African culture concepts and characteristics

¶ … systematical denial of culture by slaves on present day slave descendants?

This is a paper that bases its description on Thornton's book Africa and Africans in the Making of the Atlantic World, 1400-1680 and theorizes that the systemic denial of the African cultural contribution is victimizing the African slave descendents as slavery victimized their forefathers.

The Africans nation has had a vast and positive influence on the Atlantic World. Yet, the attitude of the nations of the Atlantic with regard to the African people has been somewhat prejudiced. The Africans were forcefully taken from their land and underwent a transition that displaced their culture to such a degree that even today, the people have a hard time facing their own traditions. The systemic racism they have faced in the Atlantic world has caused their culture, values and needs to be undermined such that they themselves are unable to accept the associated changes.

Africa and Africans in the Making of the Atlantic World, 1400-1680 (Thornton 1992) is one book that has ventured an appreciation of the Africans in the making of the Atlantic world. When the Africans were brought to this land they had to face a painful fate. They were separated from their families, their lands and their own self. Forced to be slaves they lost all semblance of pride and yet, at each avenue tried to rise above their unenviable fate.

In the past the Africans were slaves to the 'whites' and were forced to live their lives, as the latter deemed appropriate. They were unable to practice their religion as it was considered 'heathen' and they were unable to live as they pleased, as their lifestyle was 'uncivilized.' As time passed the Africans tried to accommodate their beliefs with the New World. As this compromise took place it was realized that though the African culture was undergoing a change so was the 'whites' culture changing. This change however, was largely ignored in historical writings. Though historical researchers are happy to acknowledge that the Africans were made victims of the Western need for supremacy they are less eager to acknowledge the fact that the Africans had a large hand in the making of the American society. The life that we see in American today has been influenced and helped been created by the Africans.

This ignoring of the contribution of the Africans has its own legacy. The American society claims that it is a democratic state and that the rights of all the nations are herein protected. What they fail to state is that the Atlantic World as referred to by Thornton, (1992) is also capable of systemic racism. The racism is present but within the institutions and thus at times not clearly visible.

With regard to the African culture, people and nation as a whole in making the Atlantic World people must accept and acknowledge their contribution. By ignoring their worth the Atlantic World is again attacking the Africans racially.