "Black" identity takes a backseat to national and ethnic identities.
I agree from my long stays in Brazil and knowing black-latinos. National identity is first which indicates we are one and not separate as the US govt. & politicians like to micro-segment everything.
How would you regard France? I know they are also national identity first but with the increasing immigration from north Africa has it become different?
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