Comparing Ethnicities, Research Paper Example

Unique and dynamic African American culture has a profound impact on American culture. Historically, it was shaped under conditions of slavery after Africans were taken away from their Motherland and forced to work. In the17^th century, slave owners tried to oppress this rich foreign culture by repressing any political and cultural organizations. In such a way, they believed they could deal with slave rebellions and acts of resistance that were not rare in the southern part of the United States. Many historians claim that exactly these rebellions and civil rights movements shaped the uniqueness and originality of the culture.  Taking all the previous facts into consideration, the culture was developed separately from mainstream American culture. It happened not only because of racial discrimination of African Americans and their enslavement, but also because African descendants wanted to maintain their original traditions.

However, over time Africans became a substantial part of American society and started to get used to American way of living. It took them more than 400 hundred years to be recognized equal to the rest of American citizens. During this time they adopted many western traditions, values and practices. Any African American who rejects the western part of his own culture looses a big part of himself (Scott, 2005). Considering this information, it can be said that these two cultures developed each other in a process of mutual creative exchange, called creolization. African American culture became inseparable from American culture, but simultaneously it remained a distinct cultural body. Hugh J. Scott (2005) expressed his vision of African American culture development saying the following: “African American culture is a synthesis of African culture and American-European culture as they interacted under slavery” (p. 4).

I made the choice of describing African American culture because it exists very closely to my culture. While being so different at the first glance, they complement and develop each other. I want to learn more about this culture with a unique history. I believe I would be able to understand my African American friends better, which will make our friendship a stronger relationship.

There are many similarities and differences between my and African American culture. I am a single, white American mother with a small child. As a single mother, who takes care of her children and deal with finances, I am very similar to African American mothers. In their culture, it is accepted that the role of the family plays not a man, but a woman. Talking about musical tastes, there are many styles of music like blues, jazz and hip-hop that came from African American culture but now are perceived as a truly part of American culture. In the other areas, like holiday traditions, original language and national cuisine, our cultures substantially differ from each other.

Even though African American families are very similar to the other U.S. families, they have different approaches to gender roles, marriage and parenting. These differences are caused by African American culture historical development and contemporary living conditions. Many African Americans still experience poverty and economic inequality.  Not so long time ago slave owners tried to deprive African Americans a feeling of being a nation. They tried to undermine the dearest part of people’s lives – their families. Family was no longer considered as a society element, and the identity of “slave” replaced it. However, African Americans rejected this way of living and maintained a family feeling. They tried to get married and establish a strong relationship with their beloved. When slaves gained an opportunity to secure their freedom, they worked hard to buy the freedom of their spouses and children.

Urbanization, “new” racism, and poverty are the factors that strongly influenced the formation of African American families in the 20^th century. Massive migration from villages to cities did not make life better for all migrants. Firstly, they did not make more money than before. Secondly, women entered the labor force, and it definitely changed the distribution of family responsibilities. Besides, the long working hours and a stress from work significantly contributed to the family adversity. Obtained poverty became a serious obstacle on the way of getting married and such problems as teen pregnancy, divorce and low socioeconomic status appeared. The discrimination of African American representatives in the big cities, known as “new” racism, was much subtler than before but had more devastating results than the “old” racism. All these factors shaped the existing forms of African American families in nowadays (Barbarin, 2002).

Within the last ten years marriage rates have significantly decreased. The population of women always exceeded the population of men, but it is not the main reason of the above-mentioned trend. There are not many desirable African American men, since many of them are unemployed, addicted to drugs or alcohol or mentally ill. This is a burning issue especially in a situation, when a woman has a high socioeconomic status, earns enough money for a decent life and needs no financial support from a man. So, if the woman is comparatively rich, she can not find an appropriate husband. And, otherwise, if the woman is comparatively poor, she can not find a desirable richer husband. Considering above-mentioned circumstances, in African American culture, in contrast to white American, the formation of the household usually begins not with a marriage, but with a child birth (Barbarin, 2002).

