Afro-Caribbeans to Be Successful Rather

¶ … Afro-Caribbeans to be successful rather than native Black Americans? Or is that a fallacy? Are Black Americans paving the way only to be cut out at the collegiate/corporate level? Or are White Americans more accepting of Afro-Caribbeans? Is it because of guilt (slavery) or something else? Are Afro-Caribbean values/beliefs/experiences different from Black Americans or just perceived as such? Do Afro-Caribbeans have more in common with their Black or White American counterparts or do they successfully straddle both worlds?

The recent election of Barak Obama to the presidency brought forth cheers from almost every quarter of the African-American community. Here was an African-American man who had assumed the highest office in a nation that had once denied Africans the right to liberty, justice, and basic human rights. Yet in some quarters, there were quiet, questioning voices: after all, Obama was not the child of slaves, but the child of an African man. This seemed to confirm the popular perception of Afro-Caribbean immigrants as having a greater ability to assimilate into the American social and political firmament than African-Americans.

The reason why such an assumption might be correct seems obvious. Afro-Caribbean immigrants do not have the same sort of complex relationship with America that Black African-Americans possess. Like most Americans, Afro-Caribbeans are immigrants rather than forced migrants. Often they have enjoyed living in societies where they are the majority, rather than the minority population, before their migration. Even individuals of Afro-Caribbean decent born on American soil like President Obama often have traveled back to their homeland, and been able to experience a world where 'blackness' is not an inherent marker of discrimination. Black Americans, however, have suffered the historical ravages of slavery, a legacy that still impacts Black psychology and the Black family. Young Black men are more likely to find themselves racially profiled by police -- and convicted of crimes. They receive more severe sentences than their White counterparts. "Nationwide, Black men are sent to prison on drug charges at 13 times the rate of White men.

" All Black men and women confront a society that tells them they are inferior, but unlike Afro-Caribbean immigrants they have no secure cultural touchstone to contextualize that racism and to remind themselves that merely because Americans may treat individuals of apparently African appearance like second-class citizens, this is not a reflection of their inherent human worth.

Black families are often subject to discrimination in housing, employment, and education, despite the presence of affirmative action. Even educated Black men and women suffer perceived and real discrimination. A December 2009 New York Times article by Michael Luo entitled "In job hunt, college degree can't close racial gap" found that African-American graduates from prestigious schools felt forced to conceal their racial identity on their resumes, by deleting references to participation in Black-related extracurricular activities and achievements. When interviewed, job-seekers entered rooms of shocked and uncomfortable silence, as their racial identity was inevitably revealed.

Might not Afro-Caribbeans face the same sort of barriers or prejudice? Perhaps. But it is possible to argue that some Afro -- Caribbean immigrants have certain characteristics that mark them as 'foreign' rather than 'racialize' their identity. This could make it easier for other Americans to accept them: a British or French accent and a degree from Oxford or the Sorbonne, may smooth away some of the anxieties an interviewer at a prestigious financial firm might feel about hiring an individual of African descent to a top managerial position. While not every African immigrant has such impressive credentials, the presumption of the superiority of certain cultural markers, such as a European accent, cannot be entirely dismissed.

However, the racism against 'blackness' affects all Black Americans, regardless of whether they are the children of slaves or wealthy, Anglicized Africans. As discussed by Obama in his autobiography Dreams From My Father, as an individual of Kenyan ancestry, he was still treated as an African-American by the individuals whom he encountered in his daily life. Race may be a scientific fiction, but in American culture it is treated as a reality. This can cause a complication for Afro-Caribbean immigrants: they may feel frustrated that it is assumed that they are African-Americans with no ties to their African homeland. Growing up in a different educational system, living in a world filled with local tribal languages and rituals; observing religious practices that are often syncretic blends of Christianity and traditional faiths; and surviving local conflicts are all part of many Afro-Caribbean immigrant's heritage. These are experiences that make them stand apart from individuals who have lived in America all of their lives, and never lived for an extended period in Africa or the Caribbean.

Afro-Caribbean values, beliefs, and experiences will inevitably be different from Black Americans by virtue of their distinct backgrounds. Similarly, recent immigrant from Ireland will have a profoundly different view of the world than an Irish-American whose parents immigrated in the 19th century. The fact that American's obsession with physical 'racial' trappings elides the difference between native-born African-Americans and Afro-Caribbeans can cause great frictions within the Black community, as well as surprise such recent immigrants.