"The story of the Negro in America is the story of America."
- James Baldwin
The topic of racial identity has evolved radically since its inception in early America, and that evolution has only accelerated since the ends of slavery, Jim Crow, and segregation. While African American culture and identity has its roots in slavery and oppression, it was neither stunted by oppression nor defined by it.
The United States of America was founded on slavery, a nationwide institution that attempted to forcibly erase the identity of those oppressed by it. This cultural eradication, however, did not succeed — instead, Africans from hundreds of cultures came together in brotherhood under the lash of slavery. Through music, religion, and other cultural aspects, slaves began the early development of the African American identity known only to them.
When the era of slavery ceased, African Americans did not gain freedom; instead, they continued to be challenged by segregation laws which stripped them of their right to vote and separated them from Whites in churches, schools, restrooms, and other public facilities. In spite of this, during this era African Americans began to define and recognize who they were as individuals and as a culture.
In response to the injustices of Segregation, the Civil Rights Movement was formed to fight for equal rights. Confidence in one’s identity as a black person grew, and the fight for the identity as a full American was brought into the spotlight. Widespread demonstrations caught the attention of Americans of all races as they fought for the right to a full identity as an American. With the Civil Rights Movement came progress towards an America where whites and blacks could be considered equal, but in many places, economic disparity and racial prejudice still defined the African American experience, despite legal equality.
While the Civil Rights Movement ultimately gave African Americans rights, in some respects African Americans in the modern day continue to have “unequal rights” in that they are still not treated equally. Despite the continuing efforts, a re-emergence of outspoken demonstrations shows that there is still more progress to be done. Some African Americans, feeling that America has failed them, seek to eschew their American identity altogether, while others still seek to rectify it. In the face of racism, African Americans still continue to fight for their rights, and maintain their sense of a common experience that is unique to their identity.
The United States of America was founded on slavery, a nationwide institution that attempted to forcibly erase the identity of those oppressed by it. This cultural eradication, however, did not succeed — instead, Africans from hundreds of cultures came together in brotherhood under the lash of slavery. Through music, religion, and other cultural aspects, slaves began the early development of the African American identity known only to them.
When the era of slavery ceased, African Americans did not gain freedom; instead, they continued to be challenged by segregation laws which stripped them of their right to vote and separated them from Whites in churches, schools, restrooms, and other public facilities. In spite of this, during this era African Americans began to define and recognize who they were as individuals and as a culture.
In response to the injustices of Segregation, the Civil Rights Movement was formed to fight for equal rights. Confidence in one’s identity as a black person grew, and the fight for the identity as a full American was brought into the spotlight. Widespread demonstrations caught the attention of Americans of all races as they fought for the right to a full identity as an American. With the Civil Rights Movement came progress towards an America where whites and blacks could be considered equal, but in many places, economic disparity and racial prejudice still defined the African American experience, despite legal equality.
While the Civil Rights Movement ultimately gave African Americans rights, in some respects African Americans in the modern day continue to have “unequal rights” in that they are still not treated equally. Despite the continuing efforts, a re-emergence of outspoken demonstrations shows that there is still more progress to be done. Some African Americans, feeling that America has failed them, seek to eschew their American identity altogether, while others still seek to rectify it. In the face of racism, African Americans still continue to fight for their rights, and maintain their sense of a common experience that is unique to their identity.