The male does not play an important role in a family relationship as was mentioned before. As long as the role of the head of the family plays the oldest woman in the family (grandmother or aunt), men are needed only for procreation and financial support.  It is very unusual for American culture, where in full families man is considered to be the head of the family. In African American culture, it is mainly the woman, who decides whether husband will stay with the family or leave it. She makes her decision based on the quality of relationship, his love and fidelity, and, of course, financial support he can provide. The male can play a leading role in a family, only if it is a married couple and he has a lot of power. If it is a cohabiting couple, women usually play the dominant roles (Falck, 2004).

In relation to children, African American fathers are stereotypically seen as inattentive, sometimes violent and marginal to their families. In reality, African American males are very different and can be as dedicated to their children as white American males are. The stereotypes were formed because of unemployment, imprisonment, high death rates or imbalance in the male-female ratio. In a case of unemployment and poverty, families have to be separated, because, in that case, a single mother with a child will qualify for a state aid (McAdoo, 2002).

The role of women is crucial in both American and African American families. In African American culture, besides, that the woman is a head of the family and has to deal with finances, in many cases she has to raise her child alone. It is comparatively easy to do, if the mother has a daughter. In this case, she can pass all the feminine qualities the daughter will need in the future for a full life. But, if it is the boy, who a single mother has to raise, the task is much more complicated. She has to put every effort in order to make her son brave, honest and confident. In other words, a single mother must become “a mother and a father” for her fatherless children (Hare, 2011).

African American children do not get maximum of attention from their parents. Very often poor father and mother have to spend their time working to be able to keep living. Children grow in poverty, and it significantly influences their future. Children raised in poor neighborhoods, for example, have lower school achievement, higher school dropout rates and complete fewer years of school than children raised in affluent neighborhoods. Echoes of sad history, poverty, and single-parent families play an important role in the formation of personality of the African American child.

Every cultural group has many holidays, which express important issues for this ethnicity. One of the greatest holidays for African Americans is Martin Luther King’s Birthday, who was a civil rights activist. It is widely accepted to celebrate this day with speeches and community gatherings. This holiday is a good time for African Americans to honor the Civil Rights Movement in the United States. Black History Month is the other significant event for African Americans. This month is full of plays, recreational events and meetings, which emphasize the contribution of famous African Americans to the U.S. history (Faison, 2003).

Juneteenth, the Independence Day for African Americans, is also enjoyed by kids, teenagers and young adults. It celebrates African American freedom and expresses respect to other cultures. It begins on the night of the 18^th of June and lasts the whole day till the next night. Juneteenth is celebrated across the U.S with delicious food, games and art exhibits. From December 26^th to January 1^st, African Americans celebrate the week of Kwanzaa. It is dedicated to the celebration of heritage of African Americans. The word “Kwanzaa” came from Swahili language and translates as “first fruits of the harvest”. Traditions used during the Kwanzaa week came from African harvest celebrations of the first fruits of the year (Faison, 2003).

African American cuisine has many similarities with the West African cuisine. Enslaved African Americans brought from West Africa shores introduced many unknown ingredients to the American cuisine. Among them there are the following products: black-eyed peas, greens (include okra and akatewa), gumbo (a spicy stew), peanuts and yams (a kind of potatoes).  Over time, African Americans borrowed many recipes from American culture and made its own cuisine a unique and delicious mix (Faison, 2003).

African Americans practice a number of religions, but Christianity is the dominant one among them. It is caused by the history of African Americans on the territory of the United States. When African Americans were taken away from their Motherland, they were forced to abandon their religion and to become Christians. African Americans managed to keep some of the elements of their culture, practicing Christianity.  Dances, shouts, African rhythms and singing are still a big part of worship in the African American church. As Christians, African Americans honor Christmas holidays. They have their own version of classic Nativity with gospel music, called Black Nativity by Langston Hughes (Faison, 2003).

Even though 800 hundred languages are spoken in Africa, Swahili is the main one. This is the language that African Americans use during the celebration of Swahili in nowadays. Of course, in everyday life they use American English as all Americans do. However, Swahili is very easy to speak, and everyone can try. Without knowing that we speak Swahili, we pronounce the name of the famous cartoon character “simba”, which translates from Swahili as lion (Faison, 2003).

Today many young people cannot imagine American music without famous blues, jazz or hip-hop. All these styles of music emerged as a result of African American influence on American culture. In the early years of enslavement, African American music was full of struggle, empowerment and perseverance. The first songs were simply a series of calls between slaves on the fields. After the Civil War was ended and African Americans got freedom, the new style of music emerged. It was blues. Blues music, at that time called folk-blues, was about long-awaited and newfound freedom (Ruehl, 2005).

