Abstract
This research paper has explored the African American culture from the salient features with the introduction of the cultural background of the African American Culture. The paper takes an in-depth discussion of an African American descent. The paper further analyses the different local sources of the community. A discussion of the major characteristics of the African American culture is taken. A comparison of the African American with the Latino culture is considered. The religious faith patterns and the impacts of cultural background are discussed. A conclusion is reached. The history of racism, cultural experiences and spiritual history are analyzed.
Outline
Title Page
Abstract
Introduction
Scholarly Literature Review
Culture
Black Americans Race/Ethnicity
African American Descent
Local Media Sources of Family Community
Characteristics
b. As compared to Scholarly Literature Findings
c. Compare/Contrast
d. Gender/Personality/Relationship Patterns
Religious Faith Patterns
How Cultural Background Impacts Me
Personally
Professionally
Conclusion
Cultural Experiences
Spiritual History
History of Racism/Discrimination
Medical History
Addictions/Mental Health Issues
References
Introduction
Earlier research has been done on the African American cultures and majorly on the Black American families. Some of the mentioned research has demonstrated substantial stereotypes hence confusing a student on what to rely on. Apparently, there are numerous publications on the Black American cultures which have concentrated on presenting only one side of the story. The earlier research has demonstrated that there are a lot of ignorant opinions about the African American culture especially the family se setting. The aforementioned researchers have grossly concentrated on the differences of the Black American culture instead of concentrating on the uniqueness of the African American Culture. The family setting has been compared with other culture at a point whereby its uniqueness was supposed to be embraced. It is that misconception of the African American Culture which has triggered this research. The research will take a neutral stand and analyze different aspects of the African American culture (Rhodes, 2012).
Black Americans Race/Ethnicity
The black American culture otherwise known as the black American race is a common race in the United States. The historical part of the race is traced from the famous Middle Passage which saw the African American people become part of the American history. The culture has roots in Africa and mainly in the Sub-Saharan Africa. The Sahelean Cultures have been said to form part of the African American Culture. The African American culture has for quite sometime developed as very distinct from the American mainstream cultures. The racial discrimination which occurred after the abolition of the slave trade has made the black American Culture remain distinct. The culture has continuously manifested itself in various aspects which include music, art and literature. There are arguments from different scholars that the Black African American culture has cut its links from the African cultures. There are others who believe that the Black American Culture has borrowed a lot from the African cultures. Worth noting is the fact that the African American culture has formed an integral part of the American culture (Mellafe, 1975).
African American Descent
The African American culture in America today has its history interwoven with the great slavery history. The 17th century was a significant step towards the growth of African American culture. The period was characterized by physical isolation of the slaves and societal discrimination which mainly caused slaves to retain some African traditional aspects. The presence of rebellions to fight against unjust tendencies by the slave owners to repress political and cultural organizations of slaves shaped the slaves religion, family and political behaviors. The African American culture has been passed from one generation to another through story telling. The story telling has greatly helped in making sure that education and basic family values are taught. The thriving of the African American has been used to transform the mainstream culture in America. There are indications that the African American culture has not only transformed the American culture but also has essentially had tremendous effect on different cultures in the world. (Mwakikagile, 2005).
Local Media Sources of Family Community
This includes any form of media which is owned and mainly controlled by a community. The community maybe a geographically defined community or community formed on basis of interest. The basic element which draws a line between community media and mainstream media is the fact that community media caters for the groups which are marginalized and have no access to state controlled media or the commercial media. Local Community Medias have been highly recognized in recent years with special funding from World Bank and other institutions. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has backed the establishment of local community media. The media has not only embraced growth of marginalized communities but also has promoted development of vibrant democratic spirit of the media (Mwakikagile, 2005).
Characteristics
There several characteristics which make community media distinct from main stream media and state controlled media. The main founding characteristic is to give ordinary citizens who may never get the mainstream attention to air their pressing issues which may include culture. It should be noted that at all material times, local community media is free from influences. The market dynamics are not considered in local community media. The media mainly embraces the characteristics of independence at all material times. It should be noted that though community media is not mainly set for commercial purposes, it may partly engage in commercial ventures to avoid self marginalization. In so doing, the community interests and social objectives must be observed strictly. (Rennie, 2006)
Community based media sources are geared towards ensuring local information get to reach the respective people in the respective communities. Distinct from the concentration of mainstream media in few hands thereby local news are neglected. In local media the citizens are given a chance to report the events which take place around them. Community media has a reflection of what goes around the community. The media ensures accountability to the needs of the community. The accountability is not only limited to the media but also in the opportunities distribution with a non profiting structure (Rennie, 2006).
Community media is also distinguishable from the grassroots media. Grassroots media unlike community media is narrow and precise hence it does not reflect the bigger national or international aspect. Community media is not confined to a geographical area but it covers interests of the community even when they are diverse. With stable strategies and organizational aspects, the media accesses participation from different members of the communities. A major strength of community media is the ability to stay away from commercial interests and still maintain loyal and wide community participation (Rennie, 2006).
