Ethnic Groups and Discrimination

African Americans, did they colonize or immigrate to the United States? Going by the definitions given by several different references, it is kind of difficult to determine if Africans immigrated or colonized over into the United States since they were not given a choice in the situation. In the Modern Language Association (MLA)(2007): immigrate (verb) means to introduce or send as immigrants. Going by this definition, I think that they were immigrated to the U.S. Many Africans were brought over to the U.S in what was called the triangular trade. According to the findings of Franklin, J. and Moss Jr., A.(2000):

The process began at the trading posts on the west coast of Africa. African Kings and merchants cooperated and traded slaves for European goods, […] [this] was known as the first leg of the triangular trade. [Next, came] the long trip across the Atlantic Ocean to the New World. This was called the middle passage of the triangular trade. […] The last phase […] occurred after slaves were brought to the Americas. […] They were sold to plantations […] in exchange for goods such as cotton, tobacco and sugar. […] This was the last leg of the triangular trade.

Africans were being shipped over to the U.S until, 1807, when the U.S banned the slave the slave trade. Once in the United States, Africans faced prejudices, segregations, and racism, because they were looked upon as property. They were just slaves and servants to their owners. These owners didn’t feel as if the Africans deserved to have any rights as humans. Africans were on the receiving end of racism from each group of people who bought them; these buyers believed that they were superior to Africans. While working Africans were segregated. They were often segregated from each other; there were some who were allowed to work inside of the houses of their owners and so who were not allowed to do the same. It is obvious that they were also victims of prejudice people being that they were bought and sold like property.

The Africans that were brought to America had to face many different forms of discrimination, during the triangular trade era and afterwards. After the ban on slave trade, slave ownership was still allowed. This is showed an example of institutional discrimination. Of course, while in slavery, Africans were denied opportunities and equal rights from operations of society, but this was also the case for those were considered free. Affirmative action was not an issue during the early American years, so there weren’t any efforts to recruit subordinate group members for job promotions or educational opportunities. They were faced with redlining, because some land owners did not want any Africans, whether considered African Americans or not, buying property near them, or anywhere at all.

I am an African American, and I identify with both the African and the United States mainstream culture. I do not identify with them both equally;