In the times of the Civil Rights Movement, folksingers used their songs in order to spread a word about injustice towards African Americans. Famous songs like “Oh Freedom” or “We Shall Overcome” gave hope to people and, eventually, helped them to win equal rights under the law. By the 1970s, folk artists created a new style of music, called hip-hop. This music was unique, because it consisted of very incompatible from the first sight elements – African drum calls and spoken word. Artists managed to combine above-mentioned elements into an incredible mix and express in it both happiness and frustration (Ruehl, 2005).  Although much time has passed, today hip-hop music is still very popular among teenagers and young adults.  African American music played a significant role not only in the area of American music, but also in all other areas of human activity. Today, many people perceive African American music styles as truly American, and they are enjoyed by all cultures of the world.

There are some health disparities between African Americans and other cultural groups in the US. African Americans tend to have lower life expectancy and higher infant mortality than the others. In 1999, for example, the average life expectancy for white Americans was 77.8 years, when, for African Americans, it was only 73.1 years. Serious health problems among African Americans are caused by discrimination, economic difficulties and cultural features. Speaking about adult immunization, in 2001, influenza vaccination covered 70.2% of Americans 65 years and older and only 52% of African Americans of the same age group. There are some significant disparities in the most harmful diseases between this and the other cultural groups (Black or African American Populations, n.d.).

While African American population in 2000 accounted for 13% of the whole population, it accounted for the 50% of newly HIV infected in 2001 (Black or African American Populations, n.d.). The age-adjusted death rate in consequence of cancer, diabetes, heart disease and stroke for African Americans significantly exceeded death rate for white Americans. Cancer among African Americans is caused by excessive tobacco use and unbalanced nutrition. Often this disease is detected on the last stages because of the lack of access to the health care. African Americans suffer from heart disease and stroke due to high cholesterol, excessive body weight and physical inactivity. In 2004, African Americans were more likely to be obese than Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. The disparity between African Americans and two other groups was 394.1%. African American women are more affected by obesity than men. 39% of them of 18 years of age and older were over obese in 2004 (Black or African American Populations, n.d.). Due to the lower income of African American families in comparison to white Americans, they may suffer from poor nutrition, stress, and in the result excessive use of alcohol, tobacco and drugs.  Taking into account that health care is an expensive service and not every African-American low-income family can afford it, the disparity between African Americans and the other groups in the US is fundamental.

There are many differences and similarities in African American and white American cultures. The differences are caused by the completely different history of the two cultures. African American culture has West African and Central African roots, while white American culture has its roots in Europe. Two cultures shaped in different conditions by different people cannot be identical. But, at the same time, these two cultures have many similarities. This phenomenon can be explained by long coexistence of ethnicities and mutual exchange of traditions, values and practices.

References

Barbarin, O. (2002). Characteristics of African American Families. UNC School of Social Work. Retrieved from http://ssw.unc.edu/RTI/presentation/PDFs /aa_families.pdf

Black or African American Populations (n.d.) Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/omhd/populations/BAA/BAA.htm

Faison, N., Dorsey, M., & Ingram, P. (2003). Guide to exploring African American Culture. PennState College of Agricultural Sciences Publications. Retrieved from http://pubs.cas.psu.edu/freepubs/pdfs/agrs92.pdf

Falck, R. (2004). Family roles in African American cultures. AllExperts website. Retrieved from http://en.allexperts.com/q/Family-Relations-1514/Family-roles-african-american.htm

Hare, J., Hare, N. (2011). The Role Of The Black Mother In Today’s Society. Sun – Reporter, 66, 526-500.

McAdoo, H. P. (2002). Black children: social, educational and parental environments. California, CA: Sage Publications, Inc.

Ruehl, K. (n.d.). Celebrating African-Americans in Folk Music: A brief history. About.com. Retrieved from http://folkmusic.about.com/od/news/a/AfrAmFolk Music.htm

Scott, H. J. (2005). The African American Culture. Pace University website. Retrieved from http://www.pace.edu/emplibrary/vp-theafricanamericanculture_ Hugh_J_Scott.pdf