As compared to Scholarly Literature Findings
This part takes an in-depth comparison between the African American culture and the Latino culture. The comparison will range from values, beliefs and different cultural aspects. To start with, the African Americans have strong attachment to kinship ties. They embrace the spirit of unity among the kinship and certain practices are observed so as to strengthen the said bonds. These practices include invitations for celebrations during functions in the family. The bond between a kinship and another if threatened it is subsequently strengthened (Smith, 2011).
The Latino on the other hand have a strong family ties. The practices and principles in the Latino’s embrace a joined family with strong ties which are strengthened through sharing and helping one another. The African American culture has great consideration on work orientation. In some instances the hardworking test is imposed in courtship to ascertain whether one can make a good husband or wife (Smith, 2011).
The African Americans have very strong religious believes. They believe in a Supreme God who controls a lot of events in the community. In addition, there families are divided into workforce whereby different members of the family are given different roles. Though with substantial changes nowadays, kitchen like roles were basically for women and the duty to protect and provide for the family was squarely for men. Such roles have changes but the culture has its origin in the African American culture. The Latino culture on the other hand has strong respect to the church and they insist on interdependence. The culture embraces community participation in assisting a member of the community. The culture also is purely patriarchal whereby the man’s decision is final and the society’s development relies on men. Women exist under the control of men. The Black American culture uses the informal means in supporting members of the community. This emphasizes on support of the poor in the community. This is done through the church or by the community initiates created for that purpose (Rhodes, 2012).
Compare/Contrast
The Latino and the African American culture have a lot in common. They are religious and they believe in the existence of God and Satan. They both emphasize strong religious orientation within the community. In addition, they believe in strong family ties and their families are mainly patriarchal. Men are the leaders of their respective families.
The two ethnic groups do not trust the government and they always feel that the government does not do enough to provide them with social services. Their attitude towards government is mixed whereby they fear and also distrust it. To both, the church is used for social support while at the same time for worship. They both have a negative perception towards government. They believe that borrowing is admitting weakness. There sense of pride restricts them from borrowing. Both cultures express a spirit of respect to seniors. Age represents wisdom and authority hence the aged are highly dignified. They both have a tendency of hiding their family issues from third parties (Reddick, 1997).
Religious Faith Pattern
The religious patterns have played a critical role in the life of the African Americans. The nature of African American lives has been through active participation in religious activities. African Americans have a strong believe in God or a higher being which they believe controls the affairs of the community. The survival of the community basically rotates around the supreme beings providence. They manifest their strong respect to God through full participation in religious functions. The African Americans attend churches for spiritual nourishment. There are spiritual practices which are clearly practiced to demonstrate their belief. This ranges from prayer, spiritual study and singing hymns to praise God. Spiritual institutions in Africa Provide a strong foundation on the different ways in which the family patterns are held (Mellafe, 1975).
How Cultural Background Impacts Me
Personally
I am a black 30 year old male that grew up in North Carolina and I play a lot of sports until I got hurt in college playing baseball. Both my parents are black so I have no multi-racial background. My mother owns her own bakery and my father has a remodeling company. There are two ways in which the African American culture has impacted me. Some effects of my background are positive while others are negative. First, the Black American culture emphasizes on having strong family ties which has made me grow with being in harmony with my family. The culture has taught me helping and other key moral practices that are not in other cultures. I have also grown respecting my father and mother since African American culture emphasizes on giving senior in the community respect (McGoldrick Giordano & Garcia-Preto, 2005). In addition, the religious aspect of the African Religion has made me spiritually complete since I have some basic religious foundation. The sense of pride in most African American culture has impacted me in a negative way although it has taught me to be independent. The basket ball sport is considered to be a reserve for black Americans culture so I got hurt playing it so as to feel like a true Black America (Hays & Erford, 2010).
Professionally
I would state that there are a lot of misconceptions surrounding the Black American Cultures; it goes without saying that in numerous professions colleagues may view you in a different way because of antecedent stereotypes. I have noted that there many stereotypes in the job market. There are slight discrimination events which may go unnoticed sometimes (Harris & Graham, 2007).
Conclusion
From the above discussion, it is clear that the paper has demonstrated how cultural background influences the family system patterns found in family of origin. The main aspects of life that the paper has covered have ably showed that culture cuts across all aspects of life.
Cultural Experiences
Cultural experiences in the Black American setting include the monopoly of games such as basket ball. The experiences I have had are that I have hurt myself while trying to play the game. The interpretation of the African American cultural definition of a man may mean that the injuries I got while playing the game portrayed me as weak (Chase, 1999).
Spiritual History
The spiritual history of the African American culture is based on the fact the notion that there is a supreme being controlling everything on earth (Smith, 2011).
History of Racism/Discrimination
The history of slave in America dates trade dates back in the 1775-1783 before the famous American Revolution. The north states abolished slave trade. A stable system of slave and Free states were developed whereby antislavery forces intensified. The denouncing of the slave trade gave birth to a period of racial discrimination (Mellafe, 1975).
Medical History
Different cultural differences have different attitudes towards medical services and their capacity to understand of cope with certain illnesses. The African American’s cultures value importance of family and church. The key family members are relied on in advising on different health issues (Euromed Info, 2012).
Addictions/Mental Health Issues
The addictions and mental health related issues are minimal in the African American cultural settings since the family bonds are strengthened hence the family takes part in advising the sick member on the various avenues to adopt so as to get well (Euromed Info,2012).
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