Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I have lived in Algeirs and witnessed the "locals" in action, as well as living currently in Washington DC, where, in both instances, African American Women are NOT the minority. I am happy to provide for the sake of arguement, that neither of the parties in their prospective locations appeared to be happy or content at all. I agree with above posters; it's the culture, not the location that makes all the difference in the world.
An African American anywhere in America is considered a minority. My use of the word minority was in relation to society as a whole not geographic location.
A person can appear to be unhappy and can in fact be quite happy once a person has the opportunity to know them. Making an assumption based on observation without interaction usually isn't very useful.
I've travelled a bit and generally I'd say that people are just plain friendlier with more positive attitudes than Americans. I'd almost go as far as to say that the poorer a country, the more people are smiling. I think we are basicly big spoiled babies that make too much of our problems.
Maybe its just me but in the united states i see black woman happy & smiling all the time. You cant make a generilization of AA woman, because a few might had sad faces. They might just have broken up with a boyfriend, or lost a friend or family member. You can never know whats going on in their life. I have seen white woman, & hispanic woman who look upset when im out sometimes. I think you are just reading into this to much since there are some many AA woman in the u.s. and you cant focus on a few out of alot. Also aa woman are black, so they have to deal with sterotypes, & obstacles because of their skin color. Plus you went to a foreign country, where they were probably friendly because you were from the u.s. In america alot of ppl are from the u.s., so its no reason for a AA woman to smile at you or be extra friendly because of where you are from. They dont even know you, you nothing but a stranger to them
MedicineMan, I definitely think you are over generalizing this.
Sure you have unhappy AA women but you have just as many happy ones. I have to wonder about you saying they smile at white men but I guess not at black men???
And as to kissing the hand that slapped you....nope, no one has slapped me in this life time so I try not to carry over ill will. I take folks as they come.
Maybe the other AA women are doing the same? Maybe they do not smile at those they have had a problem with in the past?
Anyway this is all speculation.
We didn't have an AA womens meeting and decide how to act (if there was one I wasn't invited, horrors!).
A lot of any persons behaviour no matter race or gender is due to life experiences and societal expectations.
Maybe those are to blame.
Or maybe there isn't any problem at all. You just think there is. Maybe.
I agree with Goddess's last line. Sorry, I'm just not a smiler and I'm the happiest person I know. I'll acknowledge you if you say hello and I'll show you common courtesy. Other than that, I don't think I owe a stranger anything else.
hey people just got back from my trip to south africa and i noticed something right away. the women in south africa are nicer than most of the women here in the south. i noticed as soon as i walked off the plane, black women looking so miserable. the their faces had a permenate look of distain, unhappiness, and plain. in south africa the women smiled, and spoke in kindness.
the black women here most will not talk with a black man, but will converse with a white guy. over there, they spoke to who ever treated them good. who came with a calm nice demeanor. they smiled all the time and had a sweetness to them. despite the fact they suffer apartheid recently, and it is fresh in some of their minds.
why is their a difference between the two countries? why are the women their sweeter despite the hard times, and the women here are colder.
i have my own thoughts, tell me yours...
A person can appear to be unhappy and can in fact be quite happy once a person has the opportunity to know them. Making an assumption based on observation without interaction usually isn't very useful.
That's pretty friggin insulting. This is not an observation, don't presume to tear down my informed answer, just because it happens to contradict yours!
I happened to have lived with, worked with, related with, volunteered with, helped clean up after, went to church with, organized music groups with, babysat and taught music lessons with and educated african american people as a family-based society when I lived there. If that's not interaction, then I don't think there's anything that will please you to contribute more to this conversation.
So I stand by my initial statement.
Quote:
I have lived in Algeirs and witnessed the "locals" in action, as well as living currently in Washington DC, where, in both instances, African American Women are NOT the minority. I am happy to provide for the sake of arguement, that neither of the parties in their prospective locations appeared to be happy or content at all. I agree with above posters; it's the culture, not the location that makes all the difference in the world.
I have to agree with the poster of this piece. There is a big difference between the attitudes of African American women and black women of other countries. I sometimes believe that although more privileged, African American women face more stereotypes and negativity so therefore, they have reason to carry a "chip" on their shoulders...So to speak.
What about woman of other countries facing poverty, hunger, and classism...... that is a sorry excuse since all those things you just mentioned happens everywhere not just america........ I do agree black american's in my opinion are one of the most rascist people I have ever met...... They tend to dislike any race that aren't black americans despite the fact that there are similarities between them...... this is from my experiance of course.........
That's just bizarre; I don't see that black American women are unfriendly or have bad attitudes at all, at least not more than anyone else. I grew up in Dallas, a major "black" city, and was outnumbered by black children at every school I attended...so I don't lack experience in this respect. I have never had a problem with black people and I have not found black American women to be any less friendly than anyone else.
The company I work for is a major employer of black people in the area (other people, upon finding out who I work for, ask "is it true that there's lots of blacks there?"). My boss is black. Many of my colleagues are black. None of them could be described as unfriendly or having a bad attitude. One of the things I like most about the company I work for is the diversity in the workplace...people of all ages, ethnic backgrounds, religions, socio-economic backgrounds, etc. work there. Wouldn't trade it.
You need to remember that the social conditions in countries are different and therefore can affect the way people view their life and the world. Plus, in most places in African, women have the support of extended family or neighbors who help them with hardship. In other words, these women are part of a communal society unlike the individualist mentality that people have here in the U.S. Remember that black women in the U.S. belong to the lowest economic group, so that could probably contribute to the difference. Although, women in African come from similar economic situation, they have that community support unlike black women in the U.S.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
